[[!meta title="Essential Data Science: Git"]] Having a new student join me to work in the lab reminded me that I should collect some of the many resources around for getting started in bioinformatics and any data-based science in general. So towards this end, one of the first essential tools for any data scientist is a knowledge of [git](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Git_(software)). Start first with [Code School's simple introduction to git](https://try.github.io/levels/1/challenges/1) which gives you the basics of using git from the command line. Then, check out [set of lectures on Git and GitHub](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5-da3qGB5IBLMp7LtN8Nc3Efd4hJq0kD) which goes into setting up git and using it with github. This is a set of lectures which was used in a Data Science course. Finally, I'd check out [the set of resources on github](https://help.github.com/articles/good-resources-for-learning-git-and-github/) for even more information, and then learn to love the [git manpages](https://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/git.html). [[!tag biology bioinformatics essential-data-science]]