What do these words mean in Git: Repository, fork, branch, clone, track?

Question

I\'m honestly not clear on the semantics here. They\'re all about copies/variants of a code+history unit, but past that I\'m not sure I could say. Is this logical structure ex

Answer 1

This GoogleTechTalk is a fantastic introduction to Git to learn what is actually happening behind the scenes while learning the language also. It was given by a very early contributor to Git and he gave this talk in 2007 as a way of introduction into Git. If you watch this talk you will not only know what each word is, like repository, fork, branch, etc., but you will also know what is occurring behind the scenes when each of these are made, merged, etc.

The address is long but very informative. It also contrasts Git to other Version Control Systems so you get insight into why Git was created the way it was and what the comparative advantages of it are over other control systems. Even though the talk is old it is very helpful to get up and running. I would watch this before I jumped into the manuals. Things will make much more sense as a result, I believe.