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!whatever:p, sudo !!, ^foo^bar ... if they whet your appetite and set your pulse racing do I have a web site for you! It’s the Digg or Reddit of the Linux command-line world.
I am personally a strong advocate of using the Command Line. However, I am coming from a more tech type of situation than some others do. For the 'average" user however, is the Command Line relevant to everyday use?
I started learning computers back when DOS was all that was available to me, so I was comfortable with the command line. When Windows 95 was released my command line usage dropped considerably because there simply wasn't the "need" for it that there once was. I've gone from using the command line all the time to using it very seldom because GUI's were getting better and becoming more wide spread.
Today’s “Newbie Tip” is learning some basics about the “Command Line Interface” or as it’s mostly referred to, “Command Line”. The command line gives the user the ability to interact with the operating system by typing via a text terminal.
In addition to creating programming structures, you can also use the semi-colon to separate stand-alone commands that you want to execute from the same command entry. If you wanted to cd to a certain directory and then look at its contents, you could enter each command on its own line. Or, you could enter them both on the same line. This process is called command chaining.
For tasks like controlling and monitoring the distro's underlying system, the command line remains indispensable. Here are some commands that will elevate you from a total newbie to an informed command line user.
I love the command line. However, most people can’t just live on the command line, GUI’s can be pretty useful :P. I find myself spawning GUI programs from the command line a lot, and here are two tips which make doing that a pleasant experience:
Functions may be defined at the command-line and then used as many times as needed as long as a new shell is not started. This feature of the Bash shell can be a handy tool if you are repeatedly performing the same command or series of commands.
A very quick command line tip today, for users of pretty much any Unix-based operating system, including Linux distributions. When you're looking up information on a certain web site or domain name, you might be used to using whois functions on websites such as to see who owns a domain.