Exploring the Impact of Open-Source Software Documentation on Contributors Motivation and Participation
Authors
Schweitzer, Maciej Karol ; Szatmáry, Péter
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2023
Submitted on
2023-06-08
Pages
62
Abstract
Free and open-source software (FOSS) underpins many of the apps and devices we use every day. To keep such projects healthy, they rely on a steady ecosystem of volunteer contributors. Prior research has mapped barriers contributors face—especially problems with project documentation (guides, explanations, and contribution guidelines)—but has rarely examined the consequences of those problems in practice. This study presents a qualitative case study of the FlyByWire community to explore how contributors experience both too little, too much, and varying quality of documentation, and how that affects participation. We find that when documentation was lacking, members coped by asking peers for help and building social ties. After the FlyByWire team improved the documentation, some members still asked questions already answered in it, while helpers increasingly responded by linking to the relevant documentation rather than writing standard replies. Overall, whether newcomers persist or drop out depends on many factors, but community friendliness and the state of project documentation appear to be pivotal.
Fri og open source-software (FOSS) ligger bag mange af de apps og enheder, vi bruger til daglig. For at sådanne projekter kan trives, er et sundt økosystem af frivillige bidragydere vigtigt. Tidligere studier har beskrevet barrierer for bidragydere, især problemer med projektets dokumentation (vejledninger, beskrivelser og retningslinjer), men har sjældent undersøgt, hvilke konsekvenser disse problemer får i praksis. I dette studie præsenterer vi et kvalitativt casestudie af FlyByWire-fællesskabet for at forstå, hvordan bidragydere oplever både for lidt, for meget og varierende kvalitet i dokumentationen, og hvordan det påvirker deres deltagelse. Vi finder, at når dokumentationen var utilstrækkelig, søgte medlemmer hjælp hos hinanden og opbyggede relationer i fællesskabet. Efter at FlyByWire-teamet forbedrede dokumentationen, fortsatte nogle medlemmer med at stille spørgsmål, som allerede var besvaret, mens hjælperne i stigende grad svarede ved at linke til relevante dokumentationssider i stedet for at give standardforklaringer. Samlet tyder resultaterne på, at hvorvidt nye bidragydere fastholdes eller falder fra, afhænger af mange forhold, men at fællesskabets imødekommenhed og dokumentationens tilstand kan være afgørende faktorer.
[This apstract has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]