TLDR - I finished a small project that I am sharing for my friends on DEV, that allows you to put your followers count on your Github!
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ooo very nice.
I know right. 😜 but whats cool is now that I have a github action confidently working, I feel well suited to try other sorts of workflows with github actions. I think thats the real win here! Thanks Francis! ✨️
Yeah, cool alright. But I hope you don't run out of GitHub action minutes before the end of the month! 😄
I'd run this cron once a week max 😊
True. It's probably excessive, thanks for pointing that out! Haha. I don't have enough github actions to notice, but thanks for letting me know that is a thing!!! I would have definitely hit that wall at some unfortunate point. 😅
Ah, we keep learning new things 🥰
That said, your profile repo is a public repo, which means GitHub may not deduct any minute at all, LOL.
But they must have an internal limit, otherwise people will go wild with these ☺️
I can see why now. "Evil laugh" 😂😅🤔🤣
It's so cool! I customized it a little for my GitHub profile. Thank you! 😸
that's so cooooool!!✨
Niiiiiiiiice. Love it!
This is a fun use of the API. I went down a bit of a rabbit hole with the followers endpoint this week and discovered something that might make the number itself even more interesting.
I pulled all of my follower data going back to 2017 and found that my account supposedly gained roughly 18,000 followers during 2026, while my posts received only about 14,300 total views. The follower acquisition rate also barely changed based on whether I published anything, and a surprisingly large percentage of the usernames had auto-generated-looking numeric or hex tails.
I can't prove those accounts are bots or generated accounts, so I wouldn't make that claim. But it did make me much more skeptical about treating the raw follower count as an audience/readership metric.
Your GitHub Action actually creates an interesting opportunity, though: since you're already running it periodically, you could save the follower IDs with each run rather than only the count. Over time, you'd get something the DEV dashboard doesn't really give you: actual follower additions and churn between snapshots.
I wrote up my API spelunking here if you're curious.
you can try this approach regarding bots/not bots dev.to/olgabraginskaya/whos-really...
I think I've seen your post before! Thanks for the reminder!!!
Yes! I actually started reading that article! I didnt have time to finish but it was definitely interesting!!!
niceee
Nice one
Thanks! ✨️
Nice works like a charm
Thanksss
Aww!!!! 💜
Very well done !
I just upset that I didn't think if this myself 😁
Aww haha. Maybe, make it somehow better? 🤔
I can try 😉
343 failed runs before the first success — that's commitment most people wouldn't bother with for a followers badge. The
git diff --quietcheck before committing is a nice touch, saves you from a commit history full of no-op runs. I'd add a failure notification step too though, so if the API key expires or the script breaks, you find out from a Slack ping instead of rediscovering it a year later.🤣🤣🤣 thank you @onizuka
So cool 😍
Hello @hadil , glad you like it! ✨️
it's good. but I've never understood why dev.to doesn't display followers...
I wondered that as well. Honestly, it doesn't bother me anymore. I think it actually adds quality by not making it some agenda based numbers game. Although we all like to feel validated! I get that. 🤔😅
thx!
Modified it a bit :) Thanks!
Check the code to get the badge here
turazashvili (Nikoloz Turazashvili) · GitHub
#Python #Blockchain #Web3 . turazashvili has 45 repositories available. Follow their code on GitHub.
Nice, looks like it belongs there! Glad you found it of use! ✨️
hehe, yes. thanks again :)
This is actually a pretty neat use of GitHub Actions. I like that you shared the complete workflow instead of just showing the final result.
The
git diff --quietcheck is a nice little detail too. I might actually use this for my own profile. 😄Haha nice! If I ever start being less lazy and clean up my GitHub README, I'll definitely use it!
💖 awesome! Glad to hear you might find it useful. And yeah... when I added this I had to do some light housekeeping as well. 😅 Profile was getting out of date. Haha.
I like that this ended up being more than just a follower counter. The interesting part is the workflow: fetch external data, transform it, update a specific section of the README, and only create a commit when the value actually changed. The marker approach is especially practical. It makes the README the presentation layer while keeping the generated part clearly separated from the rest of the profile.
I also noticed some of the discussion around GitHub Actions minutes. For a public repository using standard GitHub-hosted runners, Actions usage is currently free, so the daily schedule isn't necessarily a problem in that case. It becomes more relevant for private repositories and their included quotas.
The bigger takeaway for me is the automation pattern. Once you have this working reliably, the same setup could update other profile data too, as long as the source and update frequency actually justify it. That's probably more valuable than the follower number itself.
Yes, exactly what I was thinking! I want to find other cool ways to use github actions now that I have a grasp of it. ✨️
BTW, you forgot to mention that we also need your
update_script.jsin our profile repo, not just theYAMLfile! 🥰Bam. Done. Just for you. haha 😂
Hahaha yes you are 100% right. I am guilty. 😂🤷♀️
This is such a fun little project! 😄 I love how a tiny side project turned into a useful GitHub Actions workflow, especially with the automatic README update and scheduled runs. The detailed script is also really helpful for anyone who wants to adapt it for their own profile.
I’ve been exploring similar developer tools and projects through CodeCan.net, and this is exactly the kind of practical automation project that makes me want to experiment with GitHub Actions more. Great job getting it back from a year of failed runs! 😂
Thank you Leonore! I feel that having a working version of one process can be used to understand how other related processes might work, and that has real value. I'm glad I was able to spark your interest!
Dope, thanks!
Your welcome!
Haha I feel this so much! We have a few GitHub Actions at The Printing World that kept failing on us, and I was about ready to throw my laptop out the window. Props to you for actually fixing it instead of just hitting delete.
