Command Line Interface

Command line interfaces (CLI) are a way of interacting with your computer through pure text. On Windows, you do this with the Command Prompt and on Unix systems (Linux and macOS), there is the Terminal. More on CLI.

The CLI can be used to manage your Git repository, to run Python scripts, and manage your Python packages.

The Interface

The active line of the Command Prompt or Terminal starts with the current working directory (CWD) of your file system, eg:

Windows:

C:\Users\username>

where > separates the CWD from the commands you enter.

Unix:

username@computername:~$

where ~ is shorthand for the user directory (usually home/username) and $ separates the CWD from the commands you enter.

List contents

To list contents in a directory, you use the following commands:

Windows:

dir

Unix:

ls

Navigation

The cd command (Change Directory) allows you to move the current working directory. On Windows, use \ to separate directories and on Unix, use /. The "Tab" key can be used to auto-complete a name.