Skip to content

Terminal Basics

Below is a concise, beginner-friendly guide to using the command line (often called the “terminal” in macOS and Linux). The guide covers the basics for Windows, macOS, and Linux side-by-side. Mastering the terminal is vital for our Data Viz course as it empowers you to efficiently manage files, automate workflows, and interact with various AI tools and scripts.

1. Opening the Command Line

Windows

  • Command Prompt: Press Win + R, type cmd, and hit Enter.
  • PowerShell: Press Win + X and select “Windows PowerShell” (or just search for PowerShell in the Start menu).

macOS

  • Terminal: Open “Applications” → “Utilities” → “Terminal”, or use Spotlight search (Cmd + Space) and type “Terminal”.

Linux

  • Terminal: Typically found in the application menu under “Accessories” or “System Tools”. You can also use a keyboard shortcut like Ctrl + Alt + T on many distributions.

2. Basic Navigation Commands

Action Windows macOS / Linux
List files/folders dir ls
Change directory cd folder_name cd folder_name
Go up one directory cd .. cd ..
Clear screen cls clear

Examples

  • List Files:
    • Windows: dir
    • macOS/Linux: ls
  • Change Directory (to Documents folder):
    cd Documents
  • Go Up One Level:
    cd ..

3. Creating and Managing Folders/Files

Action Windows (Command Prompt/PowerShell) macOS / Linux
Create a folder mkdir folder_name mkdir folder_name
Remove an empty folder rmdir folder_name rmdir folder_name
Remove a folder + contents rmdir /s folder_name (CMD)
Remove-Item folder_name -Recurse -Force (PowerShell)		 rm -r folder_name

Examples

  • Create Folder:
    mkdir MyProject
  • Remove Folder:
    • Windows Command Prompt: 
      rmdir /s MyProject
    • PowerShell: 
      Remove-Item MyProject -Recurse -Force
    • macOS/Linux: 
      rm -r MyProject

4. Viewing and Editing Files

Action Windows (Command Prompt/PowerShell) macOS / Linux
Show file contents type filename.txt cat filename.txt
Open file in text editor Use Notepad or similar:
notepad filename.txt		 Use Nano/Vim/gedit etc.:
nano filename.txt

Examples

  • Display Contents:
    • Windows: type README.txt
    • macOS/Linux: cat README.txt
  • Edit File:
    • Windows: notepad README.txt
    • macOS/Linux: nano README.txt (or vim, gedit, etc.)

5. Copying, Moving, and Deleting Files

Action Windows macOS / Linux
Copy a file copy old.txt new.txt cp old.txt new.txt
Move/rename a file move old.txt new.txt mv old.txt new.txt
Delete a file del filename.txt rm filename.txt

Examples

  • Copy a File:
    • Windows: copy report.txt backup_report.txt
    • macOS/Linux: cp report.txt backup_report.txt
  • Move/Rename a File:
    • Windows: move data.csv archived_data.csv
    • macOS/Linux: mv data.csv archived_data.csv
  • Delete a File:
    • Windows: del old_data.csv
    • macOS/Linux: rm old_data.csv

6. Piping and Redirection

Often, you’ll want to chain commands together or redirect output to a file.

Action Windows (Command Prompt/PowerShell) macOS / Linux
Redirect output to a file command > output.txt command > output.txt
Append output to a file command >> output.txt command >> output.txt
Pipe output (send to another command) command1 | command2 command1 \| command2

Examples

  • Redirect output:

    dir > files_list.txt    # Windows
ls > files_list.txt     # macOS/Linux
    This saves the output to files_list.txt instead of displaying it on the screen.

  • Pipe output:

    • Windows: dir | findstr ".py"
    • macOS/Linux: ls | grep ".py"
      This finds all Python files in the current directory.

7. Additional Tips

  • Up/Down Arrow Keys: Cycle through your command history to reuse or edit previous commands.
  • Tab Completion: Start typing a folder or file name and press Tab to auto-complete it (works in most shells).
  • Help: Use --help or -h after commands to see help information. Windows commands often use /? instead.
  • Case Sensitivity: Windows commands can be case-insensitive, while macOS/Linux commands are case-sensitive.
  • Historical Commands: Use history (Linux or macOS) or doskey /history (Windows) to view past commands.
  • Permissions: Sometimes you may find permissions issues when running commands. In such cases, you may need to run the command with elevated permissions (e.g., sudo on Linux/macOS or as an administrator on Windows). This should be done with caution, especially when deleting files or changing system settings. You may also need to change the permissions of a file or folder; refer to the documentation of your operating system for more information.
    • Additional Command: Use chmod (Linux/macOS) to change file permissions as needed.
    • File Ownership Command: Use chown (Linux/macOS) to change file ownership if necessary.

8. More Resources