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this post was submitted on 16 Jun 2026
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Explain Like I'm Five
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Point no. 1 itself.
so all it's saying is open README.md and add something to it then save. Are you getting hung up with "use code ." as the example?
literally all you have to do is open the readme, add something to it like "hello world" or whatever, save it, do git add . then git commit -m "edited README.md" or something. git push. done.
IF you haven't made a README.md yet then in your terminal just do "touch README.md" within your repo, then using whatever editor you use open it and do the above.
Exactly, this use code. I opened this lesson, and did everything on my WSL terminal. So far, so good. But when it's this switching over, that's creating the problem. Ideally, the readme.md has already been created by the time l reach here or no ? If not, where do I create the readme ? In the WSL terminal or the vs code terminal ?
Yesterday, l had made an attempt at it, and this was what my vs code terminal showed me : https://retrofed.com/post/1259307/comment/1601827#comment_1601827
You see the result in the pic of this post. Today l worked it up again, and today vs code gave the same result. Then l downloaded git separately for windows, and then configured it on vs code. I don't know if l have done it in the correct way or not.
Anyways, l've shut down my system, and l shall look into it again tomorrow.
What a struggle trying to grasp a new idea !!!
Depends, if you followed the tutorial precisely it should already have been created in the step "Create the repository 3.". You can use the
lscommand in the WSL terminal to see if it exists.In the base directory of the git repository you cloned from Github. You can do so with the command
echo "blaaaa" > README.md(this will overwrite the file if it exists already).See I think this is your misunderstanding right here. The tutorial tells you to enter
code ., wherecodemeans "start VS Code" and.means "in the current directory". You are supposed to then use the file explorer inside VS Code to select the README.md and modify it.This may not work as intended in WSL. If you enter
which codeand there is no output it won't work. Is there any reason why you are using WSL instead of just installing git for Windows? It comes with a terminal emulator, so there should be no problem following the tutorial and you can eliminate WSL as a possible friction point.I’ll be honest with you, don’t use VS code, you’re not ready for it. All you need right now is quite literally a regular windows terminal and a basic IDE. notepad++ or sublime text. ONCE you’ve learned the basics you can go back to VS Code, that VS Code terminal is gonna mess you up.
I know that its MS. Once i have mastered it, i would switch over to Kate.
I think you replied this in the wrong thread, but I generally agree with this person. Use GitBash as the terminal and only use VS Code as an editor (or even skip VS Code entirely). Not because it's MS, but just because it adds complexity you don't need while learning.
By the way, if you just want to learn git you can try this website, it's a fully self-contained learning experience with a terminal emulator inside the browser: https://learngitbranching.js.org/
I tried it. Not my Cup of Tea, not yet.
Thank you very much. I shall try tomorrow again. If WSL is not required, l won't use it tomorrow. Now that l have installed git for windows, this entire work can be done on the terminal of vs code ?
Theoretically yes, but I would recommend the terminal git brings with it. You should be able to just open any location on your drives, right-click, and select "GitBash here". This will start a terminal with the directory you were in as the working directory.
Drivers means ??
Drives, not drivers. HDDs and SSDs.
wait WSL Terminal? so you're using the Windows Subsystem for Linux?
I think you're making this harder on yourself than you need to. It's like you're trying to use a saw to cut a piece of wood before knowing what wood even is.
I'll be honest with you, don't use VS code, you're not ready for it. All you need right now is quite literally a regular windows terminal and a basic IDE. notepad++ or sublime text. ONCE you've learned the basics you can go back to VS Code, that VS Code terminal is gonna mess you up.
A. make sure you have git installed just open your windows terminal and do
winget install Git.GitB. again in the regular terminal navigate to your repo you've created.
C. open notepad++ or sublime text or whatever basic IDE you picked and create a README.md and save in your repos directory.
D. back in your terminal do
git add .make sure you have a space betweenaddand.E. then do
git commit -m "initial README.md commit"F. finally do
git pushand you're done. you can then check it withgit statusand it'll show there's nothing to commit, everythings up to date.I think the tools were messing you up. I don't recommend VS Code for beginners, it messes them up. keep it simple for now.
Somebody suggested me eclipse ide just now.
don't. Eclipse is slow to start, it's heavy, and the interface is garbage. Honestly just go with Notepad++ or Sublime Text or even Zed.
Trust me I've been a web dev for 25 years, you don't need all the bells and whistles right now. you literally just need a notepad and a terminal.