It is sad that Sourcetree, once the go-to git GUI for Windows and Mac is now full of bugs and performance issues, and almost always gets worse with every new version. They updated the UI every major version (e.g. 1.5 to 1.6, or 1.7/1.8/1.9), in most cases for no good reason (in fact they faced so much backlash on the change to flat grey UI that they had to backpedal and reintroduced colored icons). And yet they are still planning on a major UI change again in the next version. At the same time, basic functionalities are broken left and right.
But on the other hand it is a big opportunity for others like Tower
Hey Everyone, I hear ya - we’re cranking away on SourceTree and have a few things in our hopper coming in a few short weeks that’ll address many of your concerns.
Check out our most recent beta version, SourceTree for Windows 1.9.7 Beta 2 [1] with an updated TreeView to support folder level diffs, support for LFS 1.4.1, improved performance when switching tabs, a huge fix for addressing invalid dictionaries in the Spell Checker registry and many more fixes listed here [2].
We’re also working hard on improving the whole experience. Download Alpha 2.0.0 [3] for a sneak peek at a brand new SourceTree for Windows. Alpha 2.0.0. comes with high DPI support, improved repository browser & bookmarks view, patched memory leak and new tabbed navigation. Just a heads up, there are some known issues with Alpha 2.0.0, but they’ll be addressed in Alpha 2.0.1 in the coming weeks. Feel free to watch the repo to get notified of new builds.
Full disclosure - I’m the Product Manager on SourceTree. LMK if you’d like to chat; there’s a link to my calendar on my HN profile page.
TortoiseGit is by far the best Git GUI on Windows or anywhere else. The UI is light, fast and it stays out of your way. It's very tightly integrated with the file browser, which is really the only app I want to be using to look at my files...
SourceTree OTOH is slow and clunky on every platform. But even if it had a light and fast UI - it's not integrated with my file browser, which sucks. With TortoiseGit, every Git command that I need is a single click away when I'm viewing my files.
I use a combination of SourceTree and TortoiseHg with the HgGit extension...what's sad is that TortoiseHg tends to work better than SourceTree, and definitely ebtter than the official GitHub client.
I've run Sourcetree for the past three years, and I'm running the Sourcetree beta for Mac right now.
Just as a data-point: I'm quite satisfied with the UI changes. The UI is pleasing and functional.
For the work that I use Sourcetree for, it is not broken left and right. It is not broken at all. For staging files, browsing branches, browsing stashes, switching branches, doing the occational cherry-pick it works fine. It works really great for doing fine-grained (line or chunck) staging.
Since 1.9.x SourceTree has had a major memory leak that results in noticeable lag when I'm typing in the UI (e.g. a commit message) if the RAM usage is 1GB+.
Has anyone used tower and sourcetree and can compare them both? I am just about fed up with sourcetree and ready to switch to a not-terrible alternative.
Maybe it's just my inherent bias towards command-line-based Git, but I have to wonder just how useful this is to Git newbies if a lot of their page is dedicated to learning how to use Tower, especially with a 24-part video series.
I imagine it's because the video series is introducing git itself, through Tower's UI.
git is a bunch of concepts: commits, branches, tags, a staging area, rebasing, pushing, pulling, the reflog, etc. Provided a git client implements these concepts they're a fine way to learn git.
Also note many (not you, just others I've met) 'I only use the command line' git users use git's inbuilt gitk GUI a bunch of the time. Sometimes it just helps to be able to see the branching in a real tree.
I wouldn't assume that Git GUIs are mainly for beginners. (I'm not saying you're assuming that, but I do know a few people who've made that assumption.)
I've been using Git for years and know the command line well enough, but I greatly prefer a good GUI.
The reason, even more than not having to memorize commands, is that it gives much more visibility into the state of the repo. Instead of having to poke around with different commands to suss things out, it's all right there before my eyes.
I'm currently using SmartGit. Friends have told me Tower is even better, but I needed something that ran on Windows as well as Mac. SmartGit also supports Linux, but my Linux work is pretty much always in a VM, and I'm fine with keeping source code on the host Windows or Mac system and running Git there. So will definitely check out Tower now.
