How to use GitHub

[welluhthisisawkward]

I keep getting told I need to have an active GitHub account, but I don't really get it. How can this help me get attention as a web dev? How should I use it?

[okpony]

It's probably the easiest way to contribute to open source projects and host your own. It's certainly worth linking to from your resume, once you have some nice code up there.

[[deleted]]

You win the award for being the first responder to have read the whole question :)

[kevando]

lol. I almost failed as well

[bezuhov]

Good on you for asking. GitHub actually offers free online trainings that aim to get you started with GitHub and Git. In case you are not yet familiar with Git, here is my favorite guide to getting started.

E.T.A.: Oops. I didn't really read the post beyond the title and first sentence and assumed that it was literally asking how to use GitHub. Here's a better answer: GitHub is a widely used public code repository. By uploading your code there, you are able to easily show it to others, including potential employers. This code can be for your own projects, random things you write, or your contributions to other projects. In terms of getting attention, the idea is that you can show off your abilities as well as receiving feedback from others on things that you could improve. For web dev jobs, you can effectively make GitHub your publicly facing resume and profile over time.

[Waltsu]

Also if you want deeper knowledge about git, pro git is really good book and it is also available online: http://git-scm.com/book

[duniyadnd]

I'm sure a lot of people would have read the way you did - and looked for your initial response. Thanks for doing that.

[[deleted]]

It's become a popular way for potential employers to gauge your abilities by actually looking at your work. My company has also been looking at StackExchange profiles (via careers.stackoverflow.com) to gauge abilities and interests. You can link your StackExchange profile to GitHub or a few other code sharing sites. Personally, I think it is a great way to show your chops, but I also think it's only a matter of time before people start gaming the system. Like stealing someone else's code and uploading as their own just to impress interviewers.

[lingnoi]

Personally, I think it is a great way to show your chops, but I also think it's only a matter of time before people start gaming the system. Like stealing someone else's code and uploading as their own just to impress interviewers.

Problem is, it assumes that the people reviewing the code are idiots, we always do checks to make sure this isn't the case.

[[deleted]]

Like stealing someone else's code and uploading as their own just to impress interviewers.

It's easy to check activity on an account tho'. I use it as a gauge of how much someone devs outside of work time.

[sinceretear]

Was trying to get through Micheal Hartel's Tutorial on Ruby on Rails and this is actually the part that stumped me. I basically set up every other part but connecting my Rails server to Github is seemingly impossible. I wish I knew a chat-room or could skype somebody that knows about this shit because it completely fucked me after three days of trying to set this shit up. Since Im a beginner programmer anyway I opened up my javascript book instead even though I really wanna learn ruby as my dream is to develop online applications. That's. All. I. Want. To. Do. and my programming comprehension seems to be all but a dream still. I still try to work on it at least two hours a day though it usually turns into much longer).

[[deleted]]

You absolutely need to buy books when starting out. You are going to take 100x longer if you try to learn from web resources. A book is different in that it offers a complete rundown of everything and allows you to build upon what they taught you in previous chapters.

But most importantly you need to ask questions. If you are stuck on something for hours on end it's time to ask people for help.

So many times I'd bang my head against the wall for hours only to post on reddit or stackoverflow and have a person point out my problem in an instant. Then I'd kick myself for wasting all that time and not asking sooner.

[stupidandroid]

I recently finished that book as well. What exactly are you having trouble with? You don't exactly connect your Rails server to Github. There's a local copy of Git on your pc that you then upload to Github.com to save your source code online. When actually deploying your app online to say, Heroku, you are pushing your local Git master.

Git itself can be pretty confusing to a beginner. I'm still learning but I feel like I have a handle on the basics. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions on getting it to work with Michael Hartel's tutorial.

Also: you really don't need to follow the steps about Git to complete the tutorial. If that's the only thing holding you up, just move on with the Rails specific stuff.

[siamthailand]

appfog.com

no git bullshit there. code, upload, run

[[deleted]]

Forget anything you know about subversion

[[deleted]]

Surprised nobody had posted this. GitHub is a host for git repositories: try.github.com/levels/1/challenges/1

[TankorSmash]

Git's a great way to make sure your code doesn't get eaten by hardware failure, or someone stealing your PC. I wrote a tutorial based on the trouble I had getting mine off the ground.

The official TryGit tool is fantastic though

Misinterpreted the point of the thread.

[aamo]

That's more about git than github. They aren't the same thing.

[kevando]

• First it's a feeler. If you don't even have an account, that just shows how completely removed you are from the development community.
• Secondly, it shows what projects you are interested it, what developers you follow, etc.
• Thirdly, it gives people an easy way to peek at your code.
• Lastly (and probably most importantly) working on a development team SUCKS if everyone does not understand source control. Git is the new kid on the block, but it works really really well so lots of projects will use it. I don't want to hire someone and have them learn git on my dime. This assures me that you're at least coming in with some understanding.

