• Git Snippets
  • Change Default Editor to Nano
  • Github and Why you Should Probably Stop Using It
  • Commit Messages
    • Revert/Edit the Latest Commit Message Because You Apparently Can’t Write Properly Anymore
  • Pull Requests
    • Check Out PR Locally and Push Changes Back to PR
    • Push Changes to PR Without Write Permissions
    • PRs and Merge Conflicts

Git Snippets

Do not worry. Github CLI (or other non-FOSS) tools will not be mentioned. All you need is a modern version of Git. And a terminal.

Change Default Editor to Nano

If you use Neovim with integrated terminal then you will thank me for mentioning this:

git config --global core.editor "nano"

Github and Why you Should Probably Stop Using It

Just read this: GiveUpGitHub.

I am not a fan of GitHub and especially not a fan of GitHub actions and how bloated that CI/CD automation tool is (I also hold a grudge against it, because some recruiter didn’t notice on my CV and thought that I am not qualified enough for the role…).

Letting LLMs roam free and flood repos with PRs (also issues, general messages, etc.) is just something I don’t have the time nor the will to put up with.

Suffice to say that the only reason I am using GitHub is the same reason why I am still using Facebook: the network effect. Friends and family use, therefore I also have to use it. Developers and recruiters use it, therefore I have to use it.

Commit Messages

Revert/Edit the Latest Commit Message Because You Apparently Can’t Write Properly Anymore

git commit --amend

Pull Requests

Check Out PR Locally and Push Changes Back to PR

1. You should have been given permission rights to edit the PR’s fork by the PR owner (otherwise best approach is to ask them or if you can’t then take look at Push Changes to PR Without Write Permissions).

2. Fetch the reference to the PR into a new branch named LOCAL_PR_BRANCH_NAME:

   git fetch origin pull/<ID>/head:<LOCAL_PR_BRANCH_NAME>
   

   Note: is the PR's ID which you can find on GitHub (or whichever platform your are using). It should be something like this: `#`

3. Do some changes, commit them, then push back to PR using:

   git push <pr-repo.git> <LOCAL_PR_BRANCH_NAME>:<pr-branch-name>
   

Push Changes to PR Without Write Permissions

I advise against doing this but in case you are left with no other choice:

1. Fork the original fork and clone it locally (use Github’s UI for the fork and: git clone <FORKED_REPO.git>)
2. Do the changes and commit them to some branch
3. Open a new PR against the orginal PR’s branch (use GitHub’s UI for that)

PRs and Merge Conflicts

Say you have two PRs: PR0 and PR1. PR0 was opened before PR1 but PR1 got meged first. Assume that PR0 now has merge conflicts with the master (or main) branch because of the just-merged PR1. Sure, you can ask PR0’s owner to handle the merge conflicts but what if you want to do it yourself as the repo’s contributor?

1. Add orginal repository to remote and name it upstream:

   git remote add upstream git@github.com:<ORIGINAL_AUTHOR>/<PROJECT_NAME>.git
   

2. Fetch the commits and branches from upstream:

   git fetch upstream
   

3. Checkout your master (or main) branch (i.e., your fork):

   git checkout master
   

4. Merge the changes from the orginal repository (i.e., upstream) into your master (or main) branch:

   git merge upstream/master
   

5. Fix potential merge conflicts and commit your changes:

   git commit -am "commit message"
   

6. Finally, push changes to your fork:

   git push
   

Your fork is now in sync with the original repository and any potential PRs (obviously only PRs that are against the branch we synced - master) can be merged without conflicts (unless another PR gets merged again before yours in which case you have to redo all of this shit).