If you’re even somewhat aware of what happens in the Finnish tech space, the changes are that you’ve heard of Mimmit koodaa, an education program for women to increase gender equality in the Finnish software industry by breaking the stereotype that coding is only for men. We recently had the pleasure of organizing a Mimmit koodaa -event Let’s Git it on! that was all about getting to know and getting our hands dirty with Git. As many of our readers probably already know, Git is a very useful distributed version control system that seems to have reached every corner of the tech world. So, grab your keyboards and come along as we share snippets of our experience with you!
Why Git
Git is a fundamental tool in modern software development, and its importance cannot be overstated. It enables developers to work on the same project simultaneously, which is essential for teamwork and efficient project development, making it a great tool for collaboration.
As Git is the de facto industry standard for version control and collaboration – and therefore one of the most critical development tools one can learn – we felt that it would be a great topic for this event. And based on the amount of mimmit who signed up, it indeed was! We had the pleasure of meeting 20 people from diverse backgrounds and with different levels of experience, but with all sharing the drive to learn new things while busting some tech stereotypes.
Getting to know Git
Our adventure began with our presenter Mirjan Merruko introducing us to the basics of Git. As we are firm believers in learning by doing, he encouraged everyone to go through the steps alongside him. This approach caused some confusion at first, but the mimmit got the hang of it quite quickly. Mirjan made sure that no one felt overwhelmed, and questions were not just welcomed but encouraged. It was also great seeing how the mimmit were helping each other throughout the evening, living the medical learning rule of “learn one, do one, teach one”.
The presentation included things like how to initialize a Git repository, create branches for new features or bug fixes, commit changes, and merge them back into the main codebase. For many it sounded daunting at first, but based on the smiles and excitement evident in the room, it was a sense of accomplishment and success that people were left with in the end.
Parting Thoughts
As we wrapped up our “Let’s Git It On” event, it was clear that Git, once a mysterious beast to many of the participants, was now more like a friendly tree with its trunk and branches. And all it took was a couple of hours. So, if you’re interested in tech, don’t hesitate to dive into the world of Git or any other aspect of technology that piques your interest. Mimmit Koodaa events are proof that the tech world is open to all, and there’s no better time than now to Git started on your tech journey!
