July 2013 Summaries

Code Bass 3 is an event scheduled for Wednesday, July 31st, taking place from 8 PM to 2 AM at Public Works, located at 161 Erie Street in San Francisco. Attendees can enjoy music provided by GitHub DJs, including @newmerator, @defunkt, @atmos, and others, and are encouraged to come ready to dance and have a great time. The event offers free general admission, with an option to donate $7 to GAFFTA.org in exchange for three drinks. Registration is open, and the event is organized by Kami Richey, known as @kamzilla.

GitHub has introduced a new code search API that extends its powerful search capabilities to machines, allowing users to search by file extension, language, and other qualifiers. This API not only finds specific files that match search criteria but also provides code snippets highlighting the exact location of matching terms, along with their metadata. Additionally, GitHub has launched an enhanced search API for repositories, issues, and users, featuring a broader set of query operators and snippets that display matched text to help users efficiently locate desired items. The announcement, detailed on the Developer Blog by Jason Rudolph, marks a significant enhancement in GitHub's search functionalities, aimed at improving both code and repository searches.

ChooseALicense.com is a resource designed to assist developers in selecting an appropriate open-source license for their code, offering clarity on the requirements, permissions, and restrictions of each license. The platform simplifies the process by allowing users to easily copy their chosen license, and encourages community contributions by being open source itself, accepting suggestions via Pull Requests. GitHub has integrated this tool, providing a license picker feature when creating new repositories, to further streamline the licensing process for its users. The initiative, authored by Phil Haack, aims to enhance understanding and accessibility of open-source licensing.

GitHub has introduced enhancements to its OAuth flow, including the ability for application developers to add detailed text descriptions and custom images to their applications, which aids in better communicating with potential users. The update also features redesigned views for granting or denying access to GitHub accounts, providing clearer information about third-party applications and the type of access they seek. Additionally, GitHub offers comprehensive documentation to assist developers in creating applications that utilize OAuth and the GitHub API, encouraging innovation and integration within the platform.

GitHub has enhanced its platform by enabling users to perform the entire GitHub Flow directly from a web browser, eliminating the need for command-line interactions and making collaboration more accessible. This streamlined workflow allows users to create, edit, delete, and organize files, as well as manage branches and pull requests through a simple, intuitive interface. The browser-based approach lowers the learning curve for new users and facilitates training by allowing people to grasp the basic concepts of Git and GitHub without installing additional software. It also offers convenience for experienced developers by enabling quick adjustments without leaving the browser, and it supports documentation and website management through features like Markdown previews and GitHub Pages integration. This development aims to reduce barriers to contribution and enhance productivity by allowing seamless, real-time updates and collaboration within the GitHub ecosystem.

GitHub hosts monthly Passion Projects talks at its headquarters, inviting around 50 people from the tech community to foster intimate and inspiring events, though they often reach capacity quickly. To accommodate more attendees, GitHub has partnered with Gild for a viewing party, where Jessica Hische’s talk will be streamed live at Gild’s San Francisco office, with Octocat stickers, snacks, and beverages provided. For those unable to attend in person, a follow-up social event will be held at Novela. GitHub encourages others to host their own viewing parties and offers support through their Passion Projects initiative.

An event is scheduled for Thursday, July 11th, at Novela SF, located at 662 Mission Street, from 8:30 PM to 11:30 PM. Attendees are invited to a drinkup, and the back room has been reserved for this gathering. The announcement is authored by Julie Ann Horvath, who uses the handle @nrrrdcore.

GitHub has enhanced its star browsing feature, allowing users not only to sort, search, and filter their own starred repositories but also to explore the stars of other developers, including those they follow. The interface for viewing others' stars closely resembles the user's own star browser, with some refinements for a better experience. The platform now provides quick links to browse developers you follow, adding an element of fun and discovery. As users explore, they can easily identify previously seen stars thanks to a darker Unstar button, making the browsing experience more intuitive and enjoyable.

