Thanks to user-friendly distributions like Ubuntu, more people are running Linux than ever before. But many users stick to the GUI and point and click their way through tasks, missing out on one of the key advantages of Linux: the command line.

The command line interface is the most efficient and powerful way to interact with Linux; by typing commands, users can quickly move files, install new packages, and make complex tasks easy.


The Linux Command Line is a complete introduction to the command line. Author William Shotts, a Linux user for over 15 years, guides readers from their first keystrokes to writing full programs in Bash, the most popular Linux shell.

The book's extensive coverage tackles file navigation, environment configuration, command chaining, pattern matching with regular expressions, and much more.

"The command line is like a window into Linux," said No Starch Press founder William Pollock. "Strip away the GUI and you're in control of your machine. The difference is kind of like driving a stick versus an automatic. The automatic is great for shepherding the family around town, but the stick puts you in control of that souped up sports car."

Among the command line's many features, readers will learn how to:

• Create and delete files, directories, and symlinks
• Administer their system, manage networking, and control processes
• Use standard input and output, redirection, and pipelines
• Edit files with Vi and write shell scripts to automate tasks
• Slice and dice text files with cut, paste, grep, patch, and sed.