Version control is a way for you to keep track of all of the work that you have done, including all of the changes that you have made. You’ve probably seen something similar to this when typing up documents for something like Google Docs or Microsoft Word. They would allow you to return to previous revisions of the paper or be able to see what changes another user has made. Version control does something similar, but instead of a garden-variety document, it is expressed through code. Here, we will talk about what version control is, why it’s important to use, how it helps when working with a team, and the advantages and disadvantages of it.
As stated before, version control acts as a way for you to keep track of changes in software code. The reason it works this way is because it will allow you to go back to a previous version that functions if the newest version has an error or mistake. It also works just as well for being able to forge backup files just in case something goes wrong, like accidentally deleting a file or if your computer shuts down without your work saving. You can also work on your projects using version control with other people, allowing you to work simultaneously with others in a seamless flow. Version control acts as a physical timeline, and it is quite helpful, as it allows you to fix mistakes, store backups in case of emergency, and work with groups even at different times, making version control a good thing to use in general.
Version control is incredibly important when developing code because you are able to work on it with other people, as stated before, meaning that you can work on code from a centralized server system, allowing for everyone to work at once. Version control is also almost essential because it will allow you to keep and delete changes, make changes, and create backups, which is important for web development, because always finding a way to have data stored for future reference or in case of problems is important. It also can allow you to keep more concise tabs on your file management, so your system isn’t cluttered with unnecessary files or objects that perhaps the user may find to be irrelevant at a certain stage in development. Much like Google Docs, it’s good to be able to keep backups of your data, because you can always check to see what works and what doesn’t work during the testing phases, if there are any. Version control is essential for projects as well, seeing as sometimes you may find that you are working on a part of your project, and perhaps you deleted it by mistake, or you found that an older draft was better than the current one, meaning you can return to that to fix the problems with your current work.
In terms of how it can help working with teams, it is incredibly helpful. When in groups, some people may have varying opinions on what files they think work and ones that they don’t think work all that well. When working with groups, being able to use shared files is key to being able to have everyone find a groove that works for them. Groups can also work together all at once, working in a collaborative effort to make things work properly for the project or whatever is being worked on. Teams have a marked advantage with version control because everyone can work from where they think the project works best, allowing for a more cohesive flow to make the files that are being created work better. This in turn creates a more dynamic development for people when creating different files, as they can do what they feel works best, and then collaborate their efforts once the final product is ready. Version control has many benefits when working with teams, allowing for it to be an immediate “go-to” tool for teams.
Regarding advantages, working with version control allows it to be easier when keeping tabs on all of the work that you have created. You can add comments in collaborative efforts, as well as assigning different tasks to different users, making team efforts all the more simplistic. Users can also review the different lines of code before you are ready to finalize the product of your labor. You can even keep old documents and files from years prior, as well as being able to alter new files as well. In terms of disadvantages, there are a few different problems that can plague your work according to GitHub, including: code conflicts, pushing the wrong files, and “verified commits”. These can be a bit of a problem when developing things using version control, but they seem to be mild mannered issues that can be easily remedied, as not very many issues appeared from my sources regarding potential issues about version control systems.
In conclusion, we have discussed here what version control is, why it’s important to use, how it helps when working with teams, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of it. Version control seems to be somewhat simple in the grand scheme of things, acting as more of an archive of data that can be preserved for others or to help you figure out if something went wrong. Version control is a useful thing for anyone to use to help with their work, and it is something that I like to use from time to time as well, usually when it comes to my documents or lab files for my website. I save some copies of files if I consider them “fixed” so that I always have the original one to see what went wrong, but I have the next, fixed files to display on my website. Overall, version control is a good way to manage your timeframes of work and to keep archived versions of your work for future reference, making it a reliable source to work with web development.
MLA Citations (Hanging Indent Employed)
Intro to github for version control. (n.d.). Retrieved November 5, 2021, from https://ourcodingclub.github.io/tutorials/git/.
Atlassian. (n.d.). What is version control: Atlassian Git Tutorial. Atlassian. Retrieved November 5, 2021, from https://www.atlassian.com/git/tutorials/what-is-version-control
