Show HN: Gmap: Explore Git Repos Visually from the CLI

[seeyebe]

I built gmap, a command-line tool to visualize Git activity, weekly heatmaps, file churn, authorship stats, and more, right from your terminal.

Install with: cargo install gmap

Or on Arch via AUR: yay -S gmap

Repo: https://github.com/seeyebe/gmap

Feedback is welcome. Contributions too. if you’re into Git internals, CLIs, or terminal UX.

[gregoriol]

Please don't call it "gmap" as it is a very commonly known name for another service; maybe "gitmap" or something that conveys the use would fit better?

[seeyebe]

Good point, and I appreciate the heads-up. Naming is tricky. I’ll definitely consider renaming or at least making the distinction clear in the README

[BugsJustFindMe]

> When you’re dropped into a new codebase, or even trying to clean up your own, questions like these matter: Which files change the most? Who made most of the changes last month? Are there dormant areas of the code? What’s the trend of contributions over time? Where is most of the churn?

Do those questions matter to you? They don't matter to me at all, so I'm curious to hear about why they matter to you. What do they matter to you for?

Knowing which code changes frequently or infrequently doesn't actually tell you anything about what code should change, because recency and frequency are not valid proxies for importance.

[seeyebe]

Thanks for the thoughtful question. The tool doesn’t aim to declare what’s “important,” but rather to highlight patterns. like hotspots, dormant code, or contributor trends. that can guide refactoring, onboarding, or even just curiosity. For some workflows (e.g. legacy cleanup, team handover, bug tracking), that context can be quite valuable.

[wonger_]

What information helps you to get onboarded into a new codebase?

I'm not sure there's anything better than manually tracing hotpaths and making changes. Maybe an INTERNALS.md to document architecture would be nice. And reading through recent PRs too. Curious about your approach.

[seeyebe]

(I posted a version of this earlier, but this is a proper “Show HN” with updates and full context.)