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FAQ for Contributors

These frequently asked questions cover how to find work, how the point system translates to money, and what is required to get paid.

How do I find issues to work on?

You can find issues in two ways:

  1. Drips Wave App: Navigate to the Explore page, click on an active Wave (e.g., Stellar Wave 1), and browse the list of available issues.
  2. GitHub: You can search the specific ecosystem's repositories for issues with the Wave label (e.g., label:"Stellar Wave").

How do I apply for an issue?

Once you find an issue in the Drips App, click Apply. You will see a text field where you can write a short message to the maintainer.

  • Tip: Be concise. Mention your relevant experience or link to a previous PR to increase your chances of being assigned.

Do I need to pay to participate?

No. Participation is free. However, to receive rewards, you must complete KYC (Know Your Customer) verification and request withdrawal of any earned rewards to a valid wallet address. We will provide instructions on the reward withdrawal process closer to the first Wave's payout date.

How are my earnings calculated?

Your earnings are not a fixed dollar amount per issue. Instead, they are based on your share of the total points earned by the community.

  • Base Points: Every issue has a set value (100, 150, or 200 Points) based on complexity.
  • Compliments: Maintainers can award bonus points for exceptional work.
  • The Formula: (Your Points / Total Points in Wave) * Total Reward Budget = Your Payout.

When will I receive rewards?

Payouts are distributed after the Wave concludes and the 7-day "Compliment Window" for maintainers has closed. We will share detailed instructions on how to withdraw your rewards closer to the first Wave's payout date.

What happens if I can't finish an issue on time?

If you realize you cannot complete the issue before the Wave ends, please notify the maintainer immediately.

  • This allows them to reassign the issue to someone else so the work can still get done.
  • If the issue is not resolved by the end of the Wave, you will not receive points for it in that cycle.

My PR got merged, but I didn't receive points. Why?

Points are awarded when an issue you were assigned to through Drips Wave is "Closed as Completed" on GitHub. If your PR was merged but the issue was not closed by the maintainer, you can politely remind them to close the issue so you can receive your points. As soon as the issue is closed, the points will be automatically awarded to you.

Please ensure you link your PRs to issues using keywords like "Closes #<issue_number>" in your PR description. This will make GitHub automatically close the issue when your PR is merged, resulting in immediate points allocation. Read more about how to link an issue and PR in GitHub's documentation.

My issue was closed during an active Wave, but I still didn't receive points.

If your issue was closed but you did not receive points during an active Wave, please reach out to our support team with a link to the closed issue.

My issue isn't being marked as closed and the maintainer is unresponsive. What should I do?

If the maintainer is unresponsive and your issue isn't being marked as closed, please contact our support team for assistance. Provide them with the relevant issue link and details about your situation. Our team will review the situation and ensure any genuinely earned points are awarded appropriately.

What is the Leaderboard?

The Leaderboard (found under Wave Program → Leaderboard) is a real-time ranking of all contributors based on points earned. Since the reward pool is shared proportionally, a higher rank on the leaderboard directly corresponds to a larger share of the reward budget.

What is the Code Metrics scorecard?

When you apply to an issue, maintainers see a summary of your public GitHub activity including metrics like Total Merged PRs, PR Merge Rate, and an OSS Activity Score. These help maintainers evaluate applicants quickly. For a full explanation of how each metric is calculated and what the categorical bins mean, see Applicant metrics.