Simple Stuff

First, a convention. I'll list things for you to type in this format:

# date 

I will list the computer's reply like this:

Tue Dec 23 10:52:51 PST 2003

Notice the "$" symbol in the user entry above. This is a generic shell prompt, and yours will almost certainly look different (but it will include a similar symbol). I'll be using one of two prompts (this is a common convention, worth remembering): I'll use "$" to refer to a normal user session, and "#" to refer to a root session.

NOTE: Avoid using root sessions and permissions unless it is required. Misused root authority can cause very serious harm to your system. Since this is a tutorial in which you will want to experiment with different commands, limit the chance for harm by doing so as an ordinary user.

To put this another way, enter this example:

# whoami

root

If your session produced the result shown above, please — log out and become an ordinary user.

In shell programming, spaces matter. If you see spaces between words and characters in these examples, be sure to include the spaces.

In shell programming, case matters also. If you don't get the results shown on this page, look at the case of your entries.