Monitor your Git repository with Go
Programming Snapshot – Go Monitoring
© Lead Image © alphaspirit, 123RF.com
To watch the progress in a Git repo in real time, Mike Schilli displays modified files with color highlighting in a monitoring terminal app in Go.
As a dinosaur from the stone age of data processing, I still prefer to use command-line tools to write code and text. To quickly modify, compile, and test a Go file, Vim is the perfect choice for me; an IDE would just get in the way. But I must admit that I often find myself typing git status to see if all the changes have been checked in. I can even recall situations where I forgot to include a file in the Git tree. This prompted much wailing and gnashing of teeth on the road with my laptop, because the change only existed on my computer at home and had not made its way into the Git repo.
That's why it would be nice to see a Git directory's status in real time while I'm working on it. Which files did I edit, which new files did I create, and which are still missing from the tree? A few handcrafted shell prompts could help here, but I'll top that today with a new tool named Gitwatch that runs in a separate terminal, shows me the local tree, reacts to changes in a flash, and color highlights things so that I can watch them from the corner of my eye (Figure 1).
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
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.
News
-
Fedora 43 Has Finally Landed
The Fedora Linux developers have announced their latest release, Fedora 43.
-
KDE Unleashes Plasma 6.5
The Plasma 6.5 desktop environment is now available with new features, improvements, and the usual bug fixes.
-
Xubuntu Site Possibly Hacked
It appears that the Xubuntu site was hacked and briefly served up a malicious ZIP file from its download page.
-
LMDE 7 Now Available
Linux Mint Debian Edition, version 7, has been officially released and is based on upstream Debian.
-
Linux Kernel 6.16 Reaches EOL
Linux kernel 6.16 has reached its end of life, which means you'll need to upgrade to the next stable release, Linux kernel 6.17.
-
Amazon Ditches Android for a Linux-Based OS
Amazon has migrated from Android to the Linux-based Vega OS for its Fire TV.
-
Cairo Dock 3.6 Now Available for More Compositors
If you're a fan of third-party desktop docks, then the latest release of Cairo Dock with Wayland support is for you.
-
System76 Unleashes Pop!_OS 24.04 Beta
System76's first beta of Pop!_OS 24.04 is an impressive feat.
-
Linux Kernel 6.17 is Available
Linus Torvalds has announced that the latest kernel has been released with plenty of core improvements and even more hardware support.
-
Kali Linux 2025.3 Released with New Hacking Tools
If you're a Kali Linux fan, you'll be glad to know that the third release of this famous pen-testing distribution is now available with updates for key components.

