AI for Research Efficiency, episode 5: Save and share your work with GitHub
Narration: an AI-generated voice (ElevenLabs).

[0:00] Save every version
What did this summary say, before Tuesday's change?
Ask your agent. With Git, it reads the folder's history, and finds the sentence that was cut.
AI for Research Efficiency. Episode 5: Save and share your work with GitHub.
Last time, nine small habits for working with an agent.
This time: keep every version of a project, and share it with a co-author. The agent runs the commands, and you approve each one.

[0:38] 1. Git, and GitHub
One: Git, and GitHub.
Git keeps your folder's history, on your own computer. Each saved version is a commit.
GitHub keeps a copy online, and you choose who can see it. For research, start private.

[0:57] 2. Set up once
Two: set up once.
Make a free account on GitHub. Then, in PowerShell, one winget line installs GitHub's command-line tool, gh.
On a Mac, Homebrew installs it: brew install gh.
Open a new window, and type gh auth login. It asks a few questions, then sends you to your browser with a one-time code.

[1:28] 3. Make it a repository
Three: make the folder a repository.
Start your agent in the mode that asks first, and ask in plain words: make this folder a Git repository, keep large files and anything with a key out, and show me the list first.
It asks before each step. Read the command, then approve it.
It writes a .gitignore file: the list of what Git leaves out. Here, the key file, and a sensor log of 140 MB.
Git doesn't know who you are yet, so the agent asks for a name and an email.
Give it the private noreply address GitHub gives you. Every commit you push shows it.

[2:16] 4. Read the list
Four: read the list before anything goes up.
22 files, and nothing with a key. Read it every time: on the free plan, GitHub doesn't scan private repositories for keys.
And unpublished data may need your campus's approval before it goes anywhere.

[2:38] 5. Create it and push
Five: create the repository, and push.
Ask the agent to create a private repository on GitHub, and push to it. It runs gh repo create: private, from this folder, and push.
Your folder is now on GitHub, private, with its whole history.
If you ever make it public, everyone can see it. That's a decision, not a default.

[3:07] 6. Invite a co-author
Six: invite a co-author.
On the repository's page: Settings, Collaborators, Add people, and their username.
They get an email invitation. Once they accept, they can work in it with you.
On a personal account, every collaborator can change the files. Read-only access needs an organization.

[3:33] 7. Make it a habit
Seven: make it a habit.
After each change, ask the agent to commit it, with a message that says what changed.
And when something goes wrong, ask what changed, and to put it back. Tuesday's sentence returns, as a new commit.
On the companion page: every command for Windows and the Mac, choosing a license, and a DOI for your code.

[4:04] Try it
Pause here, and try three: start your agent in your practice folder, ask for a repository with keys and large files kept out, then read the list and make the first commit.

[4:21] Review and next
So: start private, keep keys and big files out, read the list, and commit often.
Next: publish a page with Vercel.