An alternative use for GitHub

Alternative Use

Article from Issue 147/2013
Author(s):

With its easy-to-use web interface, GitHub can be put to totally different uses than archiving code. For example, Perlmeister Mike Schilli used GitHub to deploy a content management system for simple websites.

GitHub is the place the open source community frequents to work on its projects; the former startup from San Francisco has gained some fame in this way. In fact, GitHub is actually starting to earn money. The company is also regarded in the extended Silicon Valley area as a prime example of how to attract talented developers. Thus, it is not surprising that the repositories offered for free in the open basic version, the associated disk space, and reliable web hosting act as a safe haven for all sorts of data that somewhat stretches the definition of “open source.”

Many readers will have been frustrated that new computers don’t come pre-installed with their own configuration files that they have maintained over the years (e.g., .bashrc or .vimrc). Because these files rarely contain secrets, it has become commonplace to store them on GitHub in a repository by the name of dotfiles. Now, if you run aground in an unconfigured environment, you only need a browser to download the familiar files from a single, easy-to-find website.

Buy this article as PDF

Express-Checkout as PDF
Price $2.95
(incl. VAT)

Buy Linux Magazine

SINGLE ISSUES
 
SUBSCRIPTIONS
 
TABLET & SMARTPHONE APPS
Get it on Google Play

US / Canada

Get it on Google Play

UK / Australia

Related content

  • Perl: Travis CI

    A new service on travis-ci.org picks up GitHub projects, runs new code through test suites, and notifies the owners if the build fails. Its API enables Perl scripts to gather historical build data, including who-broke-the-build tabulations.

  • Perl: Collaborate with GitHub

    GitHub makes it easier for programmers to contribute to open source projects by simplifying and accelerating communications between project maintainers and people willing to contribute.

  • GitHub with hub

    The handy hub command-line tool lets you manage your GitHub repository from a terminal window, which can make it easier to automate repetitive tasks.

  • Perl: Jenkins CI Server

    Instead of configuring the Jenkins continuous integration server in the browser with mouse clicks and text input for builds, programmers can store the necessary data in the source control system and let a Perl script do the work.

  • GitHub Codespaces

    Imagine you want to build a program from the source code and discover that your distribution lacks the tool and software package versions you need to do so. Instead of using your own virtual machine, you can now switch to GitHub Codespaces.

comments powered by Disqus
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters

Support Our Work

Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

Learn More

News