TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION OF GIT
Proper use of version control is one of the most widely needed skills in the tech industry today. According to the official documentation of Git, “Version control is a system that records changes to a file or set of files over time so that you can recall specific versions later. This gives programmers the ability to write code while being able to revert back to an older version of their code at any time.” Version control systems allow teams to collaborate easily on programming projects as well as maintain an accessible history of the project’s incremental progress. Since these benefits are so critical to the success of large-scale projects, version control systems are used by virtually all programmers in industry. The image (Figure 1)to the right shows what version control system looks like in team work.
Git is a version control manager that distributes a copy of a project to each collaborator’s machine. Because this setup provides distinct advantages over its competitors, Git is arguably the most popular version control system in the world. These advantages are numerous and extremely beneficial in helping developers manage their codebases. First, local copies allow programmers to work offline. They can make changes to their local repository, and then save these changes to a remote repository once network connectivity becomes available. Next, full copies of repositories allows for data redundancy. If the central remote repository gets deleted, it can be completely restored from one of the distributed copies. Lastly, local copies of repositories allows commands to be executed quickly. Changes to local files are always faster than changes made over the internet. With these advantages, Git has become the industry standard of version control systems.
This document is intended to provide programming students with an introduction to what Git is, how it works, and how to utilize its feature set. Students understanding this information will be more productive and efficient when working on projects and will be better prepared to become successful members of professional teams in the tech industry.
Git is a version control manager that distributes a copy of a project to each collaborator’s machine. Because this setup provides distinct advantages over its competitors, Git is arguably the most popular version control system in the world. These advantages are numerous and extremely beneficial in helping developers manage their codebases. First, local copies allow programmers to work offline. They can make changes to their local repository, and then save these changes to a remote repository once network connectivity becomes available. Next, full copies of repositories allows for data redundancy. If the central remote repository gets deleted, it can be completely restored from one of the distributed copies. Lastly, local copies of repositories allows commands to be executed quickly. Changes to local files are always faster than changes made over the internet. With these advantages, Git has become the industry standard of version control systems.
This document is intended to provide programming students with an introduction to what Git is, how it works, and how to utilize its feature set. Students understanding this information will be more productive and efficient when working on projects and will be better prepared to become successful members of professional teams in the tech industry.