Lab 1: Code Review

Findings: Blender

License: GNU General Public License

Observed patch: https://developer.blender.org/D6532

Other sources:
- https://wiki.blender.org/wiki/Tools/CodeReview

- https://wiki.blender.org/wiki/Process/Contributing_Code

The review process for the Blender project works by, first giving a detailed description on what you’re trying to do. This includes what is the problem you’re trying to solve, what is the solution you’re proposing, and a mock-up of how this solution will work. This will then result in a discussion about this idea bringing out various opinions and recommendations on how this proposed idea should be brought forward. The discussion that takes place is most of the review process as while the author is working on the code, their ideas are being looked over by other developers typically 3 or 4 of them. Another part of the review process is more on the technical side such as making sure patches submitted are small and that any code changes made fit the style of the file being changed.

The advantage of the Blender project review process is that it requires developers to have some thought into their ideas before they are implemented. This is to make sure that there is a clear vision on what the developer wants to do. The disadvantage to this process is that there are quite a few roadblocks before you can get started on your idea. If I were to submit a patch to this community I would at first clearly state on what I want to do and would show something that gives some idea on what I want to accomplish with my patch. Then I would try to follow all of the technical and design guidelines during the creation of my patch, while at the same time taking in feedback along the way.

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Findings: Atom

License: MIT

Observed patch: https://github.com/atom/atom/pull/19862

Other sources: 
- https://github.com/atom/atom/blob/master/CONTRIBUTING.md#before-submitting-an-enhancement-suggestion

- https://flight-manual.atom.io/faq/sections/how-can-i-contribute-to-atom/

The review process for the Atom project works by having your ideas and code discussed with other developers. This is done in the, “Pull Request”, section on Github as there is a forum that allows this discussion to take place. Once the author is finished they can submit a pull request and from there an automated test takes place checking if their code can work on the various platforms Atom supports. Once that check has been passed another will take place checking if the code given can merge into the base branch with no difficulties. If the merging is determined to be safe then the code given will be merged into the base branch.

The advantage to this review process is that you can just get started on your work and can even submit with no human intervention. However, the disadvantage to this approach is that the repository can be cluttered with error filled pull requests. As of which, if I were trying to contribute to this community I would first get feedback on what I want to do and as I work I will ask for opinions to see if I’m on the right track.