Learning Git and Human Factors with Sara Ford

11/07/17 • 45 min

Martin and Edward talk to Sara Ford about getting started using Git with Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code, using Git on Windows, and best practices getting set up on the command line. They wade into a discussion of git merge --squash versus git rebase --interactive, and Sara explains human factors in software development and prescriptive and descriptive software design.

And a bonus Git commentary: Ed explains why you need that crazy double-dash when you want to check out a single file.

Sara Ford is back at Microsoft on the Azure AD B2C team! Previously, she worked at GitHub and also at Microsoft… a couple of times. 😊 Sara started her career working on Microsoft's developer tools, including Visual Studio and CodePlex, where she's authored a couple of books on Visual Studio with Microsoft Press. In 2011, she became a Distinguished Fellow in the Dept of Engineering at Mississippi State University. In 2015, Sara received her Masters degree in Human Factors (HCI / UX) at San Jose State University because she wants to make developer tools more usable. Sara's life-long dream is to be a 97-year-old weightlifter so she can be featured on the local news.

Show Notes

Sara Ford's Blog, including her Git Tips of the Day
Azure Active Directory B2C, a cloud identity management solution
posh-git, a PowerShell extension for Git
GitKraken, a Git GUI client for Windows, Mac and Linux
gmaster, the new Git client from the folks who made Plastic SCM
There's more than one way to do it (TMTOWTDI), the Perl motto

And a bonus Git commentary: Ed explains why you need that crazy double-dash when you want to check out a single file.

Sara Ford is back at Microsoft on the Azure AD B2C team! Previously, she worked at GitHub and also at Microsoft… a couple of times. 😊 Sara started her career working on Microsoft's developer tools, including Visual Studio and CodePlex, where she's authored a couple of books on Visual Studio with Microsoft Press. In 2011, she became a Distinguished Fellow in the Dept of Engineering at Mississippi State University. In 2015, Sara received her Masters degree in Human Factors (HCI / UX) at San Jose State University because she wants to make developer tools more usable. Sara's life-long dream is to be a 97-year-old weightlifter so she can be featured on the local news.

Show Notes

Sara Ford's Blog, including her Git Tips of the Day
Azure Active Directory B2C, a cloud identity management solution
posh-git, a PowerShell extension for Git
GitKraken, a Git GUI client for Windows, Mac and Linux
gmaster, the new Git client from the folks who made Plastic SCM
There's more than one way to do it (TMTOWTDI), the Perl motto

Previous Episode

Git for Teams with Emma Jane Hogbin Westby

Martin and Edward talk with Emma Jane Hogbin Westby about her book, Git for Teams, about using Git to successfully collaborate with team members and how to teach people to use version control. In this episode, they also discuss humanizing software development and making Git more friendly to beginners.

For over 20 years Emma Jane Hogbin Westby has been been bringing people together through education, collaboration, and technology. Her latest book, Git for Teams (O’Reilly, 2015), outlines real-world strategies for more than just software development; it shows how teams can harness both technology and collaboration to work more efficiently, ensure project goals are met, and make the whole greater than simply the sum of its parts. Emma works with United Nations as a technical project manager, building software tools to help humanitarian responders connect and collaborate in times of disaster. You can follow her on Twitter at @emmajanehw.

Show Notes

Git for Teams, A User-Centered Approach to Creating Efficient Workflows in Git
Teaching People Git, Emma's talk from Git Merge 2015
Change Needs Management, Emma's talk from Git Merge 2016

Next Episode

GitHub Universe 2017

Sara Ford sits in for Martin and she catches Edward up on everything he missed at GitHub Universe 2017. They discuss wildfires, conferences, the "Wisdom of Crowds", robots, and the sessions at GitHub Universe.

Universe is GitHub’s flagship product and community conference for developers, system administrators, technical leads, and business leaders. Attendees will experience advanced skill building sessions, deep dives into how some of the most successful teams use GitHub, and keynotes from leading software company executives.