The launch of GitHub in 2008 brought a lot of excitement and buzz among developers. Ten years later, the excitement has only continued to rise as GitHub users engage in collaborative coding projects with other users. The network has over 27 million users currently and its success is a manifestation of its users’ satisfaction. If you are not a geek, you may still be wondering what GitHub is all about. But if you take time to understand and maybe become an active user, it becomes a journey of ever-increasing awe.
What is GitHub?
Put in simplest of terms, GitHub is like a social network for developers to create projects and share them their followers. This is, however, a layman description of GitHub. It is quite more complex… and much cooler.
GitHub is both a Version Control System and repository. As a version control system, it is a platform for developers to create projects, e.g. apps, and keep making improvements. As a repository, it is a storage platform for in which the users can save their project. Each project has its own repository (repo) and can only be accessed using a specific project-based URL.
But what really makes GitHub standout and be so popular among developers compared to other version control systems?
Forking (Branching)
Forking is a unique feature of GitHub that allows one user to copy a project from a repository that he or she doesn’t have editing rights. The user can then transfer the project to their own account for modification like they would do with their own project. He or she can release the modified version as a new repository. This new copied repository I knew as a fork or branch. If the original repository is modified, the user can easily make the same modifications on the new project if they deem it fit to do so.
Pull Requests
After editing the original repository, a user might be impressed with the branch they have created and desire to have the creator of the original repo to view it. In such instances, GitHub allows the user to send a pull request to the original creator. A pull request creates a communication link between the two users concerning the two project: the original and the branch.
Merge
Forking allows several users to modify one repo in different ways independently. If after pull request the original creator is impressed with the changes, he may copy them to his repository and make them part of the initial project.
There are a lot of good developers that are creating an independent project. However, no matter how brilliant, nobody has the monopoly of ideas. This is what makes GitHub such a revolutionary platform. It allows the users to not only share their projects but also to discuss it with other users about possible modifications. In the spirit of perpetual development of ideas, GitHub has also created features and products such as GitHub Desktop and GitHub Student Development Pack that improve their subscribers’ experience.
The iPad Flip Stand that Works for GitHub
At Tryten, we also strongly believe in GitHub’s concept of using technology to share and develop ideas. It was, therefore, an honor for us to the revolutionary tech-company as one of our customers. GitHub has recently chosen two of our most popular iPad accessories for their business: the iPad Flip Stand and Lightning Cable Security Trap. The iPad Flip Stand is a darling among our customers that use iPads because they improve its flexibility when in use. The Lightning Cable Security Trap, on the other hand, protects the iPad’s lightning cable for just $15.
Companies like GitHub know that it's not just about using technology, but about keeping it secure, safe, and functioning so they can do what they do best.
