Git and GitHub Are Not the Same Thing
The names are confusingly similar, so let’s get this straight first:
- Git is the tool that keeps your save points. It runs on your computer.
- GitHub is a website that keeps a copy of your project and all its save points online.
Git keeps your history. GitHub keeps a copy of it in the cloud.
A project that Git is tracking is called a repository, or repo for short (a project folder with a memory).
Push: Sending Your Save Points Up
Making a commit saves a snapshot on your computer. GitHub doesn’t know about it yet.
To send your new save points to GitHub, you push them.
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Commit | Make a save point on your computer |
| Push | Send your new save points up to GitHub |
| Clone | Download a whole repo from GitHub to a computer |
Why Bother?
Keeping a copy on GitHub gives you three big things:
- A backup. Laptop stolen? Coffee spilled? Your project is safe online, every save point included.
- Work from anywhere. Clone it onto another computer and carry on.
- Going live. Later in this course, the service that puts your site on the internet reads your project straight from GitHub. Every push can update your live site automatically.
That third one is the big one. GitHub is the bridge between your laptop and the internet.
Public or Private?
Every repo on GitHub is either:
- Public: anyone can see your project’s files.
- Private: only you (and people you invite) can see them.
For a personal website, private is a great default. Don’t worry, this only hides the files. Your actual website will still be public once it’s live.
Private repo, public website. That combination works perfectly.
Just Ask Claude
| You say | What Claude does |
|---|---|
| “Push to GitHub” | Sends your new save points up |
| “Save a checkpoint and push it” | Commits, then pushes, in one go |
| “Is everything pushed?” | Checks that GitHub has all your save points |
Because you signed in with gh auth login during setup, Claude can push without ever asking for a password.
In the next note, you’ll make your very first repo on GitHub and connect your project to it.