Git and Version Control: The Essential Developer Tool

"I changed this file yesterday, I need the old version but I didn't save it." — If you've ever said this, Git is for you. Git is a version control system that records every change to your code and lets you go back to any point in time.

What Is Git?

Git is a distributed version control system developed by Linus Torvalds (creator of Linux) in 2005. 96% of software developers worldwide use Git.

Why Should You Use Git?

1. Change History

• Every change is recorded (commit)
• You can go back to any point in time
• See who changed what and when

2. Team Collaboration

• Multiple people can work simultaneously
• Conflicts are manageable
• Code review processes
• Controlled merging via pull requests

3. Parallel Development

• Work on different features simultaneously with branches
• Experiment without breaking main code
• Feature branches, hotfix branches

4. Backup

• Code is stored in multiple places
• Code is safe even if your computer breaks
• GitHub/GitLab = cloud backup

Core Git Concepts

Repository (Repo)

Your project folder tracked by Git

Commit

A change record — like a snapshot

Branch

An independent development line branched from main code

Merge

Combining different branches

Remote

Cloud repositories like GitHub, GitLab

Essential Git Commands

# Initialize new repo
git init

# Add files to staging
git add .

# Save changes
git commit -m "Meaningful commit message"

# Add remote server
git remote add origin https://github.com/user/repo.git

# Push code to remote
git push origin main

# Pull code from remote
git pull origin main

# Create new branch
git checkout -b feature/new-feature

# Switch between branches
git checkout main

# Merge branch
git merge feature/new-feature

# Check status
git status

# View history
git log --oneline

Git Branch Strategies

Git Flow

• main — Production code
• develop — Development code
• feature/ — New features
• hotfix/ — Urgent fixes
• release/ — Release preparation

GitHub Flow (Simple)

• main — Always deployable
• feature branches — Separate branch per feature
• Pull Request — Merge after review

How to Write Good Commit Messages

Bad:

• "fix" ❌
• "update" ❌
• "asdasd" ❌

Good:

• "feat: add email validation to user registration form" ✅
• "fix: resolve 500 error on payment page" ✅
• "docs: update API documentation" ✅

Conventional Commits:

• feat: — New feature
• fix: — Bug fix
• docs: — Documentation
• style: — Code formatting (no functional change)
• refactor: — Restructuring
• test: — Adding/fixing tests
• chore: — Maintenance tasks

GitHub vs GitLab vs Bitbucket

| Feature | GitHub | GitLab | Bitbucket | |---------|--------|--------|-----------| | Free repos | Unlimited | Unlimited | Up to 5 users | | CI/CD | GitHub Actions | GitLab CI | Pipelines | | Wiki | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Community | Largest | Large | Medium | | Self-host | Enterprise | Free | Data Center |

Conclusion

Git is the cornerstone of modern software development. From solo projects to large teams, from a single file to projects with thousands of files — professional software development without Git is nearly impossible.

If you'd like to learn Git and modern development practices, reach out for private tutoring: info@cagribilgehan.com. Check out my projects: cagribilgehan.com