This 2-part, 4-hour course will be offered via Zoom, over two mornings. Attendance is required as the course will not be recorded.

In this course, participants will learn how to keep track of the code they use in their research using the version control system Git and the collaboration platform GitHub. Git allows you to keep track of changes to your code, easily revert to previous versions, and “tag” versions of code used in publications so that the exact code used can be retrieved at a later date. GitHub allows Git users to collaborate with each other on projects by managing simultaneous changes to the same files and allowing users to review and discuss each others’ code. Git and Github are applicable to any text-based programming or analysis language, including R, Python, Stata, Julia, and others.

Participants should create a github account at github.com and install git prior to the class. Windows users can download git at https://git-scm.com/download/win ; there are multiple installation options, the first link is fine. Mac users can install git by opening the terminal application (in Applications -> Utilities -> Terminal) and typing “git version” (no quotes) and pressing enter. If git is not installed, you will be prompted to install it.

This course will be a soft pre-requisite for the upcoming “Modular Design and Automated Testing in R” on April 18 & 20, 2023