So creating a new repo on GitHub, you get a set of getting started steps. They changed the default branchname to "main" from "master" due to its connotations with slavery.
When I create a new repo now, the initial getting started steps recommend creating a branch named "master" as opposed to "main" as it was a while ago.
It's especially weird since the line git branch -M master is completely unnecessary, since git init still sets you up with a "master" branch.
Disclaimer: I have a bunch of private repos, and my default branchnames are pretty much all "master".
Is this a recent change?
Edit: Mystery solved, my default branchname is "master". Thanks [email protected] !
Wait, this is a thread about branch names in git. The "master" in question would be more akin to a "master recording" from music, not master/slave software or system architecture.
While it may be true that the master branch is more akin to a master record, not everyone knows the nuance and quite frankly it doesn’t matter, if it makes people uncomfortable then it shouldn’t be a problem to accommodate a simple change, most of the tech world has already done so. Computers used to have a literal slave/master relationship with hardware components and control systems and we moved past that just fine despite still having controllers and actors everywhere.