Track Empty Directories with git
There are times when you'd like to track an empty directory within git but there's a problem: git wont allow you to add a directory that doesn't have a file in it. The easy solution is putting an empty stub file within the directory, and the industry standard for that stub file name is .gitkeep.
You can quickly create the file and commit the "empty" directory from command line:
touch my-empty-dir/.gitkeep
git add my-empty-dir/.gitkeep
git commit -m "Adding my empty directory"
The problem is simple, the solution is easy, but I wanted to highlight that .gitkeep is the industry standard.
![5 More HTML5 APIs You Didn’t Know Existed]()
The HTML5 revolution has provided us some awesome JavaScript and HTML APIs. Some are APIs we knew we've needed for years, others are cutting edge mobile and desktop helpers. Regardless of API strength or purpose, anything to help us better do our job is a...
![Being a Dev Dad]()
I get asked loads of questions every day but I'm always surprised that they're rarely questions about code or even tech -- many of the questions I get are more about non-dev stuff like what my office is like, what software I use, and oftentimes...
![Dijit’s TabContainer Layout: Easy Tabbed Content]()
One of Dojo's major advantages over other JavaScript toolkits is its Dijit library. Dijit is a UI framework comprised of JavaScript widget classes, CSS files, and HTML templates. One very useful layout class is the TabContainer. TabContainer allows you to quickly create a tabbed content...
![Using Dotter for Form Submissions]()
One of the plugins I'm most proud of is Dotter. Dotter allows you to create the typical "Loading..." text without using animated images. I'm often asked what a sample usage of Dotter would be; form submission create the perfect situation. The following...
If you want to keep empty directory in git and be sure that its eventually content won’t be pushed, you have to add line in
.gitignore. Going to the point,.gitkeepis one of the methods and the more common (from my experience) is to create.gitignorewithI’d be interested where the “
.gitkeepis the industry standard” came from. Last time I was looking at a couple of repositories, the preference was an empty.gitignorefile.Good tips, Mathew and David!
@Mathew: When I use this tip, I usually include
*/as well to exclude subfolders. This can be pretty handy for thoselog/,cache, andsessionstypes of directories.