[mbrubeck]

Yup.

    $ mkdir newproject
    $ cd newproject
    $ git init
    Initialized empty Git repository in /home/mbrubeck/newproject/.git/

[blasdel]

But you're not actually using version control (and newproject isn't a valid git repository) until you make a commit.

While that's a bit of git wonkery, it exposes an underlying truth about VC in general: You need to have something to commit to be using it. Whether you init the repository before or after the first file hits the disk is irrelevant.