[johnhiler]

I sometimes see plugins patched by people other than the original developer… usually they just upload the patch to a private server or to pastebin, and then submit a link to the path on the plugin comments page. The original author then often releases a patched version using the code fixes.

If the plugin is completely abandoned, there have been cases where a new developer has taken things over. Those situations are pretty rare though…

You should definitely submit your patches in the comments of the plugin pages, if you’re willing!