Terminology

The following terminology are used frequently in documentation. Read it to more easily follow tutorials in other pages.

Users

normal user = Your user account (could be any username you have chosen).

root = The Linux administrator user account.

Paths

/ = The topmost directory in the file system hierarchy.

~ = Your normal user home directory,
for example /home/lisa .

./ = The current directory, where you are at the moment in the file system hierarchy.

Mouse/Touchpad

LMB = Left Mouse Button

RMB = Right Mouse Button

MMB = Middle Mouse Button (can be emulated on touch-pads by clicking left and right button simultaneously)

Keyboard

C = Ctrl key

A = Alt key

W = Windows key (function key placed in between left C and A keys)

Key bindings work like this:
W-t = press the Windows key and hold it down while also hitting the t key.

Terminal

A terminal is a CLI (Command Line Interface), as opposed to a GUI (Graphical User interface).

The CLI is the heart of a Linux operating system. If no GUI is running the terminal will be the only interface available.

You can switch to any of seven available terminals with key bindings C-A-FX where X is the number of the terminal. If the GUI is running, it will always be in the 7th terminal.

A more convenient way of working in the terminal is to start a terminal emulator within the GUI. Xterm is installed on most Linux systems.

Input

Input are actions you as a user are asked to perform. It is written with a black mono-type font with white background in the documentation, like this: input

Input prefixed with $ or # are commands to execute in the terminal. They can also be used in scripts (executable files) to automate the combined use of several commands, but generally you are expected to put the commands in a terminal and hit enter.

• $ as prefix means input command as normal user.
• # as prefix means input command as root or start the command with sudo as normal user.

Read more here about sudo.

Never include $ or # in your actual input, they only mark the permissions required for the command. You will see them at the command prompt when working in the terminal, depending on if you are root or normal user at the moment.

Input must always be written as one single line of code. Displaying long strings over several lines in the documentation is only a matter of formatting.

Working on files

You will be asked to create, view, edit and execute files when following tutorials. It can be done from the command line as covered in the Terminal Usage Guide, but most people will do this with a file manager and a text editor.

Using XFE file manager:

To open a file with the default text editor; RMB on the file and choose View.

Execute a file by double clicking it. However if a default application is set to open this file type, double clicking will not execute it anymore. Instead choose Tools/Execute command...
Browse for files and select the executable.

If you need a file manager window with root permissions, choose Tools/New root window and input your root password when asked.

Comments

Config files and executable files often contain comments with information to you when editing the files. They are also used to prepare commands and options without actually enabling them.

There can be different commenting styles depending on the programming language in the file. Look for a present comment in any file you are editing and use the same style:

• # rest of line after bracket is bash comment
  or
• ! rest of line after bang is bash comment
  or
• <!-- between tags is xml style comment -->

Comment out or Un-comment a line refers to adding or removing the # , ! or <!-- --> that distinguish a comment from real interpreted code.

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