If the target is first-time contributors, then I would say a consistant process, for them, trumps the potential contribution to the project.
My experience with "dinky" projects is they are inconsistant with accepting help (bug reports, code, features, etc). It is extremely discouraging when you send a pull-request and watch as it sits there for 8-10 weeks without being addressed or acknowledged. Larger projects have a more consistant process, and more consistant/prompt feedback, which is ideal for first-time contributors.
i think you're a little spoiled from pull requests. you used to have to format patches according to coding standards(in fact still do in many projects), and then have a lengthy discussion on why your code sucks. you could argue that that's very discouraging, but I disagree.
> and then have a lengthy discussion on why your code sucks
That is the kind of feedback I would hope for. The issue is the lack of any feedback from the maintainers on "dinky" projects. If I, as a first-time committer, filed a pull-request, and it still had 0 comments after 90 days, I would feel discouraged.
My experience with "dinky" projects is they are inconsistant with accepting help (bug reports, code, features, etc). It is extremely discouraging when you send a pull-request and watch as it sits there for 8-10 weeks without being addressed or acknowledged. Larger projects have a more consistant process, and more consistant/prompt feedback, which is ideal for first-time contributors.