Installation

1 Create a GitHub Account

Create a free account at github.com. Take time to consider your username– here is some helpful advice.

2 Install Git

If you do not have a current version of R or RStudio, install those first from here and here. If you already have the R and RStudio installed, consider updating to the most recent versions so we can more easily troubleshoot during the workshop. You can see the version I am using and how to check your current version below:

R.version.string

[1] "R version 4.2.2 Patched (2022-11-10 r83330)"

There are many options for installing Git. The following are just the most recommended and (generally) easiest options. Again, I’ll rely on Jenny Bryan to pick up my slack here. For alternative installation methods, or if you want more information, give Happy Git a visit.

Before trying to install Git, check to see if you already have it installed. Start by opening your flavor of shell (e.g., Terminal, Command Prompt) and type:

git --version

If you have Git installed, congratulations, you can skip to Section 3.

2.1 Windows

Install Git for Windows.

2.2 Mac

Install Git via the XCode command line tools by running

git --verion
git config

or by directly installing the XCode tools

xcode-select --install

2.3 Linux

2.3.1 Ubuntu/Debian

sudo apt install git

2.3.2 Fedora/Red Hat

sudo yum install git

3 Link Git to R

The R package usethis allows us to configure Git in R. Install usethis if you have not already and set your Git credentials using the same username and email you used to create your GitHub account.

install.packages("usethis")

library(usethis)
use_git_config(user.name = "username", user.email = "email@cornell.edu")