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Inequalities in Open Source Software Development: Analysis of Contributor’s Commits in Apache Software Foundation Projects

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  • Tadeusz Chełkowski
  • Peter Gloor
  • Dariusz Jemielniak

Abstract

While researchers are becoming increasingly interested in studying OSS phenomenon, there is still a small number of studies analyzing larger samples of projects investigating the structure of activities among OSS developers. The significant amount of information that has been gathered in the publicly available open-source software repositories and mailing-list archives offers an opportunity to analyze projects structures and participant involvement. In this article, using on commits data from 263 Apache projects repositories (nearly all), we show that although OSS development is often described as collaborative, but it in fact predominantly relies on radically solitary input and individual, non-collaborative contributions. We also show, in the first published study of this magnitude, that the engagement of contributors is based on a power-law distribution.

Suggested Citation

  • Tadeusz Chełkowski & Peter Gloor & Dariusz Jemielniak, 2016. "Inequalities in Open Source Software Development: Analysis of Contributor’s Commits in Apache Software Foundation Projects," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(4), pages 1-19, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0152976
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0152976
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Elinor Ostrom, 2000. "Collective Action and the Evolution of Social Norms," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 14(3), pages 137-158, Summer.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ciechanowski, Leon & Jemielniak, Dariusz & Gloor, Peter A., 2020. "TUTORIAL: AI research without coding: The art of fighting without fighting: Data science for qualitative researchers," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 322-330.

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