6 ms·

I always tell people the `-m` flag of `git commit` is only ever to be used in scripts. Let git open an editor and write your multi-line message there. Look at t

I always tell people the `-m` flag of `git commit` is only ever to be used in scripts. Let git open an editor and write your multi-line message there. Look at the comments telling you which files have been changed. Even better than using `git add` and `git commit` is to use `git gui` to add and commit files. The (standard) GUI is not to help beginners, it is to make you a more effective user of git. Note there are other apps you can use with more features, for example I like gitx on MacOS, but there are also terrible apps out there that do try to be easy for beginners, and they should be avoided. The most obvious is github desktop (I haven't tried it for a while - it might have slightly improved, but I still won't go near it)

pfarrell 4y ago
Good points. I occasionally use gitk to browse recent commits. A gui definitely has its place. I like using the terminal, so my workflow is to use `git add -p`. That makes me look at each change, in small chunks,as I stage them. As a bonus, it helps me keep commits small, or decide if there’s some logical separation in my changes that would be better expressed in two or more commits.
cassianoleal 4y ago
What's `git gui`? $ git gui git: 'gui' is not a git command. See 'git --help'. The most similar commands are ci gc grep init lg80 pull push
- greggyb 4y ago
  Your package manager seems not to include it. `git gui` is available in the standard Windows installer for git. The package on Ubuntu 20.04 seems to not include the gui. As noted on git website, there are two GUIs that are in-tree -- native components of the project. https://git-scm.com/downloads/guis https://git-scm.com/downloads/guis
  - cassianoleal 4y ago
    Yeah it's packaged separately. I'm using git from Homebrew on macOS.
- everybodyknows 4y ago
  Alternative: git-log --graph --all --stat
  - rjmunro 4y ago
    That's more like gitk, not git gui. On ubuntu it's a separate install from the main git, https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/bionic/+package/git-gui https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/bionic/+package/git-gui Try `apt install git-gui`, or similar.
- WorldMaker 4y ago
  You may be able to get to it from `gitk` (it's under File > Start Git Gui). I've seen distributions that don't include the `git-gui` shortcut in PATH but do add `gitk` to somewhere in PATH.
  - cassianoleal 4y ago
    Thanks for the tip. I was mostly curious about it as I had never used or heard of it. I have looked into gitk in the past, and also other GUIs but I find git easier to use via the CLI.
chrismorgan 4y ago
> Look at the comments telling you which files have been changed. And you can make this even better by adding the diff that’s being committed with verbose mode (see `git commit --help`), so that you can scroll down and easily see exactly what’s going into the commit: git commit --verbose You can make it permanent so: git config --global commit.verbose 1 I also recommend setting commit.cleanup = scissors as a related thing.
- bityard 4y ago
  Thanks for this tip. One of the things I always did in larger commits was compose the commit message in a separate text editor while reviewing the diff in my terminal. This puts the diff right where I can see it, although time will tell if I enjoy scrolling up and down to switch between reading the diff and editing the commit message.
  - chrismorgan 4y ago
    See if your editor supports a split view; in Vim, for example, you have :split or :vsplit.
atq2119 4y ago
In addition to 'git gui' I would also recommend 'tig'. It allows you to stage individual lines and hunks like 'git gui' but also has a history view. With a little bit of creative key binding, this makes creating --squash commits a breeze. (It also has mouse support which needs to be enabled manually in the config.)

pfarrell 4y ago

Good points. I occasionally use gitk to browse recent commits. A gui definitely has its place. I like using the terminal, so my workflow is to use `git add -p`. That makes me look at each change, in small chunks,as I stage them. As a bonus, it helps me keep commits small, or decide if there’s some logical separation in my changes that would be better expressed in two or more commits.

cassianoleal 4y ago

What's `git gui`? $ git gui git: 'gui' is not a git command. See 'git --help'. The most similar commands are ci gc grep init lg80 pull push

greggyb 4y ago
Your package manager seems not to include it. `git gui` is available in the standard Windows installer for git. The package on Ubuntu 20.04 seems to not include the gui. As noted on git website, there are two GUIs that are in-tree -- native components of the project. https://git-scm.com/downloads/guis https://git-scm.com/downloads/guis
- cassianoleal 4y ago
  Yeah it's packaged separately. I'm using git from Homebrew on macOS.
everybodyknows 4y ago
Alternative: git-log --graph --all --stat
- rjmunro 4y ago
  That's more like gitk, not git gui. On ubuntu it's a separate install from the main git, https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/bionic/+package/git-gui https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/bionic/+package/git-gui Try `apt install git-gui`, or similar.
WorldMaker 4y ago
You may be able to get to it from `gitk` (it's under File > Start Git Gui). I've seen distributions that don't include the `git-gui` shortcut in PATH but do add `gitk` to somewhere in PATH.
- cassianoleal 4y ago
  Thanks for the tip. I was mostly curious about it as I had never used or heard of it. I have looked into gitk in the past, and also other GUIs but I find git easier to use via the CLI.

chrismorgan 4y ago

> Look at the comments telling you which files have been changed. And you can make this even better by adding the diff that’s being committed with verbose mode (see `git commit --help`), so that you can scroll down and easily see exactly what’s going into the commit: git commit --verbose You can make it permanent so: git config --global commit.verbose 1 I also recommend setting commit.cleanup = scissors as a related thing.

bityard 4y ago
Thanks for this tip. One of the things I always did in larger commits was compose the commit message in a separate text editor while reviewing the diff in my terminal. This puts the diff right where I can see it, although time will tell if I enjoy scrolling up and down to switch between reading the diff and editing the commit message.
- chrismorgan 4y ago
  See if your editor supports a split view; in Vim, for example, you have :split or :vsplit.

atq2119 4y ago

In addition to 'git gui' I would also recommend 'tig'. It allows you to stage individual lines and hunks like 'git gui' but also has a history view. With a little bit of creative key binding, this makes creating --squash commits a breeze. (It also has mouse support which needs to be enabled manually in the config.)