GitterCom
Esteban Parra, Ashley Ellis, Sonia Haiduc
Abstract
Team communication is essential for the development of modern software systems. For distributed software development teams, such as those found in many open source projects, this communication usually takes place using electronic tools. Among these, modern chat platforms such as Gitter are becoming the de facto choice for many software projects due to their advanced features geared towards software development and effective team communication. Gitter channels contain numerous messages exchanged by developers regarding the state of the project, issues and features of the system, team logistics, etc. These messages can contain important information to researchers studying open source software systems, developers new to a particular project and trying to get familiar with the software, etc. Therefore, uncovering what developers are communicating about through Gitter is an essential first step towards successfully understanding and leveraging this information.