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Assignment #1: Find a Git Repo and Write About It

Burak Cosar edited this page Feb 25, 2024 · 1 revision

Black "The Uncompromising Code Formatter"

Research

In my research for a super-good repository that shows characteristics of an exemplary Git repository, I came across various types of repositories in terms of their raison d'être and targets, to list a few:

  • Developers looking for community support
  • Individuals or organizations (companies etc.) presenting a product, seeking for feedback and/or contribution
  • Individuals or organizations offering useful tools and products to the community
  • Repositories that only contain educational content

and the list goes on.

After this overview, I decided to look for a repository that:

  • contains a working solution for a problem
  • has a community that both contributes and makes use of the product
  • not very recent in its foundation but still a work in progress

About The Repository: Black

Black is a Python code formatter that aims to help developers improve their productivity by presenting them a means to automatically format their code, as can be quoted from their introduction:

You will save time and mental energy for more important matters.

I find this repository a successful one in its execution both in terms of repository management and the product itself.

I would like to explain why I find this repository a successful one per the sub-topics listed below.

Introduction & ReadMe

When you get into the Black repository, the main folder greets you, below which the ReadMe file introduces the project to you, as expected from and usual to many GitHub repositories.

The ReadMe file is written in a certain order where the project is introduced, installation and usage instructions are provided, style and configuration are unveiled, and then some other topics that may be interesting to the community are included (testimonials, license, contributions, code of conduct etc.). Simply by going over the Readme file, a user knows what to expect, the level of credibility of the project and how to contribute to the project (if the user wishes to).

Clear Set of Instructions

The repository contains clear set of instructions regarding following topics: contribution, usage, changes, security, license, citations. In my point of view, detailed and specific instructions make it possible for community to be involved in the project in a swift manner.

The Project History & Activity

I found that the initial release of this project dates back to Mar 14, 2019, and it is still under development in various areas of improvement. As expected from any useful such product, this tool is actively in use, naturally used by developers, which keeps and will keep the project active unless a better alternative is introduced.

Community Involvement

As explained in above topics, the project has a very good infrastructure to have an active community in two main ways; the tool being efficient & useful and clear instructions that enable involvement.

Thanks to the ease of involvement and active usage of the tool, also backed by the advantage that the users are naturally developers themselves, the product is actively in constant testing. In a sense, the most of the community is potentially both the users and contributors of the project. This fact is easily observable in the issues section of the repository.

Conclusion

Black "The Uncompromising Code Formatter" is a helpful tool for developers. The target audience being developers, naturally, comes with the advantage of a strong community presence. The owners and contributors of the project make good use of GitHub to make sure that the documentation and structure of the project is presentable and clear. In my research, I was in search of a product that is very useful in nature, has a history and future, and big community; Black checks all these boxes in a decent manner.