Just a couple of examples of where SmartGit outshines the command line - I would guess that Tower has similar features:
• I accidentally commit something to the wrong branch. On the command line, it takes a series of git commands like reset, stash, checkout the other branch, pop the stash, add the files again, and finally commit to the correct branch. In SmartGit I just go to the log view and drag the branch markers to where I want them, and it does all that stuff automatically.
• I mess up a rebase or the like and want to get back to some previous state - but now I'm not even sure which "lost" commit will be the good one. The command line provides the reflog, where I can look up hashes for previous commits. Then I can copy the hashes and checkout those commits one by one until I find the one I want. In SmartGit I just click the "Recyclable Commits" checkbox, and now everything in the reflog shows up as part of the normal log view just like any other commit. I can cursor up and down through the log and it lists the changed files for each commit. I can click any of those files and immediately see the diff. All of this is without having to do any temporary checkouts. When I find the commit I want, I just add a branch there or move a branch label to it, and now it's part of the normal history again. Same for stashes: if I have some saved stashes I can view them as part of the normal log too.
I really like this seamless integration of concepts that otherwise involve multiple steps or a completely different methodology like the reflog.
Anyway, glad to hear Tower is on Windows now - will definitely take a look at it!
The learning platform on git-tower.com/learn also contains lots of content for learning Git on the command line (without Tower). This is true for both the 150-page book and the 24-part video series.
While giving lectures on programming, I have found that teaching students to use the git command line is much more useful than teaching them some git GUI tool.
That being said, only a few students really manage to get git after a semester. Most students just kind of muddle through with a few basic commands, and just copy and paste commands from the internet (or re-clone, and copy files over).
I like doing everything but committing through the command line.
I like committing with a GUI tool because i think it's easier to double check what you are committing before doing so.
Absolutely. Compared to other clients –SourceTree, Github, and GitKraken– the UI feels quick, makes me feel more productive –especially with drag-and-drop interactions-, and presents all the appropriate information at the right time, based on the context.
If there ever is a Tower 3 release, I'm immediately purchasing an update license.
Downloaded and installed it on my corporate machine, and briefly tried it. Observations:
- No visible options for setting proxy configuration
- No interactive rebase
- Dropdowns for selecting "diff" and "merge" tools would expand, but not let me actually click the checkboxes.
- Crashed within a couple minutes of having loaded it up. Don't remember what specifically I'd clicked on - might have been the icon in the bottom left.
I'm primarily a SourceTree user, but I'm kinda frustrated at all the Windows Git GUI tools right now.
- SourceTree 1.6.25 is stable and has interactive rebase, but they progressively ruined the UI after 1.6 . Staging behavior is great, but it doesn't have file blaming or view-tree-at-revision.
- Git Extensions has file blaming and can sorta correlate with the file tree because it has Explorer integration, but the rest of the UI doesn't suit me.
- GitKraken actually integrates libgit so that it doesn't need to run external Git processes for operations, which is particularly nice in a corporate environment where process monitoring can slow things down. On the other hand, way too much shiny, no interactive rebase, and the UI again just doesn't feel right. Also, the recent announcement of licensing changes for corporate use.
- Tower appears to have view-tree-at-revision, but looked too monochrome, obviously an early beta, and once again, no interactive rebase.
I suppose having _one_ application that integrates the best of all of those would be too much to ask.
So, I guess I'm sticking with SourceTree 1.6.25 for the foreseeable future.
Tower team member here :-) We are of course working on lots of improvements, especially in the current beta phase. Regarding interactive rebase, by the way, I can say that it's already on the wish list :-)
The Windows version is based on WPF. This strongly suggests that the Mac and Windows versions are completely separate apps, not a single app ported to multiple platforms. So a Linux version would be yet another completely separate app. That would be expensive to develop, for probably negligible reward.
I think if you are using Linux you are most probably familiar with the CLI (and probably preffer to solve things there instead of using the "magic" of GUI programs). Of all the possible markets for Tower, Linux is probably the least profitable one.
