I Avoided Git , Here's What It Cost Me.

INTRODUCTION

As I have just completed my second year, I have spent most of my time learning programming languages, building projects by vibe coding, and I even participated in college hackathons. I thought Git was just another tool that I could learn later or it was not that necessary for me now, until a senior friend of mine introduced me to Git and explained its importance. 

When I started working on larger projects with thousands of lines and multiple files and collaborating with teammates, the absence of Git knowledge made me face multiple problems. 

PROBLEM FACED

1) Lack of Version Tracking 

Since I was not using Git, every time I made any changes, I used to create a new copy of the project, just to be safe. After some time, there were multiple files and folders. 

Then it became difficult to keep track of the latest project file or folder. 

2) Comparing Files Manually 

Many times, I made some changes thinking they would improve the project, but later I found out they were causing bugs or were no more useful. To fix it, I had to open the old file and the new file side by side and manually check what had changed. It was time-taking. 

3) Working in a Team Becomes Difficult 

I thought working in a team would be easier than working alone because everyone handled a different part, but it was creating more problems and confusion. 

Since we didn’t know about Git, we used to share files on WhatsApp and it created a lot of confusion about who fixed the bug and who had sent the updated version, and sometimes someone might forget to send a few files. 

Instead of focusing on building the project, we were wasting our time making sure everyone had the latest and correct version of the code. 

4) Fear of Experiments 

Sometimes I wanted to try some new feature or make a major change in the project, but I was afraid because it might break the existing correct code. 

That’s why I used to avoid experiments and new ideas. Every move felt risky because a minor change could have caused a bug. 

5) No Way to Show Contribution 

When presenting a project in a hackathon or for an internship, without Git there was no way to show my contribution. There was no way to show the features and things I had done during the building process. 

The only thing I had to show was the final project. 
 
CONCLUSION  

After facing these problems myself, I finally realised why almost every developer uses Git. It’s not just about writing code; it’s more like a tool for managing code in a smart way. It helps whether we are working alone or building a project in a team. Git makes the entire process much easier. 

If you are a student like me, I would suggest learning Git sooner, as it will be very helpful.