[gsoc] Frequently asked questions

[Seb]

---
@students: Please make sure to read these three guides:

https://google.github.io/gsocguides/student/index
https://developers.google.com/open-source/gsoc/faq
https://github.com/OrkoHunter/gsoc-FAQs
---

Additionally, here are some of the more common questions that we 
get asked:

Q: How do I apply for project ideas?
------------------------------------

You apply on Google's official GSoC platform. The applications 
are open from March 25 18:00 UTC	to April 9 18:00 UTC. This is a 
a _hard_ deadline and enforced by Google. Hence, we encourage you 
to submit your application early, s.t. you don't accidentally 
miss this year's GSoC.

https://developers.google.com/open-source/gsoc/timeline

Q: Can I apply earlier?
-----------------------

Absolutely. You can continue to improve and update your 
application until its frozen on April 9 18:00 UTC (i.e. the 
application deadline). However, remember to submit the final PDF 
_before_ the deadline.

We encourage you to do so, because we might be able to provide 
feedback on your application before the application deadline. In 
other words: you would still have time to incorporate this 
feedback in your application.

Q: Can I send you my application for review?
--------------------------------------------

No. Please don't. We won't review any applications sent via email 
or other means. We will only review applications posted via 
Google's GSoC platform:

https://summerofcode.withgoogle.com

However, we do encourage you to discuss your ideas publicly as 
this will help you to create a stronger application.

Q: I'm new to D and would like to apply. Is this still possible?
-------------------------------------------------------------

Yes of course and we do encourage you to do so.
However, we recommend you to get involved with D prior to your 
proposal submission deadline in April.
Two good starting points are:

- https://tour.dlang.org
- https://wiki.dlang.org/Get_involved

Bugzilla can be a bit daunting at first, but there's also the 
"bootcamp" label on Bugzilla:

https://issues.dlang.org/buglist.cgi?component=phobos&keywords=bootcamp%2C%20preapproved&keywords_type=anywords&list_id=225005&product=D&query_format=advanced&resolution=---

You can always ask for help and pointers to getting involved on 
the DForum, IRC or Slack.

Q: Can you help me with picking projects?
-----------------------------------------

This depends on your personal preferences and as we don't really 
know you, we would have a hard time to help you to find a good 
project. However, the GSoC project idea page [1] provides quite a 
few ideas to help you to get started. If you already have 
experience with D, you might also want to propose your own 
project (maybe there's this one thing that always bothered you 
about D and you now can take an entire summer to fix/improve 
this).
For students who are new to D, we recommend picking one of the 
projects that are easier to get started.

My personal recommendation would be the Dub project (D's package 
manager) as moderately simple to get the ball going here:

- understand Dub's architecture 
(https://github.com/dlang/dub/blob/master/ARCHITECTURE.md)
- find an issue on Dub's issue tracker 
(https://github.com/dlang/dub/issues)
- clone/fork dub
- run build.sh to build dub
- fix the issue (-> this is your opportunity to learn more about 
D and Dub)
- submit the PR

Another good project for newcomers would be the Mir project as it 
doesn't depend on D's standard library, so the learning surface 
is lower.

[1] https://wiki.dlang.org/GSOC_2019_Ideas

Q: What can I do improve my application?
----------------------------------------

tl;dr:

- Gather feedback & knowledge on your project (e.g. here on this 
NG)
- Work out a realistic road-map
- Get involved with your project (e.g. fixing first issues)

Q: What should my application include?
--------------------------------------

Check this guide for more details:

https://google.github.io/gsocguides/student/writing-a-proposal

Q: What are the key criteria that you'll be looking at in my 
application?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few rough points that we will look at:

- your proposed road-map (i.e. how likely is it for you to finish 
successfully?)
- your skill set in regards to your project (i.e. have you done 
anything in the problem domain you're applying for?)
- engagement in the community / experience with D (i.e. your 
prior contributions to D)
...

I highly recommend you to read this student guide as it contains 
very helpful advice on the GSoC:

http://write.flossmanuals.net/gsocstudentguide/what-is-google-summer-of-code


Q: Will there be an interview stage?
------------------------------------

We will definitely ask you a few follow-up questions on your 
application when you're in your top selection. The more you 
answer in your application, the less we will need to ask you 
afterwards.

tl;dr:
  - make sure to provide a working email address in your 
application
  - keep checking your inbox every now and then after you 
submitted your GSoC application.


Q: Where can I ask more questions?
----------------------------------

- DForum 
(https://forum.dlang.org/newpost/general?subject=%5Bgsoc%5D)
- IRC (#d)
- (depending on the project) on its issue tracker
- Slack (#gsoc channel)
- Mail (gsoc [at] dlang [dot] rocks)

Happy hacking!