Command line basics

We can access a computer's file system using the command line:

The prompt, which appears when we load the command line app, shows us the current status:

On Mac, it may look something like: jon@Jons-Mac-mini Desktop % where:

% is the prompt
- this symbol could be $ or # depending on the system

On Windows, it may look something like: C:\projects\>:

As shorthand, we will refer to the prompt as simply $

A command consists of a:

For example:

$ cd myfolder

From that:

the keyword cd (change directory) has the argument myfolder
- which takes us to the folder called myfolder

These commands come in handy on an everyday basis:

Command	Arguments	What it does
`cat`	`filename`	prints the contents of a file (may not appear readable depending on the type of file)
`cd`	`foldername`	accesses a folder (if it exists)
`cd`	`..` (literally)	accesses the parent folder of the current folder
`clear`	(none)	clears the command-line screen of its history
`ls`	(none)	lists the files and sub-folders of the current folder
`mkdir`	`foldername`	creates a directory/folder
`mv`	`oldname newname`	renames ("moves") a file to a new name
`npm`	(many different arguments)	manages the dependencies of a project (more on this later)
`pwd`	(no arguments)	prints the path of the current folder
`rmdir`	`foldername`	removes the directory/folder (if it exists)
`rm`	`filename`	removes the file (if it exists)
`sudo`	(+ any command)	"super user do" (run commands with admin-level permissions if you have certain credentials granted)
`touch`	`filename`	creates a new blank file

using a "hacker-looking" interface to access the file system