I'm Nabhag, a final-year Computer Engineering student from India, driven by a deep passion for Engineering. Beyond my academics, I'm devoted to crafting Plugins and Integrations that seamlessly connect various products, resulting in substantial impacts. I’m an Active Contributor in the RocketChat Apps Community, and I firmly believe in transparently sharing my learning journey and progress. This involvement has opened doors to exciting opportunities, allowing me to shape platform integrations and extensions. Every Hackathon fuels my passion for designing innovative plugins, while my broader focus extends to creating developer tools and products that enhance the overall developer experience. Embracing the world of open source empowers me to work on projects close to my heart. While my primary identity revolves around being an OpenSource Contributor, I've also had the honor of taking part in Google Summer of Code, which has added another layer of enrichment to my journey.

My journey in the world of technology has been quite a ride. It all began with me diving into C++ programming and exploring the intricacies of Data Structures and Algorithms during my degree course. Initially, programming felt like a foreign concept, but I gradually picked up the ropes. However, I soon felt a sense of monotony and decided to switch to Java when I couldn't find exciting projects within the realm of C++. As I delved into Java, I started creating small console applications, only to realize that I wasn't making much progress.

Then, a game-changer entered the scene: WeMakeDevs Community introduced me to the concept of Learning in Public and the intriguing challenge of 100DaysOfCode. This was my gateway to the world of Full Stack Development. Embracing this approach, I began sharing my daily learning experiences on Twitter. Thankfully, through the 100DaysOfCode Challenge, I connected with like-minded individuals who shared my passion.

As I continued, I found myself gravitating towards Backend Engineering. However, I realized that I was stuck in a cycle of endlessly learning without any concrete application and missing real users. Seeking a breakthrough, I embarked on an internship with a fintech startup. Here, I was responsible for crafting an Investing Monitoring Tool that offered real-time analytics for trading Crypto using a blend of WebSockets, Angular, and NestJS. This was a pivotal moment as it marked the first time I developed something truly useful for users.

As my journey progressed, I became intrigued by the inner workings of communication protocols and the world of open-source software. My curiosity led me to participate in HacktoberFest, where I started trying to contribute to various organizations. Eventually, I stumbled upon RocketChat Apps, which opened up a new dimension of integration. This was exciting and novel, and I immersed myself in the Apps ecosystem. It was a joyous achievement when my pull request was merged into the Rocket.Chat repository, becoming a part of the Rocket.Chat 6.0 Release.

Joining Rocket.Chat came with a learning curve. Unexpectedly, my open-source journey paved the way for Google Summer of Code (GSoC). While I hadn't initially planned for it, the contribution mindset propelled me forward. I felt drawn to GSoC's mission of introducing more people to open-source, which led me to craft a proposal for Integrate Notion via RC App, just days before the deadline. It was a whirlwind of activity, including Creating a Figma design within a week. Miraculously, my proposal was accepted, bringing an indescribable sense of joy.

Transitioning into a Google Summer of Code Student was enlightening. As my mentor rightly said,

Getting Selected is One Challenge, but Making the Project a Success Requires Relentless Effort.

The coding period had its share of ups and downs. Early on, we developed features, but they lacked a user-centered approach. The turning point arrived with valuable feedback from the community. This feedback reshaped our project into a more user-centric one, even though the challenges escalated.

The journey has been nothing short of a rollercoaster. We tackled seemingly impossible features within tight deadlines, all while dealing with Notion's limitations. This experience has been amazing and has firmly rooted me in the world of open-source. Once you dive in, there's no looking back. This is a journey I'm truly passionate about. If you're interested in venturing into open-source, feel free to connect with me on twitter