How to Git in 5 easy steps

Step 0

Know that the Git book probably talks about your problem, and you can append -h or --help to any git command to view either a short or in-depth help message.

Step 1

Clone repository so you have main working repository (repo) on your computer. You only do this once!

git clone https://github.com/BoofPC/ZorCK2016.git

Step 2

Create your own branch to work on and switch to it using git checkout:

git branch $MY_BRANCH
git checkout $MY_BRANCH

Step 3

Do work editing the code/adding cool stuff. When done with a fair bit of work and testing of your code, add and commit your work on your branch (don't forget the message):

git status # figure out what you've changed
git add $FILE_A $FILE_B $FILE_C # add the files you changed and want to commit
# (you can use git add -A to add everything, but be careful)
git commit -m "Short description of work"
# if you want to say more, use git commit and write the longer changes on
# extra lines (the comments in the message in the editor should guide you)

Step 4

To merge your work into the master:

git checkout master
git pull --ff-only
git checkout $MY_BRANCH
git rebase master # if you need to fix merge conflicts, let me know & I'll help
git checkout master
git pull --ff-only # if anything changed in master, restart this step
git merge $MY_BRANCH # perform a final fast-forward merge of your branch with master

Your branch is now merged into master; you just need to push so everyone can pull your changes.

git push origin master

Finally, if all that worked, delete your feature branch:

git branch -d $MY_BRANCH

Your branch will be deleted if properly merged.

Step 5

Repeat steps 2-4 as necessary. You can check on the commit history of a branch using git log $BRANCH, or no $BRANCH for the current branch.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are working on a PERMANENT feature branch (e.g. pokemon), you need to switch all references to "master" above to your feature branch name "pokemon". For all intents and purposes, "pokemon" is now your master branch.