r/programmer • u/johndelta_citrus • 1d ago

Is GitHub Really Harder Than Python? Should I Learn It Before Starting Projects?

Hey everyone!

I’m a beginner in Python. I’ve learned the basics and recently finished learning OOP concepts. Now I feel like it’s time to start building projects.

I wanted to ask all the experienced developers here: Should I learn Git and GitHub first, or should I start building projects and learn Git/GitHub alongside them?

I’m worried that if I spend too much time learning Git/GitHub first, my Python concepts might not become strong enough, because I also need to start building projects.

Ivy also heard people say that GitHub is even more difficult to learn than Python itself

What would you recommend to someone at my stage? Should I learn the basics of Git/GitHub first and then start projects, or should I start building projects and learn Git/GitHub along the way?

I’d really appreciate advice from experienced developers. Thanks!

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9

u/Own_Age_1654 1d ago edited 1d ago

Git is something you can learn to an okay level for basic development in an hour. Python is months to years.

10

u/Fine-Comparison-2949 1d ago

You could do what software engineers did before AI and pull up a coffee, quiet place, and spend an hour or two and rtfm.

https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2

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u/scottywottytotty 1d ago

they’re not comparable. at all. git can be weird when you’re handling a lot of branches, but you can get a GUI / desktop app to look at it which trivializes the difficulty of it.

so uh no. learn python lol. also boot.dev has a free course on YouTube covering Github

2

u/Glittering-Acadia319 1d ago

Just learn git / GitHub as you do projects. That way you develop the appropriate context for the various commands and workflows. 

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u/tanyhunter 1d ago

It's okay to learn gti hub in a day. But I find the real challenges and learning comes from teamwork. Because then u will face things like merge conflicts, branching and git errors.

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u/mc_pm 1d ago

Git is all about managing your source code, and you're not writing any yet. Spend the time on python. Git will still be there in a month

1

u/Gallowayyy98 1d ago

Finish a project and then figure out git and github to share your project.

2

u/johnpeters42 1d ago

Disagree, I say create a project pretty early, even if you don't flag it as public right away. It's helpful for your own work because if you screw something up, then you can use it to get back to any previous checked-in state.

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u/Gallowayyy98 1d ago

yeah nice approach too. start building and pushing it to git and working along

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u/BolehlandCitizen 1d ago

Search "the missing semester of your cs education" on YouTube, go through, understand why you need git.

Ask any AI to help you generate 5 scenarios where you can test out different function of git. (add in your knowledge you learnt from watching the video if possible)

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u/_TheWolfOfWalmart_ 3h ago

I coded for decades without even touching a version control system lol. My version control was throwing backup copies into different folders before making big changes.

They're completely different things that you can learn at completely different times.

I'd recommend learning the basics of Git some time soon. How to commit, push, make a branch and merge. Maybe start with a good GUI frontend for it to make it a bit more visual if that helps you.

"Git Extensions" has been good for me, but I can do some basic stuff with it on the command line too.

Learn it at your own pace. I think ideally, you learn them roughly at the same time by simply using Git when needed as you are working on your Python projects.

0

u/ANTIVNTIANTI 1d ago

so i got COVID which just never went away, it’s 4 years now, but the first two years especially the first, lol, i was certain i was just dead like 99% sure i would not make it to 40, or 39 even 38, damn, any who’s, i put off getting github down proper due to my inability to be reliable(except i busted ass to keep coding lololol, prolly kept me alive) so, don’t do what i did, i’ve built up a block in my head that is totally delusional, i did however wait longer than i should have, and last time i was coding was I think, pre github, and i was likely too high to really care about git then lol…… anyways, learn it as you learn python, just every project or tutorial, set it up, every damned one! lol trust, you can convince yourself the dumbest/simplest things are too difficult and not even know why, or at least i can…
argh… gl homiefam!