Meet the Current Players in the Game: SVN, Git, and Mercurial

Abstract

Here’s a brief rundown of how this chapter is going to work. First of all, I’ll explain why Subversion (SVN), Git, and Mercurial are so awesome and all the things they do best. Then I’ll introduce each one individually, and describe what they do and how they do it (sounds a bit like a version control dating game!). Finally, I’ll show you how to get each one set up on Windows, Mac, and Ubuntu. I’ll be keeping this format—following the SVN, Git, and Mercurial layout—in later chapters. This holds true for improving workflow right up to creating a server, and everything in between. In each case, I’ll cover SVN, Git, and Mercurial; I don’t have any favorites here.