topic: Getting Git set up

Tags Git skill/git

Git is a critical tool for any kind of coder. We’ll get git set up before you do anything else. You’ll need to get comfortable using git from the command line.

If you have a computer

Optional: The Internet runs on Linux so if you can install Linux that would be useful. There are a few options here if you want to set yourself up:

Not Optional: Please download and install git. You can find out more here.

If you have an Android device

Start by installing Termux

Note: Since November 2022, the Google Playstore has refused to accept updates from Termux, so downloading Termux from there won’t work. You can download the latest version of Termux from f-droid.

It’s a terminal application that lets you execute bash commands.

Now you need to set Git up on Termux:

Type in the following commands:

pkg update
pkg upgrade
pkg install git
git config --global user.email "your@email.whatevs"
git config --global user.name "your name"
termux-setup-storage
cd storage/shared
# now you can cd into your folders and interact with git

This video walks you through the process.

Note:

  • If any of these commands ask you if you want to continue, then type in Y then enter.

  • At some point, Termux will ask you for a GitHub password. When you type in a password then it looks like nothing is being typed. This is normal. Just type out your password like you normally would and press enter.

  • If you get the error remote: Support for password authentication was removed on August 13, 2021, then you need to generate an SSH key and add it to your GitHub account. This is because as of August 13, 2021, GitHub and other Git hosting platforms have removed support for password authentication when interacting with remote repositories. This change is part of an effort to enhance security and encourage the use of more secure authentication methods, that key can be used as a password replacement for command-line and API authentication. You can read more about this here.

  • you can use the tab key for autocompletion, and the up arrow to get the previous command. This should speed you up a little bit.

If you have an iOS device

You can use iSH. It’s a terminal emulator for iOS. You can use it to run bash commands. You can install it from the App Store : on this link

Once you have it installed, you can follow these instructions to get git set up:

apk update
apk upgrade
apk add git
git config --global user.email "your@email.whatevs"
git config --global user.name "your name"
# now you can cd into your folders and interact with git

Here is a video that walks you through the process.

Note:

  • If you get the error remote: Support for password authentication was removed on August 13, 2021, then you need to follow the same instructions as for Android above.

If you don’t have the gear you need

Do your best to find a solution on your own. You can try the following:

  • ask your friends and family if you can borrow something
  • see if you can find an Internet cafe and try to make a deal
  • see if any co-working spaces near you have computers available
  • see if you can make a plan with someone who refurbishes computers for a living, sometimes you can pick up the gear very cheaply
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