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Version Control with Git
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Version Control with Git takes you step-by-step through ways to track, merge, and manage software projects, using this highly flexible, open source version control system.
Git permits virtually an infinite variety of methods for development and collaboration. Created by Linus Torvalds to manage development of the Linux kernel, it's become the principal tool for distributed ...more
Git permits virtually an infinite variety of methods for development and collaboration. Created by Linus Torvalds to manage development of the Linux kernel, it's become the principal tool for distributed ...more
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Paperback, 297 pages
Published
June 11th 2009
by O'Reilly Media
(first published May 1st 2009)
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I recommend this book to anybody who has decided that Git is going to be their DVCS and intends to read the book sequentially, cover to cover. If you're still trying to decide between Mercurial, Bazaar and Git, this is probably a lot more information than you want or require. If you're looking for a quick reference, then the progressive structure may leave you scratching your head when jumping around topic areas.
Once you settle on Git, and want to invest the time to build up the conceptual frame ...more
Once you settle on Git, and want to invest the time to build up the conceptual frame ...more

Very clearly written, but not for dummies, and not a cookbook. Great book for people who need know why Git works the way it does, in addition to learning commonly used commands. It has most everything you need to use Git effectively. As a bonus, there are plenty of diagrams explaining the underlying git architecture.

Like "Pro Git" book, this is not a book to start with Git. For that, I'd recommend "Git for Humans" and "Jumpstart Git".
However, after having used Git a little while, this book is a great source to understand behind-the-scene details of Git. While such details may not be helpful in day-to-day use of Git, being aware of such details can 1) help appreciate the design of Git and 2) provide a peek into the kind of situations one can get into with Git. That second reason is most useful as makes one ...more
However, after having used Git a little while, this book is a great source to understand behind-the-scene details of Git. While such details may not be helpful in day-to-day use of Git, being aware of such details can 1) help appreciate the design of Git and 2) provide a peek into the kind of situations one can get into with Git. That second reason is most useful as makes one ...more

A thorough guide to learning the deeper truths of Git.
First you learn Git on your own, poking around online. That's enough. Then you can read this book and become the local guru. The last stage is learning the source code and working on the Git dev team. Choose your own path. ...more
First you learn Git on your own, poking around online. That's enough. Then you can read this book and become the local guru. The last stage is learning the source code and working on the Git dev team. Choose your own path. ...more

Typical O-Reilly book. More information than you'll ever need, well organized, very readable.
I haven't actually read it, just the parts of it I needed. Just like I'll do for years to come.
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I haven't actually read it, just the parts of it I needed. Just like I'll do for years to come.
...more

git is the most powerful and conceptually elegant source code management system I've used. (Perhaps Mercurial rivals it? I haven't used Mercurial.) But it seems to be in a state of arrested development. Many commands commonly used in ordinary development are basically unimplemented, and have to be performed with a set of lower-level commands. For example, publishing a local branch so remote developers can use it, and then setting up the branch so the remote copy continues to get updates, is a ha
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Version Control with Git is a fantastic book if you want to understand how Git is really working. This is important, because I don't know if anyone could ever really use Git without know how it's really working.
The book starts at the simplest possible place and shows examples of using Git, which become handy references for what you want to do with the system. But at each step of the way, it also explains what Git is doing under the hood, with diagrams, examples, and lengthy explanations. Sometim ...more
The book starts at the simplest possible place and shows examples of using Git, which become handy references for what you want to do with the system. But at each step of the way, it also explains what Git is doing under the hood, with diagrams, examples, and lengthy explanations. Sometim ...more

This book starts off with the concepts needed to use the product, delves into deeper - more technical - topics and finishes with a look at GitHub. I found that it was a good resource for learning what I could do with Git without spending too much time on one topic. The authors plainly discuss the tool's limitations and how developers are working around them. My favourite parts were on the concept of the working directory and repository, and branching.
My one criticism is that I felt that there co ...more
My one criticism is that I felt that there co ...more

