A few weeks ago, I heard that Eric Sink was giving away copies of his new book Version Control by Example. Since I like free things and know just enough about version control systems (VCSs) to be dangerous, I figured I should get a copy. Turns out that was a wise decision. I use Subversion at work and Git with Fedora and personal projects, so I haven’t been able to get really good at either system. After reading this book, I’m still no expert but I’ve got a little more competence (and, more importantly, a handy reference).

As the title suggests, this book is centered around actual examples. In walking through Subversion, Mercurial, Git, and Veracity, Sink uses the same example scenario, making it easy to understand the similarities and differences between the systems. Although he clearly favors the distributed VCSs, the book gives Subversion a fair treatment, discussing situations where a centralized VCS is more appropriate (for example, when it’s necessary to have path-based access controls.

The best feature of Version Control by Example is the writing style. Much like the “for Dummies” series, the writing style is light and humorous. This makes it a very easy book to read through, and certainly aids my focus. The only downside to this book is that it lacks a detailed treatment of advanced topics. Still, as an introductory book this is excellent. Given that Sink seems insistent on not making any money off this book, I encourage anyone who uses version control in any capacity (or anyone who doesn’t but should!) to have a copy. Details on the free book offer can be found at http://www.ericsink.com/entries/vcbe_print_edition_free.html.