List of resources mentioned by Jarrad during opening talk at IFT All-hands 2025

1. A Study of the Relationships between Source Code Metrics and Attractiveness in Free Software Projects (2010)

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/5631691

Summary: This paper investigates how source code metrics (e.g., complexity, size) correlate with project attractiveness, showing that better-structured code can help attract new contributors.

2. From the Cathedral to the Bazaar: An Empirical Study of the Lifecycle of Volunteer Community Projects (2007)

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-0-387-72486-7_3

Audio book https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6ZIxLvc9iY&list=PL1a38XXThqSZhrPLWqqPkFubQyAokvZ4-

Summary: Analyzes the lifecycle patterns of volunteer-driven OSS projects, emphasizing growth dynamics, community transitions, and the fragility of long-term sustainability.

3. An Empirical Comparison of Developer Retention in the RubyGems and npm Software Ecosystems (2017)

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11334-017-0303-4

Summary: Compares developer retention trends in RubyGems and npm. Finds npm has stronger contributor retention mechanisms and community growth.

4. Open Source Software: What We Know (and Do Not Know) about Motivations to Contribute (2008)

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/220047195_Open_Source_Software_What_We_Know_and_Do_Not_Know_about_Motives_to_Contribute

Summary: Summarizes existing studies on why people contribute to open source, identifying gaps and calling for deeper behavioral and organizational analysis.

5. Why Hackers Do What They Do: Understanding Motivation and Effort in Free/Open Source Software Projects (2007)

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/6277090