Hi, I’m part of the team. We started with a Mac version in 2011 and based on the requests we received from our users decided to start working on a Windows version. Even so we don’t have plans for a Linux version right now, we’ll keep tracking the feedback.
I'm almost certain that Linux devs make a very small percentage of their target audience (I see most web devs use Macs). That's a great question to ask them directly, though!
Yes. It's excellent. Well worth giving a try. It is a bit annoying to use with anything other than GitHub or Bitbucket, but that's the only issue I have with it.
Tower team here: thanks for pointing this out! This is already on our todo list - and, in fact, already being worked on! Won't be an issue for very long ;-)
I use GitUp[0] which is for macOS only, but is a nice plain and simple Git GUI. Unfortunately it doesn't support GPG signing so I still end up using the command line to commit and tag.
[+] [-] chinhodado|9 years ago|reply
But on the other hand it is a big opportunity for others like Tower
[+] [-] rchhabs|9 years ago|reply
Check out our most recent beta version, SourceTree for Windows 1.9.7 Beta 2 [1] with an updated TreeView to support folder level diffs, support for LFS 1.4.1, improved performance when switching tabs, a huge fix for addressing invalid dictionaries in the Spell Checker registry and many more fixes listed here [2].
We’re also working hard on improving the whole experience. Download Alpha 2.0.0 [3] for a sneak peek at a brand new SourceTree for Windows. Alpha 2.0.0. comes with high DPI support, improved repository browser & bookmarks view, patched memory leak and new tabbed navigation. Just a heads up, there are some known issues with Alpha 2.0.0, but they’ll be addressed in Alpha 2.0.1 in the coming weeks. Feel free to watch the repo to get notified of new builds.
Full disclosure - I’m the Product Manager on SourceTree. LMK if you’d like to chat; there’s a link to my calendar on my HN profile page.
[1]: https://bitbucket.org/atlassianlabs/sourcetree-betas/downloa...
[2]: https://www.sourcetreeapp.com/update/windows/beta/ReleaseNot...
[3]: https://bitbucket.org/atlassianlabs/sourcetree-betas/downloa...
[+] [-] WayneBro|9 years ago|reply
SourceTree OTOH is slow and clunky on every platform. But even if it had a light and fast UI - it's not integrated with my file browser, which sucks. With TortoiseGit, every Git command that I need is a single click away when I'm viewing my files.
[+] [-] nailer|9 years ago|reply
Does Tower do interactive rebase? That's one of the main reasons I use SourceTree. Is the interactive rebase functionality good?
Update: Tower doesn't have interactive rebase. https://twitter.com/joeycadle/status/777862389286989824
Sticking with SourceTree since it does.
[+] [-] rjbwork|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] biehl|9 years ago|reply
Just as a data-point: I'm quite satisfied with the UI changes. The UI is pleasing and functional.
For the work that I use Sourcetree for, it is not broken left and right. It is not broken at all. For staging files, browsing branches, browsing stashes, switching branches, doing the occational cherry-pick it works fine. It works really great for doing fine-grained (line or chunck) staging.
[+] [-] alimbada|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] larsiusprime|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] PascLeRasc|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nailer|9 years ago|reply
git is a bunch of concepts: commits, branches, tags, a staging area, rebasing, pushing, pulling, the reflog, etc. Provided a git client implements these concepts they're a fine way to learn git.
Also note many (not you, just others I've met) 'I only use the command line' git users use git's inbuilt gitk GUI a bunch of the time. Sometimes it just helps to be able to see the branching in a real tree.
[+] [-] Stratoscope|9 years ago|reply
I've been using Git for years and know the command line well enough, but I greatly prefer a good GUI.
The reason, even more than not having to memorize commands, is that it gives much more visibility into the state of the repo. Instead of having to poke around with different commands to suss things out, it's all right there before my eyes.
I'm currently using SmartGit. Friends have told me Tower is even better, but I needed something that ran on Windows as well as Mac. SmartGit also supports Linux, but my Linux work is pretty much always in a VM, and I'm fine with keeping source code on the host Windows or Mac system and running Git there. So will definitely check out Tower now.
