readme is currently being developed and links may not be active

We’re so glad you’re here!

The Center for Open Science (COS) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing openness, integrity, and reproducibility of research. Our flagship platform, the Open Science Framework (OSF), supports researchers across the full research lifecycle—from planning and preregistering studies, to sharing data, code, and preprints.

This GitHub space is home to the open-source development behind OSF and related tools. We welcome contributions and collaboration from researchers, developers, community builders, and anyone interested in open science.

• What is COS and OSF?
  Learn more about our mission and the tools we build on our COS website and OSF

🧪 What is the Open Science Framework (OSF)?

The Open Science Framework (OSF) is a free, open-source platform designed to help researchers plan, collaborate on, and share their research. It promotes open science by supporting transparency, reproducibility, and collaboration.

Key features of OSF include:

• Project management & collaboration (OSF Projects) – Organize research projects and manage contributors.
• Archive of Registrations and Preregistrations (OSF registries) – Create a timestamped read-only version of a research protocol to promote transparency in the research process.
• Preprint hosting (OSF Preprints) – Share preprints to get early feedback.
• Open access & sharing – Control who sees your data, code, and protocols.
• Data storage & archiving – Store and preserve research outputs.
• Integrations – Connect tools like Google Drive, Dropbox, GitHub, Mendeley, and so many more!.

👉 Glossary of OSF Terms

OSF is powered by several open-source repositories maintained here on GitHub. These services work together to deliver OSF's platform functionality:

• osf.io[link coming soon] – The core backend platform (Python/Django)
• osf-angular [link coming soon]– The modern Angular-based frontend
• waterbutler – Unified file storage and transfer API
• gravy-valet – Add-on integrations and service coordination

👉 Learn how these tools work together

We welcome contributions from all backgrounds! Whether you’re a developer, designer, researcher, or open science enthusiast, there’s a place for you here.

Start with our Contributing Guide [link coming soon] to learn how to:

• Set up a local dev environment
• Submit issues and feature requests
• Make your first pull request

Please read our Governance Document [link coming soon] to understand how decisions are made and how community members can get involved.

Stay connected and get involved:

• 💬 Join our Discord community for real-time conversation and collaboration
• 🎓 Attend our monthly onboarding webinars to learn how to contribute and explore the OSF ecosystem
• 🧪 Participate in beta testing and help improve features before they launch
• 💡 Share your ideas, feedback, and integration requests to help shape the future of OSF

• Explore Active Repositories:
  Our current open-source projects can be found under the Projects tab.

• OSF Product Roadmap:
  Curious about what’s next for OSF? Check out the COS Product Roadmap.

• Understanding GitHub Labels:
  Tasks are labeled by type, priority, and skill level. Learn what each tag means in our Tag Guide [link coming soon].

There are lots of ways to contribute:

• Share ideas or raise issues in our GitHub repos
• Help improve documentation
• Join discussions on Discord
• Participate in community events
• Advocate for open science in your own networks

Thanks for stopping by! Whether you're here to explore, contribute, or learn, welcome to the COS community. Every voice matters. Let’s build the future of open science together. 🌍

🔗 Back to COS website | 📄 View OSF | 📬 Contact us at [email protected]