Shining A Light On What Isn’t Seen: Command-Line Interface
Taking a look at what is beyond the colorful icon…
With a click of a button, I get from one place to another on my computer, navigating with ease. Little did I know, behind the icons and images that appear all over the screen, there is a command-line interface following my every move.
Ian Milligan and James Baker provided a step-by-step guide in their article Introduction to the Bash Command Line published by The Programming Historian. It was through this tutorial that I was able to use my computer with the Command-Line Interface, rather than the Graphic-User Interface that we are all accustomed to using.
As I was moving through the files on my computer using the Command-Line Interface, I noticed how easy it was to make a mistake and have to restart. The most satisfying part was when I started to catch on, and within minutes I was adding folders to my desktop and editing files within the Command-Line system.
I can confidently say that I am not an expert by any means when it comes to using this interface, but I have opened my eyes to a new way of viewing my computer. I now think about what is actually going on as I quickly shift from one application to another with the click of a button.
This tutorial was more than just a new way of using my computer. It provided me with an opportunity be exposed to a new what has really shaped the evolution of technology. I now have a great appreciation for the masterminds behind this system. It was exhausting just to attempt to learn how to use the system; I could only imagine how difficult it must have been to invent it in the first place.
One of the first suggestions Milligan and Barker made was to change the color settings of the “Terminal”, or the program that provides the Command-Line Interface. When they suggested that, it was noted that this process might be straining on the eyes. That was enough for me to be very curious and dive right into the tutorial.
Technology has evolved immensely, and our computers seem to get savvier as the years go on. But I think it is important, in fact, essential that I am in tune with how it came to be that way. It is so easy to get caught up with all of the new products and user-friendly programs, allowing the impressive inventions to be overlooked. I would encourage and recommend people with any area of interest, especially technology, to take a minute and look at the innovations that have gotten us to where we are today. Technology is impressive and continues to be, but it took an incredible amount of work to get to this point today.
If you are curious to try this out, it may be helpful to have a few shortcuts under your belt before you begin. Here are some of the commands that I found most useful on my quest to master the Command-Line Interface:
pwd- This was the ultimate lifesaver. It showed me where I was throughout the process
cd- Like the “Home” button on an iPhone, if I got completely lost, I typed “cd” which brought me right back to where I started
CTRL+F- moves down the page
CTRL+B moves up the page
head *- Displays first ten lines of *, allows me to see a preview of what I would open
tail *- Displays last ten lines of *, shows me the end of the document, book, or file
It may be frustrating at times, but the process is filled with new concepts to learn. Good luck and enjoy!
Works Cited
Baker, James, and Ian Milligan. “Introduction to the Bash Command Line.” The Programming Historian. Web. 02 Feb. 2016. http://programminghistorian.org/lessons/intro-to-bash