Just a couple of examples of where SmartGit outshines the command line - I would guess that Tower has similar features:
• I accidentally commit something to the wrong branch. On the command line, it takes a series of git commands like reset, stash, checkout the other branch, pop the stash, add the files again, and finally commit to the correct branch. In SmartGit I just go to the log view and drag the branch markers to where I want them, and it does all that stuff automatically.
• I mess up a rebase or the like and want to get back to some previous state - but now I'm not even sure which "lost" commit will be the good one. The command line provides the reflog, where I can look up hashes for previous commits. Then I can copy the hashes and checkout those commits one by one until I find the one I want. In SmartGit I just click the "Recyclable Commits" checkbox, and now everything in the reflog shows up as part of the normal log view just like any other commit. I can cursor up and down through the log and it lists the changed files for each commit. I can click any of those files and immediately see the diff. All of this is without having to do any temporary checkouts. When I find the commit I want, I just add a branch there or move a branch label to it, and now it's part of the normal history again. Same for stashes: if I have some saved stashes I can view them as part of the normal log too.
I really like this seamless integration of concepts that otherwise involve multiple steps or a completely different methodology like the reflog.
Anyway, glad to hear Tower is on Windows now - will definitely take a look at it!
[+] [-] tobidobi|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Derbasti|9 years ago|reply
That being said, only a few students really manage to get git after a semester. Most students just kind of muddle through with a few basic commands, and just copy and paste commands from the internet (or re-clone, and copy files over).
Git is not easy to learn.
[+] [-] bbrik|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] talles|9 years ago|reply
https://www.git-tower.com/buy
[+] [-] dhritzkiv|9 years ago|reply
If there ever is a Tower 3 release, I'm immediately purchasing an update license.
[+] [-] acemarke|9 years ago|reply
- No visible options for setting proxy configuration
- No interactive rebase
- Dropdowns for selecting "diff" and "merge" tools would expand, but not let me actually click the checkboxes.
- Crashed within a couple minutes of having loaded it up. Don't remember what specifically I'd clicked on - might have been the icon in the bottom left.
I'm primarily a SourceTree user, but I'm kinda frustrated at all the Windows Git GUI tools right now.
- SourceTree 1.6.25 is stable and has interactive rebase, but they progressively ruined the UI after 1.6 . Staging behavior is great, but it doesn't have file blaming or view-tree-at-revision.
- Git Extensions has file blaming and can sorta correlate with the file tree because it has Explorer integration, but the rest of the UI doesn't suit me.
- GitKraken actually integrates libgit so that it doesn't need to run external Git processes for operations, which is particularly nice in a corporate environment where process monitoring can slow things down. On the other hand, way too much shiny, no interactive rebase, and the UI again just doesn't feel right. Also, the recent announcement of licensing changes for corporate use.
- Tower appears to have view-tree-at-revision, but looked too monochrome, obviously an early beta, and once again, no interactive rebase.
I suppose having _one_ application that integrates the best of all of those would be too much to ask.
So, I guess I'm sticking with SourceTree 1.6.25 for the foreseeable future.
[+] [-] tobidobi|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] adrianN|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mwcampbell|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] zimmund|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] kylec|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pointnova|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Asooka|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] porker|9 years ago|reply
The interface looks good but not tested since it's an Electron app and I'm pushing my RAM most of the time anyhow (I'm looking at you, Slack).
Interactive rebase, as another commenter has noted, is a feature I need.
[+] [-] jazoom|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] i_live_there|9 years ago|reply
It was good on 1.0 and it got even better after they introduced fuzzy search.
The interactive merge/rebase works really well.
[+] [-] chinhodado|9 years ago|reply
- Everytime I clicked on the bottom left plus icon, the app crash: http://imgur.com/a/YI8OO
- Can you add the option to always expand all diffs by default when viewing a commit?
- Can you add support for Meld merge?
[+] [-] tobidobi|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] shadowfacts|9 years ago|reply
[0]: http://gitup.co
[+] [-] Gmo|9 years ago|reply
Does it exist or is it like a lot of other git GUI with no separation between staged and not staged files/hunks ?
[+] [-] Raed667|9 years ago|reply