Set Branch Alias with Git

By  on  

Version control systems can be difficult to use, especially when you don't use a UI app. Just think about main branch or revision names: svn uses "trunk", git uses "master", and mercurial (hg) uses "tip". I need to switch between mercurial and git frequently, so I end up reversing command and branch names constantly.

To set a git branch alias, execute the following:

# alias -> real branch
git symbolic-ref refs/heads/trunk refs/heads/master

With the alias in place, you can execute commands like:

git checkout trunk
git branch # * master

Not only can you create git aliases for commands, but you can create aliases for branches!

Recent Features

  • By
    Page Visibility API

    One event that's always been lacking within the document is a signal for when the user is looking at a given tab, or another tab. When does the user switch off our site to look at something else? When do they come back?

  • By
    9 Mind-Blowing Canvas Demos

    The <canvas> element has been a revelation for the visual experts among our ranks.  Canvas provides the means for incredible and efficient animations with the added bonus of no Flash; these developers can flash their awesome JavaScript skills instead.  Here are nine unbelievable canvas demos that...

Incredible Demos

  • By
    Create Spinning, Fading Icons with CSS3 and MooTools

    A goal of my latest blog redesign was to practice what I preached a bit more;  add a bit more subtle flair.  One of the ways I accomplished that was by using CSS3 animations to change the display of my profile icons (RSS, GitHub, etc.)  I...

  • By
    MooTools dwCheckboxes Plugin

    Update / Fix: The checkboxes will no longer toggle when the "mouseup" event doesn't occur on a checkbox. Every morning I wake up to a bunch of emails in my Gmail inbox that I delete without reading. I end up clicking so many damn checkboxes...

Discussion

  1. Michael

    Any idea how to do this in a Bitbucket repository? Can I push this symbolic refs somehow?

Wrap your code in <pre class="{language}"></pre> tags, link to a GitHub gist, JSFiddle fiddle, or CodePen pen to embed!