A lot of the posts I write include command-line interface (CLI) commands to type in. I’ve found over time there are things I can do to improve how these commands are communicated.
Clue Board Game Exhibitionist Gambit
In the Clue Board Game (a.k.a. Cluedo), the Exhibitionist Gambit is when you suggest three cards in your own hand.
Git Merge Commit with Blocks
We can’t do a fast-forward merge when the most recent commit on the receiving branch does not appear in the branch we are merging in. One of our options in this situation is to create a merge commit when we merge in our branch.
Should I add .env to .gitignore?
The short answer is, “yes”. You should use your .gitignore file to ignore the .env file.
.gitignore Hidden Files with Exceptions
In most operating systems by default, files that start with a period (.) are hidden. When setting up my .gitignore file, I like to ignore all these hidden files (with a few exceptions).
Starter .gitignore file
This is my general starter .gitignore file for projects. I have a separate .gitignore for WordPress websites.
git add -p
By using “git add -p”, I can include some of my current changes in my commit (without including all of my changes).
What is a Git Branch?
While my mental model visualizes a Git branch as a stack of building blocks, in actuality a Git branch is a pointer to a single commit. Under the hood Git stores a text file for each branch and in the text file is a single line, which is the commit hash indicating the commit at the tip of that branch.
What is a Git Commit?
A Git commit, represented by a single building block in my Git mental model, is a frozen moment in time for your project (sometimes referred to as a snapshot). Along with this snapshot Git stores metadata about the commit (e.g. the author of the commit). Each commit has a unique identifier called the commit hash (a.k.a. SHA), a 40 character long alphanumeric string that is often abbreviated to just the first seven characters (e.g. “2b3a38b”).
Writing Good Commit Messages is the Wrong Place to Start
I’m a big fan of Git and I’ve worked with lost of developers in growing their Git skills. Often developers learning Git, start by learning how to write a “good” commit message. While writing “good” commit messages is an important skill, in my opinion it is the wrong place to start.