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Jacob Stopak

Jacob Stopak

United States

Jacob (Jack) Stopak is a software developer based in Denver, with a passion for creating resources and tools to help both new and experienced developers learn Git and Version Control in a visual way. He is the founder of initialcommit.com, through which he created the open-source tool Git-Sim, which has ~85,000 downloads, and is currently working on an educational, gamified Git tool called Devlands. Jacob has spoken multiple times at the annual Git Merge conference, first in 2022, presenting on what we can learn from examining the C code in Git's codebase, and then in 2025, presenting on creative, visual ways to learn and use Git. He wrote the Decoding Git Guidebook for Developers, which dives into the initial commit of Git's C code to explain how Git works from a code perspective. Over the years, he has written various well-received articles and blog posts on Git and Version Control, ranging from a history of version control system internals to guides on Git's various subcommands and features. These articles have been read millions of times over the past few years. Jacob is currently a Lead Organizer of the Code and Coffee community group in Denver, where he is helping build a community of local developers to learn and support each other in the ever-changing software development landscape.

Community Contributions

Code and Coffee - Dev Meetup Host (Denver)

For the past year (since March/April 2025), I've been attending and co-hosting the Code and Coffee developer meetup in Denver, Colorado, as a co-lead organizer of the event. It is a monthly meetup group at a local coffee shop in Denver CO, where new and experienced developers convene to discuss software development and computer science, share their projects with the group, seek advice, network, and present job opportunities. We usually have between 10-40 attendees, depending on the location and time of year. At some of the events, we have a presentation-style session on a specific software-related subject. In August 2025, I presented to the group on how various Git commands work under the hood, using my visual Git tools (Git-Sim and Devlands) to illustrate those concepts clearly. Hosting these meetups has been a great way for me to work on my public speaking and networking skills, as well as to provide guidance to newer developers in the field related to technical material or job seeking.

Event organization / 03-07-2026

nwHacks - Hackathon Judge

I was invited to be a technical judge at the nwHacks hackathon earlier this year at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. In this hackathon, current undergraduate students and recent grads in computer science worked for 48 hours to build unique and innovative software projects. I was part of a team of 3 technical judges tasked with evaluating, scoring, and providing feedback on 10-12 projects submitted during the hackathon. I was very impressed by the creativity these students showcased in such a short timeframe, and thoroughly enjoyed both the technical evaluation process and helping the participants think through their design choices, project scope, potential improvements, and future direction of their project. Given my background in creating visual Git and Version Control tools, I was pleasantly surprised when one of the teams actually presented a project related to this very subject. Overall, it was a very fulfilling event to participate in, and I will definitely be seeking out other hackathons in the future.

Hackathon / 01-18-2026

Git-Sim

In early 2023, I created and released my first open-source project, Git-Sim, a visual Git command simulator, which resonated with new and experienced devs alike and has been downloaded around ~85,000 times. Git-Sim allows developers to easily generate visual simulations (images or video animations) of exactly how a Git command will impact their specific repo before they actually run the command. Since Q4 of 2025 I've been working on a major overhaul of how Git-Sim creates and simulates Git commands to improve the performance and reliability of the Git command simulations. Most of this work has been local so far, but as it gets closer to being ready I'll be doing some rolling releases/updates throughout the remainder of 2026.

Open source project / 11-01-2025

Reimagining Git Learning through Visualization and Gamification

In this talk at the Git Merge 2025 conference in San Francisco, I shared my journey and mission to reimagine Git learning and usage. My ultimate goal is to transform what can often be a challenging and intimidating process into something approachable and maybe even fun. I address this by leveraging visualization, simulation, and gamification to connect with developers in creative ways. My initial foray began with annotating the code in Git's initial commit to help myself and others learn how Git works under the hood. I progressed to building a tool in Python to visually simulate Git commands. This paved the way for my current project which renders entire Git repos in a fully immersive game world. By sharing my experiences I hope to inspire current and future devs to reimagine the way they use and interact with dev tools and code.

Speaking (conference/usergroups) / 09-30-2025

Devlands

I've spent the majority of the past 2 years working on Devlands - a gamified Git interface that transforms any Git repository into a 3D world that the user can walk through and explore. It includes a 16-level, character-guided Git tutorial for new Git users and a "freeform" mode which allows users to transform any Git repository into a 3D world they can walk through to interact with the codebase in real time from directly within the game. I've gathered feedback from high school and university professors to help steer the direction of the tool, in order to maximize the learning potential for students. I released the initial version of Devlands in September 2025. Although this project isn't currently open-source, I will likely open it up for students for free over the course of 2026 and will potentially fully open-source it depending on the direction the project takes.

Other / 09-22-2025

12 Git commands visualized in 3D: a spatial approach to understanding version control

The Git commands in this video were captured directly in Devlands, a project I'm building that transforms your Git repo into a 3D world anyone can wrap their HEAD around. Each Git command runs in real-time against a real Git repository, with file changes, commits, branches, and tags shown as tangible objects you can interact with. Git operations are animated automatically and in real-time, so you can see exactly how each command impacts your repo. Devlands has 2 modes: 1) Git tutorial mode: A visual, character-led Git tutorial that covers all the most important Git concepts and commands. 2) Freeform mode: Load any Git repo into Devlands, enabling you to explore your codebase in 3D, see Git operations animated spatially, and write/edit/explain your code. The goal of Devlands is to translate Git’s abstract model into something you can see and make sense of. Instead of memorizing cryptic commands, you can watch how the commit history evolves, how branches split and merge, how merging and rebasing alter the structure - and anything else Git can do.

Video/Podcast / 09-22-2025

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