git-into-gsoc

git-into-gsoc

Find your first open-source contribution and prepare for Google Summer of Code (GSoC), using real data instead of guesses.

Every year, many first-timers end up in a project that stopped answering, ask for an issue three people already claimed, or send a proposal that reads like a hundred others. git-into-gsoc reads the official GSoC site, the organization archive, and GitHub, and shows you:

• which organizations fit what you know and what you care about
• which of their repositories actually merge newcomers' pull requests (proposed changes)
• which beginner issues (reported bugs or tasks) nobody has claimed yet
• where the program is right now, and what to do this week

It works in your terminal and inside AI assistants such as Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, and VS Code. It never invents organizations, issues, or dates, and it never helps anyone send spam.

Start in two minutes

1. Install. On macOS, Linux, or Windows with WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux), open a terminal and run:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/anandkaranubc/git-into-gsoc/main/install.sh | bash

On Windows PowerShell:

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/anandkaranubc/git-into-gsoc/main/install.ps1 | iex

You only need an internet connection. If something is missing, the installer offers uv, a free tool that brings its own Python. It tells you what it installs and connects every AI assistant it finds. If it installs uv, uv adds its folder to your shell's startup file so the command is found in new terminals. Other ways to install.

Already use uv or pipx? Install the package from PyPI, the Python Package Index, then connect your assistants:

uv tool install git-into-gsoc    # or: pipx install git-into-gsoc
git-into-gsoc setup

2. Answer four questions in a new terminal:

git-into-gsoc start

You get the organizations that fit you, a shortlist, and your next steps with the exact commands. Press Enter to skip any question.

3. Come back any time. git-into-gsoc on its own shows your progress. git-into-gsoc next tells you what to do now: deadlines, changes on the issues you follow, and new beginner issues.

Tip

Searching issues uses GitHub's API, which allows only 60 requests an hour without signing in. Install GitHub's gh tool and run gh auth login once; git-into-gsoc picks it up by itself. Nothing else needs an account.

Use it in your AI assistant

The installer already connects the assistants it finds. To add git-into-gsoc as a plugin that updates with your assistant instead, run one line. You need uv, a free tool that starts the git-into-gsoc server your assistant talks to. That server uses MCP (the Model Context Protocol), the standard way AI assistants use outside tools. For Claude Code:

claude plugin install git-into-gsoc --marketplace anandkaranubc/git-into-gsoc

Use it in your AI assistant has the line for Codex, GitHub Copilot CLI, Gemini CLI, Antigravity, VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, and Claude Desktop, and how to update or remove each one.

Then ask in your own words, for example: "I want to do Google Summer of Code. I know Python and like science. Where do I start?" The assistant uses the same live data as the terminal and shows its sources.

One-click buttons for the server alone. Each installs the newest release:

From zero to a first pull request

Each step names the command that does it. The beginner guide walks through all of them with explanations and expected results.

Step	Command	What you get
Find your fit	git-into-gsoc start	Three organizations that match you, with reasons
Look closer	git-into-gsoc org "NumFOCUS" --shortlist	Ideas page, chat channels, and past projects, saved to your shortlist
Pick a repository	git-into-gsoc repos "NumFOCUS"	Its repositories ranked by mentor activity and open beginner issues
Check it welcomes you	git-into-gsoc repo OWNER/NAME --track	Whether outside contributors' pull requests get merged, and how fast
Get your bearings	git-into-gsoc orient OWNER/NAME	Where the code lives, the test command its CI (automatic checks) runs, and the house rules
Find a free issue	git-into-gsoc issues --repo OWNER/NAME	Beginner issues with no linked pull request, assignee, or recent claim
Check before you comment	git-into-gsoc issue OWNER/NAME#123 --track	Claims, linked pull requests, and what to read first
Open your pull request	git-into-gsoc pr-check OWNER/NAME#456	Your pull request checked against the project's own rules
Write your proposal	git-into-gsoc proposal draft.md	What organizations reject proposals for, with evidence

OWNER/NAME and the numbers are placeholders for the repository and issue you choose. Every command takes --output json for scripts, and git-into-gsoc --help lists all of them.

Why you can trust what it says

• Evidence over guesses. Organizations come from the official list and the public archive. Dates come from the official site, and future years are labelled as estimates. Each result says why it was ranked where it is.
• Free means free. Issue availability comes from the issue's own timeline: linked pull requests, assignees, and "can I work on this?" claims with their dates.
• Read-only and private. It only reads public data and never posts anywhere. Your profile and progress stay in a file on your computer. There is no account, no tracking, and no telemetry. See privacy and sources and limitations.
• No shortcuts. It will not mass-message maintainers, farm trivial pull requests, or write your proposal. It points you to each organization's AI policy and helps you do work you can explain.

Where to go next

I want to...	Start here
Understand GSoC and open source first	Beginner guide
Connect a specific AI assistant	Assistant setup
Look up a command	Command reference
See the tools assistants get	MCP reference
Fix a setup problem	Troubleshooting
Ask a question or tell us how it went	Open an issue

Help build it

git-into-gsoc is made for people taking their first steps in open source, and it is a good place to take one. Fixing a confusing sentence counts. So does reporting a command that did not work for you.

• Start with CONTRIBUTING.md. Setup takes a few minutes, and no previous open-source experience is needed.
• Pick an issue labelled good first issue.
• Read the architecture to see how the terminal tool, the assistant server, and the skill (written guidance that teaches your assistant how to use the tool) share one core.

If git-into-gsoc helped you, the most useful thing you can do is tell us what worked and what did not. It opens a public GitHub issue, so leave out anything private. Then tell a friend who is starting out.

License and disclaimer

MIT, see LICENSE.

This independent project is not affiliated with or endorsed by Google. Google Summer of Code and GSoC are trademarks of Google LLC. Always check dates, organizations, and rules on the official program site.