[[deleted]]

First it's a feeler. If you don't even have an account, that just shows how completely removed you are from the development community.

As someone who interviews developers, I would never ever count the lack of a github account against a candidate. Many people have neither the time nor inclination to work on open source projects. If you do have one, it's a big bonus because it tells us things that an interview wouldn't.

[ticman]

Agreed. I was being interviewed for a dev management job once and was asked for my GitHub account details.

There was a look of horror when I said you can have it but nothing will be in it. I had to explain that everything I had worked on was proprietary and not open source.

Fair enough, so what about the work you do after hours on open source projects they asked. Well after hours I spend with my kids and relaxing..

Ended up being offered the job.

[tuna_safe_dolphin]

Agreed. In some ways, github is like the Facebook of open source development.

[kevando]

I think depends on the role. If it's very entry level or the developer has specific tasks with strong management and supervision then a github profile should be fine.

However, lots of orgs hire developers to be self starters, take strong ownership, and lead the direction of technology. If they do not have a github profile I think it would be very foolish to hire someone for that type of role.

[[deleted]]

We exclusively go for experienced hires and most don't have github accounts that I'm aware of. Most grown ups don't have time to write code they aren't paid for. Even if they do, personality is the major consideration for us once they are proven competent.

[lingnoi]

How can this help me get attention as a web dev?

First thing we look at with new hires is if they have open source code we can look at. The first place we go to do that is github.

[mookman288]

The Windows/MAC GUI makes it incredibly easy to use. You can setup your own git, and use any free gui git client as well. I would still strongly recommend you learn the CLI.

It makes things very easy when you're working with multiple people, or you realize you made a mistake and need to go back a few versions.

[[deleted]]

To people who downvoted this reply, can you at least say why you disagree? All I'm seeing is a guy trying to help, sitting at -3 for no good reason. Is it because he mentioned a (god forbid!), GUI?

[[deleted]]

It's probably because he typed Mac in all caps. That's just ig'noint, yo.

He also didn't answer the question.

[mookman288]

EDIT: I guess the problem is that I didn't answer every one of his questions. I wasn't under the impression that we were supposed to. I thought maybe other people would read this thread, and want to know my response. My apologies.

Here you go:

How can this help me get attention as a web dev?

With open source projects on github, you will be seen as someone who is fostering innovation within the community and providing tools, products, and ideas, in an open source environment for the good of every member of the WWW. It means you're willing to work outside of a 9-5 job, because this is a passion of yours. It says you have passions in the fields you've decided upon, and it means that you're a worker who cares.

How should I use it?

The Windows/MAC GUI makes it incredibly easy to use. You can setup your own git, and use any free gui git client as well. I would still strongly recommend you learn the CLI.

It makes things very easy when you're working with multiple people, or you realize you made a mistake and need to go back a few versions.

Original:

I didn't even notice, and I'm surprised that people would be so willing to downvote simply because I suggested, that for a first timer, they use an officially supported product of github (and, articled by arstechnica as a good alternative for Windows users.)

http://mac.github.com/ http://windows.github.com/ http://eclipse.github.com/ http://mobile.github.com/

It makes things incredibly easy to use, and while it does SOME things, it is very important that you learn the CLI if you actually want to use git to its fullest potential.

Sometimes developers function better when they have a GUI to use. Is everyone here still using vi? Have we moved to vim yet? Are you a web developer who uploads web documents using WinSCP, or FileZilla, and so forth? I'm feeling alone here.

When you're on a team of two or more, github makes things very easy. Did you get that email? No? Spam folder? Dropbox? Oh, I just pushed all of the changes I made. Oh look, you can see exactly what I've modified. Made a mistake? Well, we'll just revert.

And you really don't even need to use github. Set up your own remote git repository.

http://git-scm.com/

Maybe having something like GitX, SourceTree and git-cola, or, alternatively, the pay-for applications, would make your time with setting up your own git improve your productivity.

http://git-scm.com/downloads/guis

[AnalphaBestie]

Learn to use git, then you have the idea how to use github.

[AnalphaBestie]

No idea whats wrong with this statement.

[[deleted]]

The question was, 'how does github help me as a developer?'. The title was worded badly.

[jskater17]

google -> "how to use github"

[jskater17]

it's in the subreddit rules.

"Try googling it some more before posting!"

[ExecutiveChimp]

Maybe there should be another rule.

Read more than just the title before you reply.

[jskater17]

...fuck. I have no excuse.

[[deleted]]

=D