Link to a current guide for the Linux terminal?

[Chaosolous]

TLDR;

Would someone knowledgeable in the Linux OS mind linking to an accurate learning guide to an introduction to the Linux terminal?

Post

I'm getting more comfortable with Linux Mint as I mess around with it and that terminal doesn't scare me but I know nothing about it. The GUI in Mint is really quite learner friendly though so it's been a lot of help.

That said.

I want to learn the terminal and how it functions but whenever I look online, because of my ignorance to it, I can't parse out the conflicting information I'm finding or understand some of the more glossed over things being said without explanation. Also, sometimes highly recommended videos from the search algorithm are like, 5 years old and I don't know how reliable that information is today.

Keep in mind, I'm still pretty new to Linux in general so when people start talking about the difference in Arch vs. Ubuntu vs. Those Other Ones I Don't Remember, I don't much understand the difference in them. IDK where to learn about those either TBH. I tried but also found a bunch of conflicting information. Some people even said there isn't much of a difference, then some people were like "No, they're totally different."

Obviously some stuff is subjective, but I'm just looking for objective "This is how this works" information. Maybe just, layman taught. I don't have a degree in computer science. I learn well, but I need to know I can trust/rely on the information I'm taking in.

Also (I know you find this everywhere but), when I look into what people have to say in the comments sections of YouTube and other platforms where I'm trying to find info, everyone is like "Nope, wrong." and since I have no knowledge to compare it to for Linux, I don't know who's correct.

If you know of a place I could find accurate and up to date information, that'd be helpful.

[Omega]

I recommend you start with Joe Collins Bash Terminal introduction videos on YouTube.

Linux does not change much, even guides made many years ago are often still relevant.

[DevaVictrix]

What do you ‘the terminal’?

—help and manpages cover pretty well everything.

The Linux pocket guide is a good purchase too. It’s basically a —help printout of some of the most useful commands with a brief explanation.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Linux-Guide-Essential-Daniel-Barrett/dp/1098157966

[Electric Cupcake]

Get used to the "man" command.

"man" brings up the manual for a command, showing the different options and switches. Press "q" to exit out of it.

"cd" means change directory, same as it does in dos. cd / goes straight to the root. cd ~ goes straight to the user home directory. cd .. goes up one level to the previous directory, etc.

Remember that it is case sensitive, so if you want to view your desktop folder, it's cd /home/Desktop. Not cd /home/desktop. Also, TAB will autocomplete the file or folder.

"ls" shows the contents of the current directory. "ls -al" gives more details.

"more" does page breaks for the output.

"sudo" performs the following command with superuser privileges.

The pipe "|" takes the output from one command and feeds it into the next one.

"&&" does commands in sequence.

"apt" or "apt-get" is the package manager. You use it for more advanced installing, uninstalling and updating tasks than the gui does.

https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/cd-command-in-linux-with-examples/

[Chaosolous]

Alright cool. Thank you guys, I really appreciate it.

[Electric Cupcake]

"cat," "touch," "fsck" and "grep" are for making dirty jokes.

[emoticorpse]

Allright

[SHAZBOT]

i was gonna learn one day but its too lte,there literally no point. i use the ai copy commands, paste the results, get better commands, then better results, all while learning at the same time.

even technicians are using ai instead of cheat sheets nowadays. if the pros are using it, why are we trying to learn the hard way?

there specialized linux programming bots. im not gonna feel very accomplished learning anything. the ai does it better in 2 clicks anyway

[Omega]

Originally posted by SEX!SEX!SEX!:

i was gonna learn one day but its too lte,there literally no point. i use the ai copy commands, paste the results, get better commands, then better results, all while learning at the same time.

even technicians are using ai instead of cheat sheets nowadays. if the pros are using it, why are we trying to learn the hard way?

there specialized linux programming bots. im not gonna feel very accomplished learning anything. the ai does it better in 2 clicks anyway

LLM models are utterly horrible at shell scripting and command line. Tried it a few times, almost always it just makes stuff up.

[Chaosolous]

Originally posted by Omega:

I recommend you start with Joe Collins Bash Terminal introduction videos on YouTube.

Linux does not change much, even guides made many years ago are often still relevant.

I watched a few of his videos. They were super helpful. Thank you for the recommendation. 👍