Since the term “open source” was first coined in 1998, software was indeed the only noun being described by this adjectival phrase for a long time—at least in the public domain. As the new century began, people started to take note of how code was being shared and began to apply the ideals of sharing and collaboration to other things.

With the focus on open source software comes a pervasive problem: a community built around open source software creation is automatically assumed by many to be a developers-only club.

This is a misperception Red Hatters are very quick to correct.

There is no denying that developers are a key part of any open source software project, but they are certainly not the only key part. In any given open source project, there is a variety of other content beyond the code that needs to be created to make the project successful.

The source in open source projects is not always code. It’s documentation, web content, and social media. It’s systems administration, content management, and quality assurance. The source is any aspect of an open source project, and because the source can be nearly anything, any contributor interested in being part of a community should be able to find the source with which they can work.

At Red Hat, all of our Code is Open. But at All Things Open 2021, we will also demonstrate that everything that we do is about open source: our processes, our creativity, and our culture. We are excited to see you all here soon in our hometown of Raleigh!

The Featured Blog Posts series will highlight posts from partners and members of the All Things Open community leading up to the conference in October.