The marker-block pattern here is the underrated part. Separating the generated segment from hand-written content with start and end tags, then only committing when the value actually changed, is the same pattern I use for agent-written files. It keeps the generated stuff auditable: you can always diff exactly what automation touched and nothing else.
The comments discussing follower quality are worth reading too. Any metric you automate onto a profile invites both pride and gaming, so snapshotting the count over time, like Ken suggested with follower IDs per run, gives you the trend instead of a single flattering number. A badge that moves is more honest than one that spikes.
Nice writeup of the debugging journey as well. The permissions block and the auto-push step are the two details most tutorials skip, and they are exactly why most first attempts of this workflow silently fail.
Yes haha, I am living proof of many failed first attempts. Once you know, you know!! 😅🤣. And yes, I like the idea of snapshots over time. Very insightful.
This is such a fun example of how a “small silly side project” can turn into something genuinely useful. 😄
I especially liked the part about those failed GitHub Action emails slowly becoming the motivation to finally fix the project 😂. Sometimes finishing something we abandoned months ago feels more satisfying than starting something new.
Also, sharing the actual workflow and update_script.js makes this much more useful for others who want to try it themselves. Great little project, and a nice reminder that side projects don’t always have to be serious to be worth building.
Yeah its so wild that some of the most useful learning comes from unexpected places. 😂🦄
Haha I feel this so much! We have a few GitHub Actions at The Printing World that kept failing on us, and I was about ready to throw my laptop out the window. Props to you for actually fixing it instead of just hitting delete.
It makes me really want to do a deep dive on github actions and just build a bunch of different actions, just to really solidify my understanding. I feel like github actions have a secret power!
Bro didn't fix the API pipeline because he wanted to launch, he fixed it to stop GitHub from cyberbullying his inbox every single morning. 😭 Absolute king behavior.
🤣🤷♀️🦚
Merging a hotfix directly into production just to silence a persistent cron job or a webhook alert is a developer right of passage. Zero tech debt, pure inbox peace. 🚀🤖
Haha 😜
Sometimes the best testing environment is just production with a prayer. Glad it gave you a laugh! 😂
I’ve had this happen with one of my own side projects too. I kept getting a small error that I knew I could fix, but somehow kept putting it off. Finally sitting down and solving that one annoying issue felt way more satisfying than it should have. Love that you brought the project back to life instead of abandoning it!
What really did it for me, was knowing how much I wanted to have it work when I started my coding journey. Ive been playing around with code for just over 4 years. I remember how much I would have liked this, and I knew others might feel similarly depending where they are on their particular journey. Feeling strongly about it, and then posting about the success, definitely has been a rewarding experience.
Perhaps the only consistent thing in my life for a while was a failed run notification in my inbox. These problems... they keep us rooted in reality, dont they? 🤣🤷♀️
Awesome job fixing those failed runs! Scheduled GitHub Actions are great. Over at The Printing World, we use similar cron setups to automatically sync daily box order inventory and send low-stock alerts to our warehouse team.
Cool! 😍
noice!
This is so cool, Anna! I loved this idea and I’m definitely going to add it when I work on my GitHub profile. Thanks for sharing the full setup too 😀
I'm so glad you like it! Let me know if you style it in an interesting way. I like how everyone is styling theirs. I wonder what the coolest way to style this could possibly be. Further unnecessary things... 😂🦚🧚♀️
Now I’m curious to see what everyone comes up with too 😄 I’ll go through the comments and see what others have done, and I’ll share mine when I add it 😀
Yes! Absolutely, I cant wait ti see yours!!
( ˶°ㅁ°) !! Woww
☺️ thanks for taking a peak!
💛🙃
YESSS 😭 I’m setting this up on my profile now.
Also really appreciate you sharing the actual script + workflow instead of just showing the finished result. Thank you!! 💚
You have me so flattered for trying my silly tool! Thank you, to you and everyone else that has given it a shot. So rewarding that others find enjoyment from it! 🦚
I just need this function, which is of great help to me
Im glad you find it useful!
This is a neat use of GitHub Actions! I'm curious what other profile stats could be automated this way.
Same! I'm waiting to have some more free time honestly. I have a big pile of things I want to do. I have all I can do to keep up with these comments right now. 🤣
I have been considering what a fun thing it could be to have some sort of contest related to this. Like what's the most ridiculous github actions possible... the most useful, or most annoying? oh no... the thoughts begin. 😂
I want to figure out how to style mine in a cool way, make it look like some fancy badge. Im gonna ramble, its late. Im stopping here.
Profile badge contest perhaps?
That was helpful 👍🏻
Glad you found this helpful @masaudahmod ! ✨️
its cool ☺️,where can i find my api key?
(Logged in, of course) On desktop click your profile:
--> settings --> extensions --> scroll to bottom and click generate button.
Then
Then....
thank you☺️
You are so welcome!
Nice. This idea can be used in many places. thanks for the idea.
✨️ absolutely!
Wow! Nice! I was wondering about this and voila! Super cool, thank you! Awesome
You are welcome @debashish_ghosal ! Let me know if you implement this in an interesting way, I love seeing everyone's unique creations with this. 🚀🎢
Ayee this is crazyyy ****
Haha, thanks! (I think?) 😜
ayeee cool
Yeah it's cool
very nice
Great opportunity for every one.You should avail it.
Thanks everyone for the inspo! I gave my profile a proper facelift today and here is what my new followers count area looks like! (A big upgrade from plain text. 😂)
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Love seeing automated cron jobs like this work! At The Printing World, we use similar daily scheduled scripts to auto-sync inventory levels for our custom box stock. Way better than checking manually!