Stage 2 of 6 · 7 lessons · ~4 weeks

Git and GitHub for contributors

Contributing means working in a repository you do not own. Learn the fork and branch workflow, keeping a fork in sync with upstream, rebasing, and commits a reviewer can read.

Start: Everyday commands: status, diff, stash, log

Lessons· one lesson for each topic, in this order

Start with

BookFree
Pro Git
Scott Chacon and Ben Straub
Chapters 3, 5 and 6: branching, contributing to a project, and GitHub forks

Practise

Learn Git Branching
The remote levels drill fetch, rebase and pushing while you watch the commit graph

Keep handy

Conventional Commits
The feat/fix/docs commit format many projects require and changelogs rely on
Oh Shit, Git!?!
Recovery recipes for the rebase or commit you just got wrong

Also worth your time

How to Write a Git Commit MessageRead
Seven rules for commit messages a maintainer can review and search later

Before moving on: In a practice repository with an upstream remote, open a pull request from a branch, rebase it onto an updated upstream, resolve a conflict, and squash it into commits with clear messages.

Tauseef's advice

Learn a dozen commands properly rather than fifty badly: clone, status, diff --name-only, add, commit, stash, fetch, pull, push origin HEAD, branch --all, remote -v and log. Never work on your fork's main branch, and use --force-with-lease, never plain --force, on your own branches.