Google SoC 2007: Information for Students
Ubuntu is participating in the Google Summer of Code 2007, and is eager to attract good, capable, eligible students to apply for the projects.
If you are a registered student and are over 18 years of age, you can apply for one of the projects, or your own (applications open on the Summer of Code page starting March 14 2007).
We would like to select students who are enthusiastic about their projects and are able to commit the time and energy required to make them successful.
Please make your applications detailed and give us enough information to be able to make an intelligent selection. Please remember that being selected is a privilege and a great opportunity. The more you commit, the greater your chance of a fantastic reward at the end.
Additionally if it is really good your code might be included in Ubuntu!
Drupal's How To Write A Summer of Code Application - very useful info, read it! Thanks to Drupal for compiling this.
Things to consider
- You should know how to program already, preferably in Python.
- If your project involves a UI element, you should know the toolkit for your target desktop; GTK+ for Ubuntu or Xubuntu, Qt for Kubuntu.
- You should at least have a working knowledge of Ubuntu, and knowing our community and its working structure would be an advantage.
- Relative to the whole job market, not many people have the sorts of skills Ubuntu hacking will give you. Doing any serious work on Ubuntu will not only make you a more confident developer, it will look great on your CV/resume.
Don't feel you have to use one of the listed ideas, or even that they're necessarily good projects to work on! People just add them as they think of good beginner projects. In fact, a custom project proposal is likely to be more impressive, as it shows you've put time into researching the project and getting familiar with its needs.
How to succeed
- Don't overbook yourself. Working on your Summer of Code project should be your main activity for the entire summer. You'll have a lot to learn before you will get to the point where you can begin coding your project, and the projects are all non-trivial. We will provide you with amazing support from the mentors and community, but it is up to you to make sure that you can focus on your project
- Your mentor is here to help you; don't be afraid to ask the difficult questions, or even the easy ones!
All Ubuntu participants in the Summer of Code programme are subscribed to the ubuntu-soc mailing list. This list is an excellent place to ask for help, discuss ideas or shout to the world about how your project is going.
- Submit progress reports early and often. Use these to honestly reflect on how well you are doing towards your goals, and make adjustments to your project plan to match.
- Get your code public as soon as you can, ideally starting with the empty directory you start in. Make your changes public often.
You need submit a completed spec at the end of the project. It is best if you use the wiki as you go along, to make sure you capture as much relevant information as possible. See SpecLifeCycle for details of how to write a good spec. If you project does not yet have a spec use the SpecTemplate to create one. Don't forget to make sure your spec is registered in Blueprint.
Writing your application and proposal
- Write simply, concisely and describe the project in your own words.
- Include some evidence that you are a good programmer, past projects you've worked on are ideal but also just some background information is good enough.
- If you have already submitted patches to Ubuntu implementing part of your project, please link to them from the proposal.
Where possible discuss your proposal in advance on our mailing lists or on IRC to get feedback from the Ubuntu community
Ubuntu Projects
The lists of Ubuntu project ideas for Summer of Code 2007 are found on the main GoogleSoC2007 page.