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While I agree that Github is a part of your resume, I don't think it's the whole thing. If I was providing a link to my account when applying for a job, I woul

While I agree that Github is a part of your resume, I don't think it's the whole thing. If I was providing a link to my account when applying for a job, I would probably link to some specific projects and provide some narrative around them, rather than just saying "here's 20 projects I've worked on, go nuts". If the recruiter wants to look through everything else then fine, but they shouldn't expect perfection from everything. Some other thoughts I had on the article: "Too many forked repositories": You just need to click on Sources[1] to see the user's actual repos. "Missing or unclear descriptions": If repos are just simple little side-projects, they don't necessarily need descriptions - I know what they are, I know what they do, they aren't there for anyone but me, I don't expect them to be starred or forked. "Old repositories": So because I wrote something a year ago, I can never go back to it? What's wrong with having a record of achievement? A display of progress. "Mediocre code": If we were only allowed to store perfect code, there would never be any code on Github. [1] https://github.com/danielsamuels?tab=repositories https://github.com/danielsamuels?tab=repositories

tomswartz07 12y ago
I agree on almost all points. However, I think that the author has a point with the 'mediocre code'. If you're hand-picking a project to highlight, you should probably be sure that the code is at least a little bit polished. It might just be personal preference, but I've seen so many great projects that have absolutely abysmal code standards. Some even mixed tabs and spaces! shudder
- Lockyy 12y ago
  Except you can't hand pick a project to highlight. Github does the selection for you. I like the idea of Github as a resume for showing people how you work, but I don't want to have to carefully curate all my public repositories because it is primarily a place for storage. Github really does need a way to pick and choose what appears on your main profile page.
  - tomswartz07 12y ago
    Oh no- I should clarify- if you're hand-picking the projects to highlight from within your resume or personal website. And yes, I agree- it would be very nice to be able to highlight specific projects within GitHub itself.
k-mcgrady 12y ago
>> "If repos are just simple little side-projects, they don't necessarily need descriptions - I know what they are, I know what they do, they aren't there for anyone but me, I don't expect them to be starred or forked." Why put it in a public repo then?
- larrybolt 12y ago
  Same like josteink said, paid repos cost money. And even if there is no description, readme or any documentation, It's still possible to find them. And they may prove useful for someone who is trying to build a similar project.
- josteink 12y ago
  Because private repos costs money, to encourage public activity and sharing. That's the github model. With that model in place you cannot expect anything else.
  - k-mcgrady 12y ago
    Free private repos: https://bitbucket.org/plans https://bitbucket.org/plans

tomswartz07 12y ago

I agree on almost all points. However, I think that the author has a point with the 'mediocre code'. If you're hand-picking a project to highlight, you should probably be sure that the code is at least a little bit polished. It might just be personal preference, but I've seen so many great projects that have absolutely abysmal code standards. Some even mixed tabs and spaces! shudder

Lockyy 12y ago
Except you can't hand pick a project to highlight. Github does the selection for you. I like the idea of Github as a resume for showing people how you work, but I don't want to have to carefully curate all my public repositories because it is primarily a place for storage. Github really does need a way to pick and choose what appears on your main profile page.
- tomswartz07 12y ago
  Oh no- I should clarify- if you're hand-picking the projects to highlight from within your resume or personal website. And yes, I agree- it would be very nice to be able to highlight specific projects within GitHub itself.

k-mcgrady 12y ago

>> "If repos are just simple little side-projects, they don't necessarily need descriptions - I know what they are, I know what they do, they aren't there for anyone but me, I don't expect them to be starred or forked." Why put it in a public repo then?

larrybolt 12y ago
Same like josteink said, paid repos cost money. And even if there is no description, readme or any documentation, It's still possible to find them. And they may prove useful for someone who is trying to build a similar project.
josteink 12y ago
Because private repos costs money, to encourage public activity and sharing. That's the github model. With that model in place you cannot expect anything else.
- k-mcgrady 12y ago
  Free private repos: https://bitbucket.org/plans https://bitbucket.org/plans