GitHub

GitHub is a web-based platform built around Git that provides hosting for software development and version control. It’s the world’s largest code hosting platform and essential for modern collaborative research.

Why GitHub?

• Collaboration: Work with researchers worldwide on shared projects
• Visibility: Make your research code discoverable and citable
• Integration: Connect with CI/CD, documentation, and project management tools
• Community: Access to millions of open-source projects and libraries
• Free for Research: Unlimited public and private repositories

Getting Started

1. Create a free account at github.com
2. Set up Git on your local machine
3. Configure Git with your GitHub credentials
4. Create your first repository or clone an existing one

Essential Features

Repositories

• Host your code with full version history
• README files for documentation
• Issues for tracking bugs and features
• Pull requests for code review

Collaboration

• Fork projects to contribute
• Star repositories to bookmark them
• Follow researchers working in your field
• Use GitHub Pages for project websites

Tips for Researchers

• Include a LICENSE file to clarify how others can use your code
• Write a clear README explaining what your code does
• Create a CITATION.cff file for proper attribution
• Use releases to mark versions associated with publications
• Add topics to make your repository discoverable

Best Practices

• Commit often with meaningful messages
• Use branches for new features
• Write clear documentation
• Add a DOI through Zenodo integration for permanent archiving