1. As a hosting platform, GitHub only supports git repository hosting , unlike other open source project hosting platforms that also host repositories in CVS, SVN, Hg and other formats. GitHub's philosophy is simple, since Git is one of the best version control systems out there (and not one for many people who like Git and GitHub), there's no need to sacrifice some of Git's unique features for other version control systems. So not having the historical burden of supporting other version control systems is one of the elements of GitHub's success.
2. GitHub provides complete protocol support for Git repository , supporting HTTP smart protocol, Git-daemon, and SSH protocol.
3. GitHub provides the function of editing files online . Users who are not familiar with Git can also modify the files in the repository directly through the browser.
4. The introduction of social networks into the project hosting platform is an initiative of GitHub . Users can follow projects, follow other users, and learn about projects and developers.
5. Fork and Pull Request of the project constitute the most unique working mode of GitHub. Line-by-line comments and Pull Requests of committed code form GitHub's signature code review.
6. GitHub has achieved commercial success through private repository hosting, enterprise-oriented repository hosting and project management platforms, personnel recruitment and other paid services. This success makes GitHub not have to maintain operations by embedding advertisements in pages. The beneficiaries are the users.
7. The GitHub website adopts the Ruby on Rails architecture, and uses a lot of JavaScript, AJAX, HTML5 and other technologies in the web design, and supports the rendering and display of content using Markdown and other markup languages . Attention to detail has made GitHub a rising star in project hosting.