GitHub – Anyone who is familiar with the worlds of coding will have heard this name before. You might be curious about how to use GitHub if you aren’t familiar with it.
GitHub is the largest and most widely used coding repository in the globe. It’s a great place for developers to share their code and passion projects and to showcase their resumes. It’s a great example of code being a collaborative effort.
This guide will help you learn everything about GitHub and how to use it to its full potential.
What is GitHub?
GitHub is one of the most popular code hosting platforms in the world. It’s where more than 83 million developers gather to share, track, and collaborate on their software projects.
The cloud-based service was created by Tom Preston-Werner and Chris Wanstrath in 2007. It was originally intended to be a weekend project at the time. They quickly discovered the potential of the cloud-based service and began to use it. After three months of weekend-long work sessions, they were ready to reveal GitHub to the rest of the world.
What is GitHub used for?
GitHub has had the significant impact of facilitating collaborative coding on a larger scale than ever before. Developers around the world use GitHub’s cloud-based website or app to share code repositories, track changes, and collaborate.
Git, an open-source distributed version control system, allows developers to take a project, break it down into smaller pieces, and then be brought back together.
This allows large coding projects to easily be completed by multiple people, without the risk of merging conflicts (when two versions of the same code are being used simultaneously and attempt to merge).
8 Steps to Use GitHub
You don’t have to be a GitHub newbie to get started. It’s very easy to use once you understand the basics. Here’s a quick overview of how it works.
Step 1: Create a GitHub account
First, create a GitHub Account. This can be done by visiting the GitHub website and filling in your details on the ‘Sign Up for GitHub’ form.
Step 2: Install Git onto Your Computer
You will need the Git tool installed on your system to be able to work with code repositories hosted on GitHub. You can download the Git tool for free from Git’s official website.
Step 3: Create a Git repository
A git repository is a directory that contains all files for a project. It also contains important files that Git uses to track changes to the code.
Clicking on the ‘+” icon in the top-right corner of the GitHub website and selecting ‘New repository’ will allow you to create a new git repositories.
Step 4: Add a file to the Git Repository
After you have created a repository in git, you can add files using the git add command. This tells git what files you want to track changes.
Step 5: Make changes and commit to Git
Once you have added a file into your git repository you can make changes and commit (save), those changes using the “git commit” command.
Step 6: Create a Git branch
A git branch allows you to create a new version without affecting the production version. This is useful if your goal is to test new features and fixes without affecting the production code.
Click on the Branch button in your repository to create a new branch. Enter a name, then click ‘Create’.
Step 7: Create a Git Pull request
A git pull-request is a way to request that someone else (usually a maintainer or collaborator) review your changes and merge them into the main branch in a git repository.
Click on the “Pull request” button in your repository to create a new pull request. Enter a title or description for your changes and then click on “Create pull request”.
Step 8: Send a request for a merge of your Git Pull Request
After your pull request has been approved and reviewed, you can merge it into git’s main branch by clicking the “Merge pull request” button.
That’s all! Now you know how to use GitHub.
Basic Git Commands Every Programmer Must Know
It’s important to understand the basics of git if you plan to work with code repositories at GitHub. These are the most commonly used git commands.
Git Help
This command will open the git documentation. It can be very helpful if you are unsure how to use a particular command.
Git Init
This command is used for initializing a new Git repositorie. It creates the files and folders Git needs to track any changes to your code.
Git Add
This command adds files to your git repository. This command tells Git what changes you want to keep track of.
Git Commit
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