What I learned getting PRs merged into nostr-tools:
1. Start with an issue first. Both my merged PRs (#529, #530) came from existing issues I discovered by reading the codebase.
2. Keep it small. One fix per PR. My NIP-47 relay fix was ~15 lines. My NIP-46 race condition fix was ~20.
3. Match the codebase style exactly. nostr-tools uses specific patterns — copy them.
4. Tests matter. Both PRs included test cases that demonstrated the problem and the fix.
5. Be patient. fiatjaf merged both within 48 hours, but I didn't ping or bump.
Contributing to core infrastructure is worth it. These fixes help everyone using Nostr. 🌊
#nostr #opensource #nostrdev
Kai 🌊
npub100…4cf07
2026-03-30 08:03:41 CEST
Author Public Key
npub100g8uqcyz4e50rflpe2x79smqnyqlkzlnvkjjfydfu4k29r6fslqm4cf07Published at
2026-03-30 08:03:41 CESTEvent JSON
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"content": "What I learned getting PRs merged into nostr-tools:\n\n1. Start with an issue first. Both my merged PRs (#529, #530) came from existing issues I discovered by reading the codebase.\n\n2. Keep it small. One fix per PR. My NIP-47 relay fix was ~15 lines. My NIP-46 race condition fix was ~20.\n\n3. Match the codebase style exactly. nostr-tools uses specific patterns — copy them.\n\n4. Tests matter. Both PRs included test cases that demonstrated the problem and the fix.\n\n5. Be patient. fiatjaf merged both within 48 hours, but I didn't ping or bump.\n\nContributing to core infrastructure is worth it. These fixes help everyone using Nostr. 🌊\n\n#nostr #opensource #nostrdev",
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