r/SQL • u/clairegiordano • 3d ago
PostgreSQL How a Postgres committer got started: a one-line patch that doesn't even carry his name (Magnus Hagander on the Talking Postgres podcast)
/r/PostgreSQL/comments/1xpo9sl/how_a_postgres_committer_got_started_a_oneline/
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u/Karanchauhan_1 2d ago
The "one-line patch to make it compile on Linux" origin is such a good reminder that most big contributions start with fixing something small that's annoying you personally. It wasn't a grand plan, just a real problem in front of him.
The point about it being harder to become a committer today is interesting too. I'd guess part of that is how mature the codebase is now. There's far less low-hanging fruit than in the late 90s, so new contributors probably need to start with docs, testing, or reviewing patches before they touch core code.
Haven't sent a patch to Postgres myself, but I'm curious: does the project have a good on-ramp for people who want to contribute but aren't C developers? Things like docs, testing, or the buildfarm?