Some more useful commands

[yellowdog-newbie@lists.terrasoftsolutions.com]

Glenn:

Thanks!

On Thursday, September 4, 2003, at 06:24  PM, glenn greenfield wrote:
> A few other handy things to know-
> man hier = "Description of the file system hierarchy"

How incredibly useful. I note with irony:
/sbin  ...this directory holds commands... which are usually not 
executed by normal users

I estimate that 50% of the commands I must issue from the console 
(because they do not have GUI equivalents) are in this directory. That 
is why your previous $PATH tip was so useful to me!

> pwd = "present working directory"
> cd = "change to home directory of user"
> cd /name/of/directory (self explainatory)
> cd - (cd+minus symbol) = "change to the previous directory"
> cd .. (cd<space>..) = "back up one level"
>
> history = "show last X CLI entries"
> history | less = "display history in scrollable list form" (use 
> <enter> or up/down arrows)
> !<number> = "execute history entery number X"
>
> ls = "list files in current directory"
> ls -a = "list all files PLUS hidden"
> ls -al = "list all files PLUS hidden in long form" (if you want to see 
> permissions, ownership, etc)
> ls /etc = "list everything in the directory /etc"

Some more commands I have found useful, especially on a laptop:

$ /sbin/snooze -- puts a Macintosh-based desktop or laptop computer to 
sleep
$ uptime -- time since last reboot
$ top -- running processes (type "h" while top is running to get a list 
of additional options, type "q" to quit)
$ df -h -- amount of drivespace used on mounted volumes (unlike some 
commands, the "-h" means "human-readable," not "help")
$ kdf & (or "/usr/bin/kdf" &) -- KDiskFree, a GUI to mount and unmount 
drive partitions; the "&" at the end tells the commandline to return to 
the user rather than wait for the program (kdf, in this case) to be 
terminated
$ whereis progname -- where "progname" is the name of some incredibly 
useful command for which you do not remember the correct path
$ which progname -- nearly identical to "whereis"; in fact, I don't 
know the differences, if any
$ who -- how many and which users are logged in (note that even if you 
are the only user, you will see your name for every instance you are 
logged in, including X windows and commandline)

Finally, I have made lots of use of a "Desktop button" that can be 
included in your kicker panel (that taskbar-like thingy at the bottow 
or top of your screen. Right-click on the panel, select Panel Menu, and 
navigate to "Add" and "Special button." There are a few useful gadgets 
in there, including the "Show Desktop" button. If you have many windows 
open from many applications, clicking on "Show Desktop" will minimize 
all the applications, giving you access to your Desktop. Quite useful, 
and Terra Soft should include it in the default install.

Best wishes,
Clint

-- 
Dr. Clinton C. MacDonald | <mailto:clint.macdonald@sbcglobal.net>