What’s one thing you wish you had known before open-sourcing your first project?

Question

Hey everyone! 👋

Open source has become a big and important approach, helping developers, startups, and communities build incredible tools together.
 But open-sourcing a project isn't just about uploading code to GitHub—there are plenty of challenges, surprises, and lessons along the way, right??.

For those who have open-sourced a project, what’s the one thing you wish you had known before starting?

Was it about managing contributions?
Dealing with feature requests?
Setting boundaries for free vs. paid versions?
Licensing challenges?
Or maybe just understanding the time commitment it takes to maintain a thriving open-source project?
Let’s share insights and experiences to help others in the community who might be considering open-sourcing their projects.

Looking forward to hearing your stories and advice! 🚀

Anmol Kushwah · Accepted Answer

The power of community in any open source is something that I wish I knew a bit earlier. It's incredible how much a strong, engaged community can contribute—whether it’s through bug fixes, feature suggestions, or simply supporting the project. For example, with Sparrow, we've seen how a dedicated community of developers and users can help push the project forward, offering valuable feedback and contributing to its growth. Building that community early on really helps sustain the project and bring it to the next level!

M S Sulthan · Answer

One thing I learned the hard way was how crucial it is to have well-defined policies from the start—contribution guidelines, a code of conduct, and clear licensing terms. They set expectations, protect the project legally, and create a welcoming environment for contributors. Policies are the backbone of sustainable open-source projects!

Amreli steels · Answer

For me, it was understanding the importance of documentation.

Yerang Park | AI-Powered Vision · Answer

Clear documentation makes or breaks adoption.

Palwasha Yousaf · Answer

I totally agree! One thing I wish I had known earlier was the amount of time and energy it takes to manage pull requests and issues consistently.

Kimberly Cash · Answer

One thing I wasn't prepared for was how much feedback I get!

Darius Black · Answer

Before I released it, I ought to have figured out how to obtain a valid license.

Rahul Rajagopal · Answer

@anmol_kushwah thank you for sharing your experience! sounds amazing that strong community helps in driving the product to the next level. 
how did you go about building up the community, especially on early stage? is there some specific strategies?

Laurencio Trevino · Answer

Managing contributions was a bigger challenge than I thought.

Ariel Benson · Answer

At first, I thought it was just about the code, but then I realized managing and prioritizing those request took a whole different mindset.

Peyton Walsh · Answer

It's easy to underestimate how much effort goes into reviewing and merging changes, especially when the community grows. 😅

Frances Diazon · Answer

For me, managing contributions was a bit overwelming at first.

Hilario Poguet · Answer

something  I didn’t anticipate was how much time I’d spend on managing expectations

Evan Washington · Answer

A good roadmap for future features helped me retain contributors and keep people excited.

Conor Thomson · Answer

I had no idea how much personal time it would take to maintain an open-source projects.

What’s one thing you wish you had known before open-sourcing your first project?

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