When beginning to learn a new tool, especially a wide and complex one like Git, it can be useful to take advantage of some GUI tools that are able to picture commands and patterns in a way that is more simple to understand.
Git benefits from a wide range of GUI tools, so it's only a matter of choice. I want to tell you right away that there is no perfect tool, as frequently happens, but there are enough of them to pick the one that fits your needs better.
As a Microsoft .NET developer, I use Windows 99 percent of the time. In spare time, I play a little bit with Linux, but in that case I prefer to use the command line. In this section, you will find tools I use or I have used in the past, while in the other platform section I will provide only some hints based on words of other people.
In the office where I work, I was the first person who started to use Git for production code. At some point, after months of little trials in my spare time, I gained courage and converted all the Subversion repositories, where I usually work alone, into Git ones.
Unfortunately, firm IT policies forbid me to use external source code repositories; so no GitHub or Bitbucket. To make things even worse, I also could not obtain a Linux server, and take advantage of great web interfaces like Gitosis, GitLab, and so on. So I started to Google around the web for a solution, and I finally found a solution that can be useful for people in a similar condition.
SCM Manager (https://www.scm-manager.org/) is a very easy solution to share your Git repositories in a local Windows network. It offers a standalone solution to install and make it work on top of Apache Web Server directly in Windows. Though it is built in Java, you can make it...
The last thing I would like to share with readers is a web app I found useful at the very beginning, to better understand the way Git works.
LearnGitBranching (http://pcottle.github.io/learnGitBranching/) is a tremendously helpful web app that offers you some exercises to help you grow your Git culture. Starting from basic commit exercises, you learn how to branch, rebase, and so on. However, the really cool thing is that at the right side of the page, you will see a funny repository graph evolving in real time, following the commands you type in the emulated shell.
In the end, I would suggest you to follow some resources that I usually follow to learn new things and get in touch with other smart and funny Git users over the Internet.
This community is full of people who are happy to share their knowledge with you; most of the coolest things I know about Git have been discovered here, at:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/communities/112688280189071733518
Thomas is a skilled Git user, and a very kind person. On his blog, you will find many interesting resources, including videos where he talks about Git at local German programming events.
More than this, Thomas runs GitMinutes podcast series, where he talks about Git with other people, discussing general purpose topics, tools opinions, and so on.
Take a look at www.tfnico.com and www.gitminutes.com.
On my personal blog, http://jesuswasrasta.com/, I recently started a Git Pills series, where I...
In this chapter, we went through some Git GUI clients. Even if I encourage people to understand Git by using shell commands, I have to admit that for most common tasks, using a GUI based tool makes me feel more comfortable, especially when diffing or reviewing history.
Then we discovered that we could obtain a personal Git server with a fancy web interface: the Internet has plenty of good pieces of software to achieve this target.
At the end, like my last suggestion, I mentioned some good resources to enhance your Git comprehension: all the knowledge fields, hearing the voice of the experts, and asking them questions is the most effective way to get your work done.
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