How to Find Alternative Packages

This page discusses how developers can find alternative packages to low-reputation open source packages

Introduction

Sometimes, you may come across an open-source package that is no longer maintained or has a low reputation, which may make it unsuitable for your project. This help article will guide you on how to find alternative packages for the following package managers: Maven, NPM, PyPI, Cargo, GoMod, NuGet, and RubyGems.

Maven (Java)

Maven is a popular build automation tool and package manager for Java projects. To find an alternative package, you can:

• Use the search feature on the Maven Central Repository (https://search.maven.org/). Type in relevant keywords, and you can filter the results based on popularity, last updated, and other criteria.

• Visit websites like https://mvnrepository.com/ to search for packages with similar functionality. They offer a user-friendly interface and display popularity metrics like the number of downloads and GitHub stars.

• Check out projects on GitHub that use Maven as their build tool. Look for popular projects in your domain and explore their dependencies to find reliable packages.

NPM (JavaScript)

NPM is the default package manager for JavaScript. To find alternative packages:

• Use the search feature on the NPM website (https://www.npmjs.com/). You can sort the results by popularity, quality, and maintenance.

• Browse https://www.npmtrends.com/ to compare packages based on their download counts and trends.

• Explore projects on GitHub that use NPM and check their dependencies for suitable alternatives.

PyPI (Python)

PyPI is the Python Package Index, a repository of software for the Python programming language. To find alternative packages:

• Use the search feature on the PyPI website (https://pypi.org/). Filter the results based on relevance, downloads, and last updated.
• Check out projects on GitHub that use Python and explore their dependencies.

• Visit websites like https://awesome-python.com/ to find curated lists of Python libraries.

Cargo (Rust)

Cargo is the package manager for Rust. To find alternative packages:

Search for packages on the Crates.io website (https://crates.io/). You can sort the results by recent downloads, total downloads, and recently updated.

Explore projects on GitHub that use Rust and Cargo and check their dependencies.

Visit websites like https://lib.rs/ to find curated lists of Rust libraries.

GoMod (Go)

GoMod is the official package manager for the Go programming language. To find alternative packages:

• Use the search feature on the GoDoc website (https://pkg.go.dev/). Filter the results based on the number of importers and score.
• Explore projects on GitHub that use Go and check their dependencies.

NuGet (C#/.NET)

NuGet is the package manager for .NET development. To find alternative packages:

• Use the search feature on the NuGet Gallery website (https://www.nuget.org/). Sort the results by relevance, downloads, and last updated.
• Explore projects on GitHub that use .NET and check their dependencies.

RubyGems (Ruby)

RubyGems is the package manager for the Ruby programming language. To find alternative packages:

• Use the search feature on the RubyGems website (https://rubygems.org/). You can sort the results by downloads, alphabetical order, and recently updated.
• Visit websites like https://www.ruby-toolbox.com/ to find curated lists of Ruby libraries and tools.
• Explore projects on GitHub that use Ruby and check their dependencies.