rn-116: include retrospective interview with Chandra Pratap

Author: sivaraam

rev_news/drafts/edition-116.md

@@ -29,9 +29,168 @@ This edition covers what happened during the months of September 2024 and Octobe
 ### Support
 -->
 
-<!---
-## Developer Spotlight:
--->
+
+## Developer Spotlight: Chandra Pratap
+
+_Editor's note: Just like in our previous edition, we return with another
+ GSoC retrospective interview in this issue. We hope the reflections shared
+ by GSoC students will provide an insightful perspective that benefits
+ the community. As always, we welcome your thoughts and feedback!_
+
+* Who are you and what do you do?
+
+  Hey! I am Chandra Pratap (prefer going by Chand) and I am an
+  undergraduate student of Mathematics at SVNIT, Surat, India. I have
+  a passion for everything computing and like to solve leetcode-styled
+  problems in my free time or contribute to open-source software.
+
+* How did you initially become interested in contributing to Git, and
+  what motivated you to choose it as your GSoC project?
+
+  C was the first programming language that I learnt, and I wanted to
+  try working on a non-trivial software project. I watched a YouTube
+  video on open-source and that’s where I got the idea of looking for
+  open-source projects to contribute to. Git and VLC were the only
+  open-source C-written software that I was familiar with and used in
+  day-to-day life, so I decided to start contributing to Git out of the two.
+  By the time GSoC came around, Git was the only open-source
+  community that I was familiar with, so I decided to choose it as my
+  GSoC organization.
+
+* How do you feel your contribution has impacted the Git community
+  or the broader open-source ecosystem?
+
+  [My project](https://summerofcode.withgoogle.com/programs/2024/projects/tlh611d7)
+  was about moving and improving reftable tests, so I think
+  my contributions made life somewhat easier for other Git hackers,
+  especially those that frequent the reftable sub-project. My project
+  didn’t really affect any user-facing aspect of Git, so I don’t think it had
+  a huge impact on the broader open-source ecosystem, besides the
+  fact that it gained another lifelong contributor.
+
+* Is there any aspect of Git that you now see differently after having
+  contributed to it?
+
+  Everything, to be honest. Working on and with Git for the duration of
+  my project completely changed my mental model for the tool. Before
+  GSoC, Git was a clunky tool reserved for software development work
+  but post-Git, I know the most frequent commands like the back of my
+  hand, and I’ve already used Git to version control many of my non
+  software files. I feel like I’ve learnt enough Git to last my entire career.
+
+* How do you balance your contributions with other responsibilities like
+  work or school?
+
+  I had summer vacation for the entire duration of GSoC and no other work
+  commitments, so I had no problems finding time for my GSoC project.
+
+* Can you share how GSoC helped enhance your technical and non
+  technical skills (like communication, project management, etc.)?
+
+  In terms of technical skills, I think my C and Git skills saw the biggest jump.
+  I am a lot more comfortable working with those two tools than when I
+  was pre-GSoC. Besides that, I’m a lot less scared of the command line
+  now. In terms of non-technical skills, I believe I’ve gotten a lot better at
+  composing mails and communicating with other professionals. I’ve learnt
+  to write with the right amount of professionalism, so I don’t appear too
+  uptight or too lax, the right way to respond to constructive feedback, how
+  to time my schedule to fit with others’, especially those living in other
+  parts of the globe, and how to ask good questions.
+
+* What was your biggest takeaway or learning from GSoC that you now
+  apply regularly in your work?
+
+  I’d say the biggest takeaway from GSoC for me was that it is normal for
+  everyone to face difficulties when trying to learn a new codebase, tool, etc,
+  or even a different part of the same codebase. It is important to persevere
+  and not be afraid of asking questions to achieve the desired results. Other
+  than that, I’ve learnt a lot about good practices in software development,
+  like appropriately splitting commits and writing good commit messages,
+  that I subconsciously incorporate in my work now.
+
+* What was the biggest challenge you faced during your contributions
+  to Git, and how did you overcome it?
+
+  The biggest challenge in contributing to Git was the initial phase of
+  getting involved. I remember starting out working on a small patch for
+  about 2 months with a lot of help from other contributors before it got
+  accepted into Git’s upstream. After a few initial contributions, I grew more
+  confident and could steadily find things to work on and produce
+  acceptable results. The key to overcoming this challenge was to be
+  persistent and patient, and not being afraid of asking silly questions.
+
+* Have you thought about mentoring new GSoC students?
+
+  I’m not sure about being a full-on mentor, but I’d love to co-mentor
+  any future GSoC student(s) interested in working on the reftable
+  project.
+
+* If you could get a team of expert developers to work full time on
+  something in Git for a full year, what would it be?
+
+  The [Git GUI](https://git-scm.com/docs/git-gui) tool. I believe that
+  would make Git far more accessible than it currently is and get it
+  incorporated in a lot more people’s day-to-day works.
+
+* If you could remove something from Git without worrying about
+  backwards compatibility, what would it be?
+
+  The packed-refs format for refs seems redundant to me now that
+  reftable is a core part of Git.
+
+* What is your favourite Git-related tool/library, outside of Git itself?
+
+  [GitGitGadget](https://gitgitgadget.github.io/) was a lifesaver when
+  I had just started contributing to Git, so that is probably my favourite
+  Git related tool.
+
+* What is your toolbox for interacting with the mailing list and for
+  development of Git?
+
+  I used git’s `send-email` to send patches to the mailing list (especially
+  the `--compose` and `--annotate` flags) and Gmail’s online client to
+  convey non-patch mails. For developing Git, I used Vim as the editor
+  on an Ubuntu machine and Git as the version control software (duh).
+
+* How do you envision your own involvement with Git or other
+  open-source projects in the future?
+
+  I plan on making small contributions to Git from time to time, since I
+  cannot find enough time for larger patches. Other than that, I’ll try to
+  volunteer as a Git mentor for future GSoC or Outreachy cohorts.
+  Regarding other open-source projects, I’ll try contributing to them when
+  I learn a new technology and want a real-world experience.
+
+* What is your advice for people who want to start Git development?
+  Where and how should they start?
+
+  Go through Git’s [‘My First Contribution tutorial’](https://git-scm.com/docs/MyFirstContribution)
+  for the initial setup and to get an idea of what’s it like
+  to work on Git. Then work on a few ‘microprojects’ ([more information on
+  the Git Developer's website](https://git.github.io/General-Microproject-Information/) )
+  to dip your toes in the Git Development community. From there, you
+  can figure out interesting stuff to work on by yourself.
+
+* Would you recommend other students or contributors to participate in
+  the GSoC, or other mentoring programs, working on Git? Why? Do you
+  have advice for them?
+
+  Yes. I believe that Git is a tool that every working professional can find
+  useful regardless of whether they work in the software industry or not
+  and working on Git through an open-source program is an excellent way
+  to get good at it in a short period of time. There’s also the added benefit
+  of joining a large and active community of amazingly experienced
+  developers who can teach you a lot about writing software, and the
+  software development workflow in general.
+
+  I think the key to getting selected as a participant in GSoC or other
+  mentoring programs is getting involved as early as possible. The more
+  time you allow yourself to get familiar with Git’s codebase and
+  development workflow, the easier it becomes to find an apt project and
+  write a reasonable proposal for it. Also, the initial phase of contributions is
+  the most difficult part of getting involved with an open-source project, so it
+  is better to allow yourself ample time to tackle that initial hurdle.
+
 
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