Welcome, dear apprentice, to your maiden voyage into the enigmatic realm of Git. Together, we’ll create a Git repository and explore the mystical essence of Git commands.

The first step

For our first incantation, let’s create a repository named myfirstgitproject in your chosen location.

A repository? Think of a repository as a special folder, like a digital archive, where all your Git-related files will reside.

The second step

Now, open your chosen text editor, such as Visual Studio Code, and navigate to the myfirstgitproject folder. This editor will serve as your tool for crafting and editing your files.

The third step

Within your text editor, create a file named index.html. This file will serve as the initial content for your Git repository. Copy and paste the following code into the file:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=edge">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  <title>My first git command</title>
</head>
<body>   
</body>
</html>

The fourth step

Open the terminal by browsing to View > Terminal within Visual Studio Code. Now, run the command git status. This command will reveal the status of your files within the Git repository.

If you receive the message:

fatal: not a git repository (or any of the parent directories): .git

it means that Git doesn’t recognize this directory as a Git repository. To resolve this, we need to initialize the directory as a Git repository.

The fifth step

To initialize the directory as a Git repository, run the command git init. This command will convert the directory into a Git repository and create a hidden folder named .git to store all Git-related data.

Initialized empty Git repository in /home/<user>/Cats/.git/

Ah, but wait, dear traveler. Do you see the cryptic symbol U next to your file name within the Explorer pane? Fear not if this symbol’s meaning eludes you, for all shall be revealed in time. However, should impatience be your companion, you can hover your mouse on U and read the message that the system displays.

Untracked

Now, returning to our ritual, git init converts any folder or directory into a Git repository. When you create a git repository, you can also create an initial branch. By default, git initializes a repository to the master or main branch. You can, however, choose in which branch you want to initialize the repository. If you wish to initialize the repository to the main branch, run git init -b main. Again, do not be troubled if the concept of branches in Git remains veiled; this knowledge shall unveil itself in due time.

The sixth step

Run the command git status again. This time, you should see a message similar to this:

On branch main

No commits yet

Untracked files:
  (use "git add <file>..." to include in what will be committed)
        index.html

nothing added to commit but untracked files present (use "git add" to track)

This message indicates that the index.html file is currently untracked, meaning it’s not yet being tracked by Git.

The seventh step - Final Revelation

Now, open the myfirstgitproject folder on your desktop. You should see a .git folder inside, along with the index.html file. This .git folder is where Git stores all the information about your project’s history.

Or the alternate path

  1. Open Visual Studio Code and go to View > Terminal to open the terminal.
  2. On the Terminal enter git init myfirstgitproject. This command creates a new directory called myfirstgitproject and initialize it as a Git repository.

Congratulations, dear apprentice! You have successfully created your first Git repository and initiated your journey into the world of Git.

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