You don’t need to know how to code to contribute to Open Data Editor, you just need time and attitude. There are many possible ways to contribute to the project:

• Use the Open Data Editor and give us feedback
• Spread the word about it!
• Improve the documentation
• Add a translation
• Report issues
• Contribute to the code

Please read this guide for more details on the contribution process.

How can you help?

Giving us feedback

Use the Open Data Editor and give us feedback. You can try out all the features and report any issues you might encounter. You can also suggest improvements to the Open Data Editor’s look and layout. For example if something feels confusing or hard to find in the tool’s layout, you can suggest changes to make it easier to use.

Feedback from a beginner’s perspective is particularly welcome as it helps us improve usability.

To give us feedback you can either open an issue in the Github repository or reach out by email at info[at]okfn.org.

Spread the word

If you like the application, tell others about it! Spreading the word about Open Data Editor is also a valuable contribution to the project. Whether you share it on social media, write a blog post, create a tutorial video, or simply tell a friend, you’re helping more people discover and use the tool. Every bit of awareness and engagement makes a difference!

Documentation

Improving documentation

Documentation is always the best place to start contributing. If you spot a typo or you’ve ever thought, “I wish the documentation explained this more clearly,” you can help make it easier to understand. You can either flag that, or propose a modification. You can also add missing steps or explanations.

Adding examples

You can also contribute by adding examples! If you notice something is not covered in the documentation, try creating a helpful example and sharing it. You can also provide real-world use cases to show how Open Data Editor can be used. Every improvement makes Open Data Editor easier for everyone to use!

All documentation files are contained in this folder. You can just propose a change or add examples by opening a PR. Please always include a short description of what you changed and why, so it is easier to review it. If you don’t feel comfortable using Github, you can also send us an email with the proposed changes at info[at]okfn.org.

Case studies

If you have started using Open Data Editor in your daily work, and would like to share with the world how the tool is helping you, you can always write a blog about it. If possible, try to include photos and screenshots. If you need guidance, you can always reach out to us at info[at]okfn.org. You can send us your blog at that same email address.

Translations

The ODE now supports English, Spanish, Portuguese and French. If you are interesting in translating the app and the documentation into other languages, please, contact us via email at info[at]okfn.org

Reporting a bug

We use Github as a code and issues hosting platform. To report a bug or propose a new feature, please open an issue in the repository. Please provide a detailed description of the bug and include screenshots. There are a few predefined issue templates to help you get started.

If you don’t feel comfortable using Github, you can also send us an email at info[at]okfn.org.

Code contributions

Pull requests

Please check first the issue tracker. Look for issues with “help wanted” or “good first issue.” If you want to submit a PR there needs to be a corresponding issue in the issue tracker. Please link the issue in your PR, and provide a brief explanation of the changes you are pushing. In case there is no issue, please submit an issue first and assign it to the Product Owner Romina Colman (@romicolman) for review and approval before moving on with your PR. You can include any question you may have in the issue.

What is the review process for your contribution?

Your contribution will be reviewed by the Open Data Editor core team at Open Knowledge Foundation.

In case of documentation and code contributions, a member of the core team will check if it is relevant, helpful, and easy to understand. If small changes are needed, they suggest edits. Once everything looks good, the contribution is approved and added to the project, and the contributor is acknowledged (because every contribution matters!).

In case of bugs and feedback contributions, the core team will discuss if and how it can be implemented. We can include you in the discussion if you wish so. Once we have a clear pathway we will notify you.

Do you need help?

If at any point you need help, feel free to contact us via email at info[at]okfn.org, or tag the Product Owner Romina Colman (@romicolman) on Github.

Where possible, the Open Data Editor core team will try to help and mentor new contributors. However, the core team is small and it may happen that your first few contributions come in at a time when all are very busy. Do please have patience.