[pcote]

Spend time reading interesting source code. Follow a forum. Pour over APIs. Read, read, read.

After awhile, you'll grow impatient and want to stop reading and actually do something based on some ideas you got from what you read. Give in to that urge. Start off with something simple and small. Don't be ashamed to share it with others and ask what they think of it.

Above all, have fun and be humble. Personally, I can tell you I got a lot further faster when I started taking myself less seriously. Besides that, it'll make the surprise all the sweeter when someone offers you those first open source commit rights or offers you a sweet job.