---
layout: post
title: "Introducing Git Authorship: Easy Visualizations of Code Authors"
category:
 - Projects
 - Git Authorship
tags:
 - Open Source Licensing
redirect_from:
 - /projects/2022/12/23/git-authorship.html
---

Meet [**Git Authorship**](https://github.com/thehale/BinaryClock), an
interactive tool for seeing who wrote each line of code in your git
repositories!

![Screenshot of the Git Authorship tool for the cubing.js
project](/assets/img/posts/git-authorship/git_authorship_demo.gif)

## Why is tracking code authorship important?
For legal reasons.

More specifically, code is protected by copyright, meaning the author of the
code is the only person allowed to use it unless an alternate agreement has been
made (e.g. an open-source code license).

Both companies and open-source projects looking to stand on firm legal ground
need to ensure that all code authors have granted appropriate usage permissions
for the code they have written.

## How does Git Authorship help with tracking code authorship?
Git Authorship creates an interactive web visualization of every folder/file in
your code repository, labelled with the corresponding authors.

Git Authorship also supports configuration files to label the usage permissions
(e.g. licenses) each author has granted.

Note however, that Git Authorship has no tools for obtaining usage permissions
from code authors. Tools like [CLA
Assistant](https://github.com/contributor-assistant/github-action) are more
appropriate for that purpose.

## How can I start using Git Authorship?
Go to the [project homepage](https://github.com/thehale/git-authorship) and
follow the instructions there!
