Command line, also known as CLI, console, terminal, shell.
Difference
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Console: physical device to interact with computer — computer, keyboard, mouse.
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Terminal: text input & output environment. A program that acts as a wrapper and we can enter commands that computer processes. Can install or uninstall, or install many terminals in your computer.
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Shell: A program that acts as command-line interpreter. It processes commands and outputs the results. Eg: Bash, Powershell, Zsh, Fish. Shells also work as programming languages, as we can build scripts to make computer execute a certain task.
The terminal is the program in which the shell will run. Both are independent.
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CLI (command line interface): the interface in which we enter commands for the computer to process. Practically the same as terminal.
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GUI (graphical user interface): user can see things & click on & computer execute the corresponding task.
Why use terminal?
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More efficient than using GUI. A command line can excute some tasks that may require many clicks using GUI.
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Automate tasks: build scripts for repetitive tasks.
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Sometimes CLI is the only way to interact with computer.
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It’s cool and fun lol.
Notes
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Bash is recommended as it’s the most standard & commonly used.
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Shells & terminals are customizable. Plugins like OhMyZsh or Starship allow to customize easier.
Most useful commands
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pwd: print working directory - show where we are -
ls: show contents of the directory you’re currently in -
cd ..: go to the directory that contains the current directory -
mkdir cat: make directory named cat -
rmdir cat: remove directory -
touch test.md: create a file in current directory -
rm test.md: delete file -
:q!: exit editor -
ctrl c: exit the process the terminal is running
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ctrl shift c/v to copy and paste
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clear: clear previous content
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tab: autocompletion