.gitkeep vs .gitignore

Here is a concise summary of the key differences between .gitkeep and .gitignore :

.gitkeep is used to track an otherwise empty directory in a Git repository, as Git does not automatically track empty directories. It is an unofficial convention, and the filename can be anything, as long as it is not ignored by the .gitignore file.

On the other hand, .gitignore is an official Git feature that specifies which files and directories should be ignored by Git. It is used to prevent certain files, like logs or compiled binaries, from being tracked in the repository.

The main differences are:

1. .gitkeep is used to track empty directories, while .gitignore is used to ignore specific files and directories.

2. .gitkeep is an unofficial convention, while .gitignore is an official Git feature.

3. The filename for .gitkeep can be anything, while .gitignore follows a specific syntax.

4. .gitignore is the preferred way to track empty directories, by adding a rule like "!directory/.gitkeep" to include the .gitkeep file.