I Read Approachable Open Source

Published December 24, 2024

Previously: “Approachable Open Source” Available for Preorder, You Deserve a Tech Bookclub

I wrapped up Brian’s Approachable Open Source earlier this month and really enjoyed it. I won’t spoil much, but I’ve long been a fan of Brian’s written communication (since working together at Target) and found the mix of personal anecdotes (Brian’s personal burnout) and pragmatic advice (the core files in a repository; choosing a license) a good variety of content that kept the prose from being too dry. In my opinion, the single most important idea is that you don’t have to write code to contribute to open source. And for that reason I can wholeheartedly recommend it.

I also listened to ShopTalk Show #637 where Brian appeared as a guest and they all talked about his book. Some specific moments that stood out to me and I wrote down:

• CSS !important re: GPL license cascade
• MIT == “Money in Transit”
• GPL == “Gonna Pay Lawsuit(s)”
• Brian: “the whole book is an exercise on it depends”

Thanks for writing the book, Brian. I look forward to reading more of your writing and dearly hope there’s another book in your future. :)

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Last modified December 23, 2024  #review   #reading 

• You Deserve a Tech Bookclub