Git stash records selected uncommitted work so a checkout can temporarily return to an earlier committed state. It is useful for a short interruption, but neither saving nor restoring is an unconditional promise about every file in the directory. The important questions are what was included, which base the work came from, what state the destination now has, and when the saved entry can be removed. ...
Cherry-pick applies the change introduced by a selected commit to the current line of development. It is useful for a targeted backport when an older release needs one fix without the rest of a development branch. It does not move or delete the source commit, and it does not establish a merge relationship with the source branch. The target result must be reviewed as a change in its own environment. ...
Git ignore rules influence which untracked paths ordinary discovery and add operations consider. They are useful for generated files, editor state, and local configuration. They do not create an access-control boundary, remove a file already in the index, or erase earlier commits. Treat the ignore file as a project convention with observable matching rules, not as a guarantee that a sensitive file cannot enter history. ...
A hotfix need not displace unfinished feature work from its directory. A linked worktree can start from a chosen release commit while the original directory retains its staged changes, unstaged edits, and untracked files. The workflow succeeds when the fix is tested on the correct baseline and the original work remains intact. Merely creating a second folder does not establish either result. ...
Bisection answers a precise historical question: within selected history, where does a reproducible observation change from good to bad? It does not identify a root cause merely by naming a commit. The search depends on correct endpoint labels and consistent intermediate decisions. Treat the reported boundary as evidence to inspect, then confirm the behavior on both sides and explain the change that accounts for it. ...
Docker Compose turns service declarations into containers, networks, and storage attachments managed as a project. The file describes useful relationships: which image runs a service, how configuration reaches it, and which storage or network it uses. Reproducing a stack still depends on external inputs such as image availability, variable values, host capabilities, and existing data. A versioned file makes those inputs reviewable only when they are identified. ...
A useful commit answers one question about the behavior of a repository. It includes the implementation, the checks that establish that behavior, and documentation needed to use it. Smallness means a bounded reason for change, rather than a target number of lines. An inclusive shipping threshold might require edits to both a function and its regression test while leaving an unrelated draft outside the commit. ...
A guide can be stored beside the application and still describe a command that never worked. Docs as code provides a way to discover and review that mistake: plain source files, version history, ownership, a preview, and checks attached to the change. It does not make prose correct automatically. The valuable link is between a documented claim and evidence from the implementation that the reader will actually use. ...