github for researchers and writers

GitHub is a great tool for researchers and writers. Here's why.

what it is

GitHub is a tool that helps you keep track of revisions in your files and share your work with others.

It's not just for software development. GitHub can version just about any type of file - including text, LaTeX, CSV and 3D graphics.

There is a desktop client for Mac or Windows that you can use to manage your files. There are also tools like Flashbake, which automates backup in the background, letting you use the editor of your choice.

You can also just do everything from your web browser (including zen writing mode, which is pretty damn cool).

who it's for

It's for people who...

create files
that change
(sometimes) working with other people
(sometimes) to share with other people

not to mention

There are project management features built in:

set milestones with due dates
create issues (you can use this to create a research to-do list)
assign issues to people
track your progress by connecting an issue's resolution to a file revision

public vs. private

Repositories ("repos") are collections of files.

Any public repositories are free. Private repos are cheap. There are discounts and free private repos for educational users.

You can also add a license to your public content.

writers/academics on github

people:

groups:

github vs. git

GitHub is based on Git, which is free and open source. GitHub is not Git, and Git is not GitHub. GitHub is closed source and but one option of many for hosting your repos. For larger projects, it's worth diving into Git, rather than relying on GitHub. Why switch to Git?

About

GitHub is a great tool for researchers. Here's why.

erinrwhite / github-for-researchers