GitHub Android App Released

168 points by Braasch 13 years ago | 40 comments

derwiki 13 years ago |

I was really disappointed with this -- I was hoping to be able to view source code nicely on my mobile device. Instead, I get a list of repos (not helpful), "news" (not helpful to me), and issues (we use Pivotal Tracker). I just uninstalled the app; I can't think of anything I'd use it for.

Aqua_Geek 13 years ago | |

What else would you like to see? (I write an iOS GitHub app and am curious what people find most helpful.)

lazerwalker 13 years ago | | |

I personally would love the ability to see commit history and browse through diffs for commits, pull requests, and branch comparisons.

When I'm going into a client's office to spend the day working with them, one of the first things I do is spend 10-15 minutes perusing the commit history to see what's changed in the 4-5 days since I last looked at their codebase. I'd love to be able to do that, as well as do code reviews, on the bus/subway on the way into the office.

etrain 13 years ago | | |

Really strong support for code reviews.

executive 13 years ago | | |

ability to edit files in-app

masklinn 13 years ago | |

> I was hoping to be able to view source code nicely on my mobile device

That would probably be bloody hard though, making code readable on a mobile device. Also of limited use, if you can't edit it.

I could see it useful to e.g. read & review pull requests on the move, but there really isn't much you can do with just a phone's surface.

And if you have accessories, why not carry a small laptop you can tether to your phone?

jamesbritt 13 years ago | | |

A combination (on Android) of aGit, the patched Connectbot (for sshagent key handling) and Terminal IDE (better editing options than connectbot) would work. Maybe install the Hacker Keyboard app too (nicer layout for onscreen keyboard).

aGit currently does not support push and commit, but I believe that is in the works.

I've used this setup on my Transformer Prime. My G2 phone is, of course, smaller, but I have used that to shell into my server and edit config files to fix a problem, so reading and editing code on a mobile device is certainly doable.

A 7" screen device such as the Nexus 7 might a nice balance though I have physical keyboards for my phone and tablet, which I really like.

I have done some editing using the on-screen keyboard on the TF201, not the end of the world, just not as nice as a more conventional keyboard. The constant toggling to get to special keys is tedious.

georgemcbay 13 years ago | | |

Depends upon the mobile device.

I know the Asus Transformer I have is fairly niche for a tablet and thus few developers are likely to target for its feature-set, but it would be fantastic at reading or even writing code, with proper app support.

eric_bullington 13 years ago | | |

I disagree with the fact that it would be of limited use if you can't edit it. One of GitHub's greatest features for me is how easy it is to browse other people's code (e.g., compared to Google Code or SourceForge). I learn a huge amount from browsing others' code. I would really enjoy a mobile app that would allow me to easily browse and view code in Github.

derwiki 13 years ago | | |

I don't think of read-only as limiting. As a senior engineer on my team, I often want to glance though commits to make sure the new kids aren't making an egregious errors (we do code review as well, but being able to see diffs on my phone would be extremely useful).

_ea1k 13 years ago | | |

I don't think it would be unusable at all, with the average tablet.

benatkin 13 years ago | | |

Many of us are already reading code on our mobile devices.

rsanchez1 13 years ago | | |

It would be bloody hard, but I would love to see someone do it. Even if it is just reading code, that would be a huge boost. I could browse interesting repos on the bus/train ride home and check out the code to see if it is something I am really interested in, then I know what to hack when I get home. The ability to read and review pull requests would also be a good feature to add.

ninetax 13 years ago |

Hubroid[1] has been an awesome github app for android for a long time. Considering that I get a force close when just trying to open the new app, it's still a viable option.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.idlesoft.a...

EddieRingle 13 years ago | |

Hubroid developer here.

I was in contact with the GitHub team for awhile and had a good idea that the app was in development for awhile, but since I didn't know when they'd be releasing it (internship with them fell through this year so I didn't get any top-secret info) I just decided to keep up developing Hubroid. Still going to do that, of course, I like my design ideas better. ;)

Oh, and the force close you get is sort of my fault. I erroneously used the "com.github" namespace when implementing the account authenticator, which wholly belongs to GitHub. Thought I was using "com.github.eddieringle" but I guess a commit was overridden once or twice. Whoops.

EDIT: Btw, thanks for spelling the name correctly. I couldn't tell you how many times people write "Hubdroid" instead. Ruins my Google search result ranking, heh.

ninetax 13 years ago | | |

Haha, well that is certainly one way to stick it to your competition ;)

But seriously, great app. Keep up the good work!

lallysingh 13 years ago | |

Indeed, I'm a little surprised they didn't just fork off an existing github project!

And seriously, why's editing and committing from android tablets so far fetched??

musashibaka 13 years ago |

Lately I have been finding myself surfing github just to read other folks source. I just downloaded the app. Unfortunately it doesn't currently display source... Bummer.

jagira 13 years ago |

Seems like it allows merging of pull requests. I can now review and merge pull requests while travelling in a bus. :-)

aw3c2 13 years ago | |

Don't forget to disconnect and relax every now and then.

jagira 13 years ago | | |

:-) Yeah I will.

I travel to a neighboring city quite often and have to often deal with urgent issues/PRs. In which case, I use Github's website on my mobile browser, but it kind of sucks.

georgehaake 13 years ago |

Linux desktop app???

tych0 13 years ago | |

http://git-scm.com/ works pretty well.

zalew 13 years ago | |

purpose?

tar 13 years ago | | |

What is the purpose of the Mac OS Desktop app?

AYBABTME 13 years ago |

Would love if I could clone repos on the sdcard, and push commits from the sdcard. So far the app doesn't even allow to browse code, so I have a hard time figuring out any use for it. I don't really care about news, and viewing commits is fine, but I can't even see the diff so... I don't know. I assume it's just a start, so I'll keep it and wait for updates to see how it goes.

brittohalloran 13 years ago |

It's open source -- and hosted on Github. Awesome.

shimon_e 13 years ago | |

Gives them an easy April 1st prank. Move the project to bitbucket.

// Comment written while my flight is delayed.

// Note to self. Download this app and do some github work next time flight is delayed.

Sephr 13 years ago |

If there's only one action in the overflow button in the action bar, you make that the button. In this app, the only action in the overflow button is "Refresh", so the app should simply just have a refresh button there instead.

foresterh 13 years ago | |

Or implement pull down to refresh, which would remove the need for the button altogether.