[Q] what's the best repo platform for a simple project?

2    08 Jan 2017 17:10 by u/xeemee

all i want to do is to host a guide and a config file (prefs.js) for the Firefox browser and allow others to contribute

what's the best and easiest to use platform for such a simple project?

at this point i'm looking at GitHub and GitLab (which i tend to prefer since it's open source), but might there be a better choice?

6 comments

4 u/matthewlinton 08 Jan 2017 17:53

I use bitbucket myself. Although github, gitlab, and bitbucket all have (for the most part) the same feature set. You'll be fine using any of them for your project.

Since you're going to be allowing people to contribute, you'll want to understand how to do pull requests. Pull requests are the best (my opinion) way to manage code review and code merges. Here is more info about it from Bitbucket (Atlassian).

1 u/xeemee [OP] 08 Jan 2017 18:05

thanks for the link

frankly, it's all looking rather complex to me for what i'm wanting though

3 u/matthewlinton 08 Jan 2017 20:32

Sure, if you're just learning about all this it can be a bit intimidating. Fortunately a small project like the one you're starting is only going to need the basic functionality that Git provides.

To get you started:

  1. Download and install Git on your computer
  2. Configure Git on your system.
  3. Create an account on Bitbucket

Create a new repository on Bitbucket:

  1. Make sure to un-check "Access level: This is a private repository" if you want everyone to be able to download your files
  2. In Advanced Settings: Create a description for your project
  3. In Advanced Settings: Enable "Issue Tracking" To allow people to create bug requests or feature requests
  4. In Advanced Settings: Enable "Wiki" if you want to create a documentation Wiki for your project
  5. In Advanced Settings: Set "Javascript" as your language"

Get started on your project:

  1. Clone your Bitbucket repository to your computer. ("git clone <Repo URL>")

Now you have two copies of your project. One on the Bitbucket server and one on your computer. Add and edit the files on your computer and then use Git to sync them to your Bitbucket repository.

Basic Git Workflow

Git can be a bit intimidating for a beginner, but below is the basic work flow.

  1. Add and edit files to your local repository until you reach your goals (i.e. some basic level of functionality)
  2. Run the command "git status" to make sure that only the files you have meant to change have been changed.
  3. Run the command "git diff" to get a list of changes that you have made (to review those changes).
  4. When everything looks good run "git add" to add those changes to Git.
  5. Run the command "git commit" to commit the changes.
  6. Run the command "git push origin master" to upload those changes to bitbucket (You'll be ask for your Bitbucket password)

Once you have those basics down, you can start getting into more complicated things like branches, forks, and pull requests. ALthough for your project you probably won't have to worry about any of that stuff.

1 u/rwbj 09 Jan 2017 02:50

This seems like it would be much better suited to a wiki than a full-on source control system. Google for 'free wiki software' and you'll get plenty to choose from. Keeping things as simple as [optimally] possible will save you a lot of grief.

1 u/xeemee [OP] 09 Jan 2017 12:20

yes, i think you pointed me in the right direction with the wiki idea - thanks :)

1 u/littul_kitton 10 Jan 2017 02:30

Github will stalk you around the Internet and ban you if they catch you not being Leftist enough in all media. Repositories have been abruptly deleted for containing one wrong word. There are better choices.