Intro

Hi, I'm Vivek, an undergraduate data science student from India. This was my first Hacktoberfest, and I was excited to participate and contribute to open-source projects. You can find my GitHub account here.

Highs and Lows

During Hacktoberfest, I had some great highs and a few challenges. One of my biggest accomplishments was successfully making my first pull request on a popular open-source project. It was a real light-bulb moment when my contribution was accepted and merged into the project. This gave me a sense of achievement and motivation to contribute more.

However, I also encountered challenges. There were times when I faced issues that seemed impossible to fix, especially when I tried to work on more complex projects or when I had to deal with conflicts in my pull requests. To adapt to these situations, I reached out to the project maintainers and the open-source community for guidance and support. I learned a lot from their feedback and was able to overcome these challenges.

Growth

Before Hacktoberfest 2023, I had a basic understanding of version control and some programming languages. Through my contributions, I not only improved my coding skills but also gained a deeper understanding of Git and GitHub. I learned how to work collaboratively with other developers and follow best practices in open-source development. My experience in Hacktoberfest has motivated me to continue contributing to open-source projects beyond this event and explore new technologies.

My learning and career goals have expanded since working on these new projects. I now have a stronger desire to become a more active member of the open-source community and contribute to projects that align with my interests in data science and machine learning. I believe that open-source contributions can help me improve my skills, build a portfolio, and connect with like-minded individuals in the tech industry. Overall, Hacktoberfest has been a valuable experience for my personal and professional growth.