Bitbucket.org: Version Control and Teams

I know there have been a couple of threads that covered this topic in general, but I wanted to single out this site for those of you that are working in teams.

What does it cost?

Let's answer the most important question first.

It's Free for teams up to 5 members.

Here is the pricing:

   5 users   = Free

   10 users = $10/mo

   25 users = $25/mo

   50 users = $50/mo

   100 users = $100/mo

   Unlimited = $200/mo

What is it?

Unlimited private repositories

Host, manage, and share Git and Mercurial code in the cloud. Free unlimited private repositories for up to 5 developers give teams the flexibility to grow and code without restrictions.

What do I git?(LOL)

Work as a team

Built with small teams in mind. Consolidate user management, invite team members, and adjust administrative permissions with Bitbucket teams. Get your team working as a unit.

Code reviews

Pull requests provide an easy way for developers to review changes on a fork or branch. Discuss changes, make modifications and merge the changes. In-line comments on pull requests and individual commits let you gain context of changes by holding discussions right in the source code.

Built for JIRA

Integrate source code on Bitbucket with issues in JIRA. Connect to JIRA issues from within Bitbucket or use smart commits and transition issues directly from commit messages.

What does that all mean?

For those that are familiar with software development already it is pretty clear, but for those that are new here are some highlights:

Bitbucket gives you a place where you can store your projects online. This allows you to access your code from any other computer by simply pulling your project down to another workstation. Unlike other free sites (SourceForge and Code.Google, etc.) you can make your repository private.

It also it gives you the ability to version control your changes. That means that you if you make a change that you eventually do not like you can go back to a previous version of your project, asset, etc... and start again. Each time you check in your code you can comment your changes to keep a set of changes grouped (e.g. - "Made changes to reflect new in game purchases")

You can also have an associated Wiki and Issue tracker for each of the repositories you create. I have found this invaluable. Ideas pop into my head and I quickly add them to my Issues list as a Bug, Enhancement, Proposal or Task. I can also assign issues to other team members for them to work on (e.g. - "Greg - the image we are using for the Ship is 14 pixels too short, can you modify please.")

Oh, and did I mention that there is a Bitbucket app that notifies you of changes and issues and allows you to create/modify issues? There is and it is very useful for when you wake up in the middle of the night with a great idea for your game but don't want to get out of bed to add it to the list.

I have been using Bitbucket for my games development in combination with TortoiseGit and have been very happy with the experience so far.

What do you know about all this stuff?

I have been doing Software Development - specializing in Configuration Management, Automation and Source Control Tools - for 25 years and this is a great tool.   

What's the URL?

Bitbucket: bitbucket.org

TortoiseGit: code.google.com/p/tortoisegit/wiki/Download

I am happy to answer any questions that you might have.

Hey RangerJim, which language do we set the repository to? Javascript? XML? Thanks :)

Asmodeus, in a non-fixed version control language. Explained in a fast, in the "commit" creates snapshots of all code that lets you compare, work in different branches, and so on.

Best explained in en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revision_control

Bitbucket is an option for certain services. For a serious development, I personally think it is better to have the code located, protected, with backups and private servers.

Tomorrow Bitbucket closes. Who demand your data?. It is not because they give bad service or anything like that, I just think it's something to consider before having a serious problem.

episuarez if such a scenario happened wouldn't you still have a local backup?

We use BitBucket with Git Extensions here at Mudvark and also have a local external hard drive with automated daily backups. Git has been integral to Mortar Melon's development - there's been a number of times where it's saved our lives.

Asmodeus - I always use OTHER. It is just the simplest.

episuarez - I agree that Bitbucket COULD close (not likely since they are owned by Atlassian), but this is a very easy to use service and most developers using Construct 2 are not experienced software developers.

I have been doing software development for a long, LONG time and I am actually bringing BitBucket in house (the take home version is called STASH) for our development teams where I work now.

And as thehen stated very well, the intrinsic nature of Git is that there are several copies of the repository in several places at once.