How to Use Git
Git is easily the most popular version control system among open-source code slingers[1]. While git may seem complex at first, it is relatively easy to understand.
Git is a distributed version control system, meaning that changes are stored on every developers' machines separately (hence, distributed). However, there is usually a central server/service to host the code for everyone to access. This is usually an online code forge (see chapter 7).
When a file is changed, it is marked as "modified" by git. You can then add it
to the index (or "stage" it) using the git add command. After you add your
files, you can then "commit" them using the git commit command. Changes are
stored as deltas, or changes. Whenever a file is changed and committed, git
stores the change that was made. You can then "push" the commit to the central
server using git push. Your teammates can then "pull" the changes onto their
machines using git pull. You should always pull before making any changes,
because if you pull after committing files, conflicts can result.
Give it a try yourself
GitHub and Code School have collaborated to build Try Git, an interactive tutorial to help you, well, try git.