March–April 2023 · Community tools

The coding tool needed more than code

A $200 requirements programme, a save test and ten screenshots: the community helped shape BB’s VS Code extension.

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No coding required

In March 2023, BB offered community work on its VS Code extension with an unusual instruction: describe the tasks. No coding required.

The 11 March announcement set a $200 budget for developing feature requirements. The next day, BB offered $7 per task description.

Does the command actually save?

Earlier that month, on 1 March, the organizer had asked for a practical test: load a bot in VS Code, change a command, save it, then check that the change appeared in BB.

A participant replied with a result and a screenshot.

A release and ten screenshots

On 10 April, BB announced extension commands for creating bots, commands and folders; installing Store bots and libraries; and starting or stopping bots. The release thanked a community developer for helping with development.

A separate activity asked users to post screenshots of the extension in the chat. Its updated announcement marked the target complete: ten screenshots out of ten.

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