The Linux Command Line Presentation to Linux Users of Victoria
The Linux Command Line Presentation to Linux Users of Victoria Beginners Workshop August 18, 2012 http://levlafayette.com What Is The Command Line? 1.1 A text-based user interface that provides an environment to access the shell, which interfaces with the kernel, which is the lowest abstraction layer to system resources (e.g., processors, i/o). Examples would include CP/M, MS-DOS, various UNIX command line interfaces. 1.2 Linux is the kernel; GNU is a typical suite of commands, utilities, and applications. The Linux kernel may be accessed by many different shells e.g., the original UNIX shell (sh), the TENEX C shell (tcsh), Korn shell (ksh), and explored in this presentation, the Bourne-Again Shell (bash). 1.3 The command line interface can be contrasted with the graphic user interface (GUI). A GUI interface typically consists of window, icon, menu, pointing-device (WIMP) suite, which is popular among casual users. Examples include MS-Windows, or the X- Window system. 1.4 A critical difference worth noting is that in UNIX-derived systems (such as Linux and Mac OS), the GUI interface is an application launched from the command-line interface, whereas with operating systems like contemporary versions of MS-Windows, the GUI is core and the command prompt is a native MS-Windows application. Why Use The Command Line? 2.1 The command line uses significantly less resources to carry out the same task; it requires less processor power, less memory, less hard-disk etc. Thus, it is preferred on systems where performance is considered critical e.g., supercomputers and embedded systems.
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