Working Copy - Powerful Git client
By Anders Borum
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Description
Access Git repositories on the go. Clone, edit, commit and push while allowing other apps access to repositories.
Git is a important part of our work-life and iOS can take part in this. The ability to commit even when offline has added utility on a device that moves in and out of network coverage. Cloning repositories gets you a local copy on your iOS device with commits for all branches. You can browse the content from within the app and make changes. Other applications supporting the document picker, WebDAV or x-callback-url has access to these files. Changes made can be committed and the commits can in turn be pushed back to the remote.
The idea of doing significant programming on iOS might seem far fetched when you are used to a large screen, a physical keyboard and a full IDE. But just as it turned out that not every email is serious prose, then not everything that goes on in Git is significant programming. Sometimes you just want to update a TODO file or make adjustments to your Jekyll site. Sometimes you just need to add a file the designer sent after hours.
If you ever make reminders about small things to do with the code-base, then you should give Working Copy a try. You will spend less time moving stuff around and you will get much better commit messages when you write them for fixes that are still fresh in your mind. You won't be leaving your computer behind any time soon, but sometimes it is faster to just fix things with the device in your hand.
When you do need to perform real work on iOS, Working Copy is a powerful tool. Editor has syntax highlighting for more than 50 programming languages and a built-in color picker. Preview images, Markdown and HTML files with a Javascript console pointing to errors in your code. Create new branches and merge or rebase them back, with a brilliant merge-tool for handling conflicts.
Even if you never edit a line of code on iOS, Working Copy is a great companion for reviewing and discussing code. Repositories are cross indexed and with powerful fuzzy search you can quickly jump from a symbol to the declaration or reverse from the declaration to all usages. A graph of your commits lets you zoom out for a overview of of the commit tree or zoom in for specifics about each commit, with speed and beauty you won’t find in desktop Git applications. Review the changes your files have gone through with a diff viewer that is great for text and images. There is even hex-dump mode for that obscure occasion.
Working Copy is a free download but you need to pay to unlock the ability to push commits back to remote servers. There is no venture capital, large company or ads funding development and your support through in-app purchase directly sustains development.
What's New in Version 3.0.0
This update is a big one finally delivering the much requested dark mode, with fuzzy searching of filenames or symbols for quick navigation and a gorgeous icon by the talented Michael Flarup.
You enable the dark mode at the top of the settings screen and this also changes the color of the app icon, but dark mode is available exclusively for users with the push unlock. Revenue from your unlock will fund future features. If you have the enterprise app installed, the icon is used to tell them apart and will not change when you switch between light and dark mode.
Fuzzy search will look through all filenames in the repository. For many languages Working Copy can spot symbol declarations letting you fuzzy search these as well, but all text is indexed supporting fast non-fuzzy search across your repository. This makes it easy to lookup files or declarations and to find out everywhere a symbol is used.
If you type several search words, they will match filenames first and then symbols or regular text. When your query matches a filename and ends with a number, the search result takes you to that line number. If you edit files with the built-in editor or with another app such as Textastic the active search will update automatically.
When you do not search for anything while editing, the recently viewed files and edit points are listed for quick back and forth navigation. This is why the search button in the editor has a tab-like look.
Editor lets you disable wordwrap, adds syntax highlighting for Groovy and Embedded Ruby and improves highlighting for the existing 50 languages.
Linux or BSD servers running Gitolite are supported as hosting providers.
Fixed bug where commit autocompletion was not available for the second longer description part of the commit message on iPad.
You can Undo the latest commit, but sometimes Working Copy did not properly remember which Undo was the latest. This has been corrected.
Improvements to patches exported from commits with the share sheet.
Improved efficiency when doing filename or diff content search in commit graph.
Lots of smaller improvements.
I am still working on improving behaviour with unicode filename normalization that has changed on 64-bit devices running iOS 10.3, but my current changes are not ready to be published yet. It is my top priority for the next update.
Everyone emailing me with suggestions for improvements and bug reports make this app much better. Thank you.
Customer Reviews
Excellent git client for iPad
I almost wrote "best git client for iPad", but it's so good I don't even realize I'm on the iPad. Working with this app is like working on my other computers. Sync is seamless and easy, and fast. I teach a course using git for class materials, planning, and student homework submission and grading. I did about half my git work on the iPad using Working Copy. No problems.
I did have one problem of my own creation. I deleted a repo from github. Then when I updated Working Copy I had an SSH error. I contact the help desk. They responded within 12 hours, with both a solution to my problem AND an explanation of what the solution was doing. Excellent customer service.
Worth every penny
Seriously, this is as good as it gets for Git on iOS. Tons of great, intuitive features and it's in active development.
Dark mode!!
This app is 10/10. I asked for dark mode awhile back. The app looks sick now. Thanks!!!
- Free
- Category: Productivity
- Updated: Jun 01, 2017
- Version: 3.0.0
- Size: 56.9 MB
- Language: English
- Seller: Anders Borum
- © Applied Phasor 2017
Compatibility: Requires iOS 10.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Top In-App Purchases
- Permanent push unlock for all your devices$14.99