GitHub announced the discontinuation of its old Subversion (SVN) support service, which will be shut down on July 31, urging users to switch to the improved Subversion Client Support introduced a year and a half ago. The older service, running on svn.github.com, will no longer be active, and users with SVN checkouts from this domain are advised to recreate them using the new GitHub URL format. The previous service only allowed checkouts of the default branch, usually 'master,' requiring users to update their checkout URLs to the new format that includes the trunk/branches/tags convention for better functionality and access.

@jonmagic and @kdaigle are in Minneapolis to welcome new team member @jaw6, inviting others to join them for drinks at Kieran’s Irish Pub on Thursday, July 11, at 7:00 PM. The event is organized by Kyle Daigle, GitHub's Chief Operating Officer, who has been with the company since 2013, contributing significantly to its growth and evolution, including leading the AI adoption strategy. Kyle is dedicated to integrating software practices into operations and maintaining GitHub's developer-focused ethos. His background spans roles in engineering and product leadership across various industries, and he is actively involved in community and personal projects, emphasizing technology accessibility and family activities.

Join the Passion Projects talk series on Thursday, July 11th, featuring renowned typographer Jessica Hische, known for her personal projects like Daily Drop Cap and her collaborations with notable clients such as Wes Anderson and Google. Hische has received accolades including Print Magazine’s New Visual Artists, ADC Young Gun, and Forbes 30 under 30 in Art and Design for two consecutive years, and she currently serves on the Type Directors Club board. The event will take place at GitHub HQ in San Francisco from 7:00-8:00 pm, with doors opening at 6:30 pm, and attendees must register due to limited space.

Jason Rudolph invites attendees to join a casual gathering at Tyler's Taproom in Raleigh on Thursday, July 11th, 2013, at 8:00 pm, featuring a relaxed atmosphere for conversation and drinks. The event, promoted with the playful tagline "Speak easy and join us in the back room for 🍻 on GitHub," is organized by Jason along with @nuclearsandwich, @imbriaco, and @shayfrendt, and is tagged as an event, suggesting a networking opportunity possibly related to GitHub or technology enthusiasts.

The web-based interface now allows users to easily delete files from their repositories by viewing the file, clicking the delete button, and committing the removal, similar to other web-based edits. This new feature is supported by help articles on creating, moving, renaming, and deleting files. As Git is a version control system, it provides the option to recover deleted files if necessary. However, in cases where a file, such as a secret key or sensitive information, must be completely removed from the repository, users might need to consider more drastic measures to ensure its permanent deletion.

Sara Chipps recently participated in the 4th installment of GitHub HQ's talk series, Passion Projects, where she delivered an inspiring presentation on her past projects, the importance of the developer community and mentorship, and the concept of moving forward as a means of self-forgiveness. The event, documented through photos by Tea Ho of Dreambox Photography, was covered by Julie Ann Horvath and highlighted key aspects of Chipps' journey and insights into personal and professional growth within the tech industry.

GitHub for Mac has introduced a completely redesigned History tab that offers a more efficient and faster way to view repository history, thanks to the integration of libgit2 for enhanced diff performance and ReactiveCocoa for improved responsiveness. This redesign marks the beginning of a broader vision for the app, with plans to extend similar improvements across other features. The update aims to significantly enhance user experience by providing a quicker and more responsive interface.

Releases is a newly introduced workflow designed to streamline the process of delivering software to end users by treating releases as first-class objects that include changelogs and binary assets, offering a comprehensive project history beyond traditional Git artifacts. Accessible from a repository's homepage, releases provide release notes and links for downloading software or source code, and they are associated with Git tags, which can either be pre-existing or created during the release process. While Semantic Versioning is recommended, it is not mandatory. Repository collaborators can draft changelogs, identify non-production releases like alphas and betas through a pre-release checkbox, and attach binary assets such as executables and documentation. Once a release is published, its details and assets are accessible to anyone with repository access, enhancing transparency and ease of software distribution.