Well something really minor is exactly what the students we was talking about are looking for. This is excellent advice for me, since I am new to web development and usually get so intimidated by the cheer volume of code I am exposed to that I abandon it.
I think he is saying that TODO are often not that simple because many programmers use them for something that works, but needs a conceptual change - which can be a major task.
It depends on the project though. Other projects may rely more on an issue tracker.
Either way, don't let it stop you, most open source projects are glad to have help!
