Thread

The GitHub wiki is an anti-pattern (2022)

175 points · 112 comments · ibobev

sigvef · 1790176479 · focus · HN ↗
Not many people know that the github wiki is actually backed by a separate "hidden" repo, and can be accessed by adding .wiki to the repo url, e.g. <a href="https://github.com/lionleaf/dwitter.wiki.git" rel="nofollow">https://github.com/lionleaf/dwitter.wiki.git
Apparently it can even do CI stuff. Still wouldn't recommend it though, for the other reasons outlined in TFA and this thread.
1. annex-winged-cr · 1790178017 · focus · HN ↗
  It leads to a 404 page on my end.
  1. sheept · 1790178446 · focus · HN ↗
    It’s not a web page; it’s a git remote url
2. WorldMaker · 1790178098 · focus · HN ↗
  I seem to recall that GHE allowed you at one point to point a Wiki to a /docs or /docs/wiki subdirectory. I still don't know why that never became a public GitHub.com feature. Sure it is technically redundant with the file browser if you know how to use the view controls and don't mind the UI sprawl of the file browser, but I still think it would be a good feature.
3. isityettime · 1790193826 · focus · HN ↗
  It's in the docs, so it's not exactly hidden:
  > You can edit wikis directly on GitHub, or you can edit wiki files locally.
  <a href="https://docs.github.com/en/communities/documenting-your-project-with-wikis/adding-or-editing-wiki-pages#cloning-wikis-to-your-computer" rel="nofollow">https://docs.github.com/en/communities/documenting-your-proj...
  > Every wiki provides an easy way to clone its contents down to your computer. Once you've created an initial page on GitHub, you can clone the repository to your computer with the provided URL.
  Every GitHub wiki you visit also has a section at the bottom that points to that URL with the description
  > Clone this wiki locally
  as well.

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