Software

Version Control

Git & GitLab – Version Control

git-scm.com

Git is a distributed version control system originally developed by Linus Torvalds. It enables systematic tracking of changes to files and is essential for collaborative coding and reproducible research.

GitLab is a web-based platform for managing Git repositories. The University of Hamburg operates its own GitLab instance at gitlab.rrz.uni-hamburg.de – login is via your B-Kennung. Alternatively, we use GitHub (github.com) for our publicly available course materials.

Installation

Git can be downloaded for free from the official website:

Choose the version for your operating system (Windows, macOS, or Linux) and follow the installation wizard. On macOS, Git can also be installed via Homebrew (brew install git), and on Linux via the respective package manager.

Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs)

Git is fundamentally operated via the command line (terminal). However, there are convenient graphical interfaces for getting started and everyday use:

  • Git tab in RStudio/Positron – Integrated Git support directly within the development environment. Ideal for R users who want to incorporate version control into their workflow.
  • GitKraken – A cross-platform Git client with a clear graphical representation of the repository history. Free for open-source projects and via the GitHub Student Developer Pack.
TipRecommendation

For getting started, we recommend using the Git tab in RStudio or Positron. The most important commands (commit, push, pull) are easily accessible there. For more complex operations, learning the command line is worthwhile.

Further Resources