Why contribute to the Developer Community?
Keep reading, and start contributing!!
The AT&T API Marketplace Developer Community is a new and exciting community dedicated to supporting you - the users of real time communications APIs and SDKs on the AT&T API Marketplace AT&T API Marketplace.
Leading edge software developers, creative enterprise application builders, and forward-thinking business leaders understand the power of embedded, programmable, real time communications. And this is where people like this come to get it done!
This is a new community, in it’s early days, but we have big ambitions. Big ambitions to help you - our developer partners - learn, grow, and be successful using the AT&T API Marketplace and the developer resources and tools.
Many of the developers who have already created accounts on the API Marketplace, are now exploring the Developer Community on a daily basis. They are averaging hundreds of pageviews. So now is good time to ask the following questions:
- Why would I want to contribute?
- How do I contribute?
- What are the benefits of contributing?
Users on the community are posting technical notes, demo videos, and answering questions from other users about how to use the APIs, SDKs, and other topics . Or they are sharing their knowledge about particular use cases or code snippets. These conversations can help everyone, and in some cases are helping to make improvements to the products or documentation for everyone’s benefit.
Why would I want to contribute?
The Developer Community will help users as they go through the software development journey using the AT&T API Marketplace. It will help them:
- Get answers for specific questions and problems to do with the APIs, SDKs and other topics
- Quickly learn about the essentials of a topic without the need for protracted research
- Get any missing or new information
- Bookmark specific posts and answers as references
All of the above becomes easier if others can help by sharing their knowledge, or you can help them.
Some developers might be using the Developer Community on a daily basis and are not yet signed up on the APIM. The advantage of signing up for an account is that you will be able to actually write a post of your own, and not just read posts from others.
Plus, it’s easy and free to register for a free trial account on the AT&T API Marketplace
How do I contribute?
Some people are quoted as saying there are no stupid questions, just the ones that go unasked. Well, the same might just as easily apply to contributions. Here are some ideas for worthwhile contributions:
Ask questions
- Read the general community guidelines before posting.
- Ask a question that has not already been asked about an existing topic.
- Check to see if your question or something similar has not already been asked. Be sure to mention you have checked other questions and answer threads and they don’t address your question, to show you have done your research.
- Assign the post to the best-fit category, and use any appropriate tags.
- After you make your post, follow up to answer questions from other users, and update your post as needed.
- Questions from new users are welcome, especially when first exploring how to use the AT&T API Marketplace platform
Answer questions
- Add something to an existing post to improve the content or quality
- Answer questions about a topic if you know the answer
- Post answers as comments in the thread of the original post, and not as a new post.
- You should provide validation for your answer, and add a short demo video if relevant
- If you are not an expert then you should mention that, but say the answer is valid, or you have used it yourself
- Make sure you give credits and links for any quotes or references to tutorials, documentation, etc. from other sources.
- Validate answers from others that you found helpful and leave helpful comments to give feedback, and help others
Answer your own questions
- At times, you may not get an answer to your question. What now?!
- Do not stop your own research, try to find an answer using other material and sources…
- If you find the answer before someone else responds, go back to your question and post the answer yourself.
- This way, your question and answer now become part of the body of helpful information for all users of the community
What are the benefits of contributing?
We want to encourage everyone to take advantage of this community We want you to know you can be part of it, no need to ask permission.
- Get help, and help others
- Share your existing knowledge
- Acquire new knowledge
- Give back to the community, it’s the right thing to do
- Helps your communication skills with other developers
- Learn how to write effective posts
- Promote yourself as knowledgeable and helpful
We want you to ask questions when you get stuck (it happens), and seek answers when you can’t figure it yourselves (it happens too). Many of your peers might be not be experts, or they might be experts in some areas but not in others. And some of us are just plain rookies. It can feel quite empowering to contribute - try it, you might like it!
Let’s get started!
Kandy CPaaS
Kim Jones