This book on the Git source repository system is probably one of the driest tech books I've ever read. It's filled with overly complex explanations of an already overly complex piece of software, which made it hard to tell the difference. Here's an example of the treats in store for you if you read it:
"Directly fetching and merging a branch with a complex history will yield a different history in the receiving repository than the history that results from a patching sequence. Remember, one of th ...more
"Directly fetching and merging a branch with a complex history will yield a different history in the receiving repository than the history that results from a patching sequence. Remember, one of th ...more

I wish this was a typographical error but it isn't: "Git manages change."
It doesn't do that. No language or framework does that.
"A monkey who uses Git can manage change" is more appropriate.
But there's good news! This is an excellent book anyone who cares about version control can read without regret.
I still encourage some people to read the less lengthier introductions as this is far from that.
Examples are OK but the hardly gave scenarios relevant for software development teams. ...more
It doesn't do that. No language or framework does that.
"A monkey who uses Git can manage change" is more appropriate.
But there's good news! This is an excellent book anyone who cares about version control can read without regret.
I still encourage some people to read the less lengthier introductions as this is far from that.
Examples are OK but the hardly gave scenarios relevant for software development teams. ...more

I use this book as a reference, though I read the first version all the way through.
Disappointed that this version hasn't added any content on signing tags and why that should be done.
The expanded section on github is nice, but more info on other tools using git would be nice.
As a reference book it is great. The descriptions are detailed and efficient without sacrificing clarity. Git is a complex tool but this book is useful in understanding it. ...more
Disappointed that this version hasn't added any content on signing tags and why that should be done.
The expanded section on github is nice, but more info on other tools using git would be nice.
As a reference book it is great. The descriptions are detailed and efficient without sacrificing clarity. Git is a complex tool but this book is useful in understanding it. ...more

I read this on my Kindle thanks to my employer's Safari Books Online subscription (thanks Oracle). I was looking for a definitive tome on the topic and this fit the bill. My only quibble is the absence of some content early in the book reassuring the reader that eventually this will all make sense in the context of that little bit of Git knowledge you had just to get access to something on GitHub.
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I've been using git for about a year and still picked up some ideas from this book - for example, I had a pretty woeful understanding of how the index worked and this covered it well. What I like about it compared to many other references is that it dives into the core abstractions right away rather than focusing on the surface details of command syntax. I've recommended it to my team at work.
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This is one of the gems in the O'Reilly series. The authors do more than show you how to use the git commands; they explain how git is constructed. This means that you will not only get an understanding how to use git, you will also learn how git is set apart from other vcs offerings. I highly recommend this for folks who are trying to understand why everyone is excited about git.
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A very good guide for someone who's been using git and wants a deep understanding of the architecture and range of features, which matches me well! It's organized logically from a conceptual standpoint, which makes it lousy if one wants to minimize the pages read before being able to do something useful. With a little git experience, though, this becomes an excellent read-once-and-refer.
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Good technical description of the inner workings of git, a must if you really want to master git's advantages. The level of quality between chapters is quite varying, some of them really don't tell you much more than the man-page, albeit with good examples.
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Great book to introduce and get in depth with git. Takes from from beginner to intermediate/advanced and lets' you start to consume other more dense git topics. Once you finish it give the 2-4 chapter a re-read since you'll be able to get those concepts better after you get the gestalt.
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Very good book for learning Git.
It includes clear examples on using Git's different features.
It considers almost any scenario you may run into, and the actions you can take to get the results you expect. ...more
It includes clear examples on using Git's different features.
It considers almost any scenario you may run into, and the actions you can take to get the results you expect. ...more

I thought this book was very good, but I found it bounced from being too detailed and in the guts behind how Git works to being too simplistic in it's examples of how to use Git in practical terms.
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Aug 07, 2011
Milad
added it
I understand git in different ways !
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“When Git needs to create a working directory, it says to the filesystem: “Hey! I have this big blob of data that is supposed to be placed at pathname path/to/directory/file.”
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