can I submit a request for a bug-fix with a 'pull-and-patch' on Github?

Question

I encountered a bug in a project repo hosted on Github, so I logged it as an issue, in response to which the project maintainer asked me to "make a pull request with a patch" and closed the issue.

Does this mean I am to fix the issue (the 'patch') or can a patch be a more 'direct' way to indicate a problem, that is, a direct reference to the problematic code, without a fix proposed?

Answer 1

Providing a patch means fixing the issue by yourself, then submitting the diff between your modified copy and the original one. In a Git environment, a patch can be easily produced via a subcommand and mailed. However, GitHub offers an even simpler mechanism for submitting patches: a pull request.

My opinion is that the author asked you to fix the code because he/she has no time to do it or could not find the exact issue. Anyway, providing a detailed list of what is to be changed (and why) should be fine too, but don't expect the developer to fix the issue quickly.

Also consider that describing all the relevant changes to be applied might take even longer than patching the code.