Question on version control app

I'm using Unity 2018 LTS. I completed a unity course in udemy and haven't tried version control. I have in the past only downloaded github but only tried it by inserting code but did not learn anything further. I did not understand how version control worked. My links and questions are as below:

https://docs.unity3d.com/Manual/UnityCloudBuildVcs.html
https://www.softwaretestinghelp.com/version-control-software/

Does it really make matter which I choose or should I get one specially for Unity?
Or can I just use any version control app once I understand how version control apps works?
Is it easy to transfer all my information from one version control app to another if I find another easy to understand?

 

It does not matter which one you get for Unity, though I recommend git because it is the most widely used, so it will be easy for you to find help with issues that might come up.

Source control does not care if you're using unity or not, just make sure you tell your source control to ignore certain unity files, such as files in your Library and Temp folder. Source control basically keeps track of how your files change so you can undo devastating changes easily, or go back and forth between old and new versions.

You can NOT transfer your source control history between different types of source control. However, you CAN switch from one source control to another, which will lose your previous changes and start tracking your new ones.

For a beginner, I would recommend using git with SourceTree, which is a friendly GUI to help you control git.

 

What if I don't use sourcetree? Will I get confused? Is github alone difficult to understand? Or do i need to play around with it to understand it properly first?

 

SourceTree and GitHub serve very different purposes, and you can use both at the same time.

About SourceTree: Git is usually controlled through command line, so you will need to learn different commands to type into a command line to control it. SourceTree is a GUI that allows you to press well-labelled buttons instead of learning the command line commands, and allows you view and navigate the history of your project with graphics. There are other free tools that also allow you to control git, such as TortoiseGit. Both command line and SourceTree will take some getting used to, but the basics are fairly easy, and it's much easier to figure out one once you understand the other. I prefer SourceTree because it's friendly for beginners, and everything is a bit more convenient to access than with other tools.

About GitHub: GitHub is very easy to understand, and they give you very simple instructions to get you started. Once started, there is little you have to do aside from what you would normally do with Git. GitHub is an online server to store your project so that you still have the history git would provide you if you break your computer. It also allows you (and others) to work on the same project on multiple computers and "push" your changes to each other. There are alternatives to GitHub, such as BitBucket. I don't have a preference, they all seem to work pretty fine and simple.

 

I still have this question: If I'm self-studying software development on my own, do i bother using github for desktop and git bash or are they more suitable for those who are actually involved in software development? Is there such a thing as a suitable version control desktop app or a perfect desktop app for individuals like me - as in for self-study?

 

Yeah, I recommend git (or some form of source control) to EVERYONE. Without it, you could lose an entire project by accidentally deleting something, saving something you didn't mean to, breaking something you don't know how to fix, etc. With source control, you can always undo devastating changes and prevent yourself from losing months or years worth of work. Using source control is a little intimidating at first, but once you know how to use it, it's really easy.

I still recommend using SourceTree with Git for a beginner. It is easier to pick up than most other tools, and the stuff you learn in SourceTree will be useful if you try other source control later.

 

I will search for sourcetree tutorials later. Now i'm still learning how to insert items in git using git bash. I might sound lazy by asking but if you happen to know any easy tutorials, you can update me.