Many people are put off by Git because it seems difficult. For people transitioning from SVN, for example, the idea of local commits is often difficult to grasp. Using the command line tools is even more off-putting for people used to rich GUI tools.
However, after getting past the initial learning curve, you start feeling the power of Git on the command line.
But before saying anything else, I want to argue for using Git on the command line as the only way to really learn Git. GUI tools are limited by the number of items they can cram into a menu, so they have to compromise, and dumb it down. On the contrary, the command line gives you nearly unlimited freedom. Once you know enough to handle day-to-day tasks, you are free to learn and explore at your own pace (or not). And once you know how Git works behind the scenes, you know how to use any GUI client.
Aliases
Git aliases are used to create shortcuts for often used commands. They save you time by letting you write just a few characters instead of a long, complicated command. They also help you avoid mistakes.
[alias]
st = status
ci = commit
co = checkout
rev = merge --no-ff --no-commit
br = branch
ls = ls-files
Customized log
The log is one of the most often used commands in Git. As such, it is a good thing that it can be customized for different use cases. Sometimes you only need a quick glance at the recent changes, and sometimes you need the full picture, so you can display only what you need.
git log --graph
git log --oneline
git log --pretty=format:git log <revision>
git log -L <start>,<end>:<file>
This is what the default log looks like And this is how it can be customized
Diff tools
Diffing is where the command line is not suited for human abilities. We are used to nice shapes, arrows, and colors, while the terminal displays pluses and minuses. There are very powerful GUI diff tools that help you. On Linux, one of the best is Meld.
Meld screenshot
Where diff shines in the command line though, is comparing different versions of a file, or show the difference between commits easily.
Show the differences between the current index.html file and the one on the develop branch:
git diff develop -- index.html
Show all the differences between two branches (or commits):
git diff develop..master
git diff HEAD..HEAD~5
If you want to use the terminal, though, cdiff is an awesome tool that improves the diff experience a lot:
git diff develop | cdiff -s
tig
If you are not confident enough to use git commands but still want to use the terminal, you can use a tool like tig. It simplifies browsing the repository and helps with some simple commands.
Advanced usage
Where Git really shines is the advanced commands that are probably not available in your favorite git GUI client.
To list the branches that are merged (or not) in the current branch:
git branch --merged
git branch --no-merged
For recovering lost branches or commits
git reflog
To find the common ancestor of two branches
git merge-base <branch1> <branch2>
To rewrite history
git rebase -i <revision>
To commit partially
git commit -p
git commit *.java
git commit *Test.java
git commit **controller/**
Combine all this with some Bash magic and you can get amazing results.
Finally the most fun part of using the Git command line tools is the satisfaction of achieving what you wanted and knowing exactly what you did. It’s a huge difference between clicking a single button in a GUI client like SourceTree to “release” a feature (while the client runs some obscure magic behind the scenes) and doing each step by hand, and crafting each commit message the way you want it.
It’s like eating a burger from the street corner versus cooking an entire meal yourself.
