🪠 Version Control Series – Post 7: Git Diff & Log – Tracking Changes Like a Pro Link to heading

🔍 Why Tracking Changes Matters Link to heading

Version control isn’t just about saving files—it’s about knowing what changed, when, and why. Git provides powerful tools to track modifications, helping you debug issues, review work, and collaborate effectively.

One of the biggest challenges in software development and data science is tracking changes across different versions of your code. With Git, you can pinpoint exactly what has changed between commits, branches, and even contributors. In this guide, we’ll explore how to track changes efficiently using git diff and git log and how modern tools like GitLens and Git Graph simplify the process.

🔀 1️⃣ Viewing Changes with git diff Link to heading

The git diff command allows you to see line-by-line differences between file versions. This is useful before committing changes or reviewing differences between branches.

✅ Basic git diff Usage Link to heading

git diff

This command shows unstaged changes, highlighting modified lines since the last commit.

✅ Viewing Staged Changes Link to heading

git diff --staged

Use this to see changes that are staged for the next commit.

✅ Comparing with the Latest Commit Link to heading

git diff HEAD

Compares the working directory with the latest commit, helping you track what has changed since your last save point.

✅ Comparing Two Commits Link to heading

git diff commit1 commit2

Replace commit1 and commit2 with actual commit hashes to see differences between any two points in history.

🔹 Pro Tip: Use git diff --color-words for a more readable diff that highlights word changes instead of whole lines.

📜 2️⃣ Checking Commit History with git log Link to heading

The git log command helps you explore the history of your project.

✅ Viewing Basic Commit History Link to heading

git log

Lists commits in reverse chronological order.

✅ Simplified Log for Quick Overview Link to heading

git log --oneline --graph --all

This provides a clean, visual representation of the commit tree, making it easier to understand the history of your repository.

✅ Viewing the Last N Commits with Diffs Link to heading

git log -p -2

Displays the last two commits with detailed changes.

🔹 Pro Tip: Customize your log view with git log --pretty=format:'%h - %an, %ar : %s' for a cleaner history output.

📊 3️⃣ Making Git History Easier with GitLens & Git Graph Link to heading

While Git’s command-line tools are powerful, VS Code extensions like GitLens and Git Graph make tracking changes much easier.

🔹 GitLens – Enhanced Git Capabilities Link to heading

GitLens integrates Git deeply into VS Code, allowing you to: - View commit details inline - See who last modified a line of code - Navigate commit history effortlessly

🔹 Git Graph – A Visual Git History Link to heading

Git Graph offers: - A graphical representation of branches and commits - The ability to easily switch between branches - Quick visualization of merge histories

🔹 Pro Tip: Combine GitLens with Git Graph in VS Code for the ultimate Git experience!

🎯 Key Takeaways Link to heading

✅ Use git diff to review changes before committing.
✅ Use git log to navigate commit history effectively.
✅ Extensions like GitLens & Git Graph simplify Git tracking in VS Code.

📌 Next up: Best Practices for Writing Commit Messages! Stay tuned! 🚀

👇 How do you track changes in your Git workflow? Let’s discuss!
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