Exploring Git Objects with Git Show

Git is a powerful version control system widely used in software development to manage changes to source code. One of its versatile commands is git show, which allows users to explore Git objects such as commits, tags, and trees, providing detailed information about their contents and changes over time.

Exploring Git Objects with Git Show:

Example 1: Viewing a Commit
To examine the details of a specific commit, use git show [commit-hash]. For instance, running git show abc123 will display the commit message, changes made, and metadata associated with the commit.

Output:

    commit abc123
    Author: John Doe 
    Date:   Tue Jun 15 10:00:00 2023 +0200

        Updated README.md

    diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
    index 1234567..89abcdef 100644
    --- a/README.md
    +++ b/README.md
    @@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
     # Project X

     ## Introduction
    

Verification:
To confirm that the command executed successfully, verify that the commit details, including the author, date, and changes to the file(s), are displayed as expected.

Example 2: Showing Tag Information
To see the details of a tag, use git show [tag-name]. For example, git show v1.0 will present information about the tag, including the commit it points to and any associated annotations.

Output:

    tag v1.0
    Tagger: Jane Smith 
    Date:   Fri Jan 01 12:00:00 2023 -0500

    Release version 1.0

    commit def456
    Author: John Doe 
    Date:   Thu Dec 31 23:59:59 2022 -0500

        Added feature A
    

Verification:
Ensure that the tag information, including the tagger’s details, release notes, and the commit it references, appears correctly when executing the command.

Example 3: Displaying Tree Contents
To view the contents of a tree object, use git show [tree-ish]. For instance, git show master^{tree} will list all files and directories in the current master branch tree.

Output:

    tree 789ghi
    mode 100644 blob 0123456    file1.txt
    mode 100644 blob 789abc0    file2.txt
    

Verification:
Verify that the command output lists the correct file names and their associated modes, ensuring the tree’s contents are accurately displayed.