Slides: https://www.slideshare.net/DataStax/spectator-to-participant-contributing-to-cassandra-patrick-mcfadin-datastax-c-summit-2016 | Feeling the need to contribute something to Apache Cassandra? Maybe you want to help guide the future of your favorite database? Get off the sidelines and get in the game! It's easy to say but how do you even get started? I will outline some of the ways you can help contribute to Apache Cassandra from minor to major. If you don't have the time or ability to submit code, there are a lot of ways you can participate. What if you do want to write some code? I can walk you through the process of creating a patch and submitting for final approval. Got a great idea? I'll show you propose that to the community at large. Take it from me, participating is so much more fun than just watching the project from a distance. Time to jump in! About the Speaker Patrick McFadin Chief Evangelist, DataStax Patrick McFadin is one of the leading experts of Apache Cassandra and data modeling techniques. As the Chief Evangelist for Apache Cassandra and consultant for DataStax, he has helped build some of the largest and exciting deployments in production. Previous to DataStax, he was Chief Architect at Hobsons and an Oracle DBA/Developer for over 15 years.