---
title: "Why GitHub Actually Won"
url: https://daily.dev/posts/why-github-actually-won-ssvzphmxh
source_url: https://blog.gitbutler.com/why-github-actually-won/
type: article
source: "Hacker News"
published: 2024-09-09T17:38:05.910Z
updated: 2026-03-15T03:39:10.624Z
tags: ["devtools", "github", "open-source", "version-control"]
reading_time: 21
upvotes: 24
comments: 1
language: en
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Why GitHub Actually Won

**[Hacker News](https://daily.dev/sources/hn)** · 21 min read · 24 upvotes · 1 comments

## Summary

GitHub's success can be attributed to its timing and focus on developer experience. Starting when distributed version control systems were gaining traction, GitHub stood out by being user-centric, embracing open-source contributions, and simplifying permissions with features like forking and pull requests. The platform's strong backing from the Ruby community and key influences like Linus Torvalds and the Linux project further solidified its dominance. Ultimately, GitHub's taste in understanding and improving developer workflows set it apart from competitors like SourceForge and Google Code.

## Full article

daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: <https://blog.gitbutler.com/why-github-actually-won/>

## Community discussion

Top comments from developers on daily.dev.

**@imjb87** · 0 upvotes

> I really love these insightful dives into the history of tech and the early players involved. I've not enjoyed reading a tech blog post as much as this in a while. Brilliant write up and insights. Thanks!

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---

Tags: [#devtools](https://daily.dev/tags/devtools), [#github](https://daily.dev/tags/github), [#open-source](https://daily.dev/tags/open-source), [#version-control](https://daily.dev/tags/version-control)

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