Guide to High School Computer Science
  • 💻Introduction
    • windows & Python Development
    • macOS & Python Development
    • Visual Studio Code Settings
    • Set up Github
    • Author Page
  • 🧠Prerequisite Skills
    • Keyboard Typing
    • Files & Directories
    • Use of Command Line
    • Git & GitHub
    • Markdown
    • Starting Your Python Project
  • 🐍Python Programming
    • 🍎Python Basics
      • What is Python?
      • Procedural Programming & Programming Paradigms
      • String Formatting
      • Data Types
      • Input & Output to Console
      • Working with Numbers
      • Useful Built-in Functions
      • Math & Random Module
      • Boolean Data Object
      • Comparison, Logical, and Membership Operators
      • If Statements
      • Binary Decisions
      • Multiple Decisions
      • Nested Conditions
      • [EXTRA] Bitwise Operators
      • [EXTRA] Python Style Guide
    • ⏮️Iterations
      • Introduction to While Loops
      • Infinite Loop
      • Controlling Your While Loops
      • Introduction to For Loops
      • For Loops w/ Numeric Sequences
      • For Loops w/ Strings & Lists
      • Iterable Functions w/ For Loops
    • 📦Collections
      • Strings
        • String Basics
        • String Indexing
        • String Slicing
        • String Operators & Functions
        • Basic String Methods
        • String Methods Extended
        • String Methods Document
      • Tuples & Lists
        • Tuples
        • List Basics
        • List are Mutable
        • Adding Items to a List
        • Removing Items from a List
        • Search & Reverse a List
        • List Comprehension
        • List Methods Document
      • Sets
      • Dictionary
      • How to Store Multiple Data Items
    • 💡Defining Functions
      • Functions
      • print() vs return
      • Pre-determined Arguments
      • Nested Functions
      • Map & Filter
      • [Extra] Dynamic Arguments
    • 💾File I/O
      • How to Save Text to an External File
      • Reading CSV in Python
      • Reading JSON in Python
    • 🔨Basic Python Projects
      • Basic Calculator
        • Improving the calculator
        • Exercise Set 1
        • Exercise Set 2
        • 💎Streamlit Application #1
      • Basic Password Generator
        • Exercise Set 3
        • Exercises Related to Math
        • 💎Streamlit Application #2
      • A To-Do Task List
    • ⏳Introduction to Algorithmic Thinking
      • Big-O Notation
      • Basic Algorithms
        • Linear Search
        • Binary Search
        • Basic Sorting Algorithms
      • Recursion
      • Brute Force Algorithms
      • Greedy Algorithm
        • Time on Task (CCC 2013 J4)
        • Dijkstra’s Algorithm
      • Divide and Conquer
        • Merge Sort
      • Dynamic Programming
    • 🤯Object Oriented Programming
      • Class & Objects (Definitions)
      • OOP in Python
      • Encapsulation
      • Polymorphism
      • Inheritance & Overriding
      • Override Magic Methods
      • Case Study: 2D Vectors
      • Case Study: Deck of Cards
      • Exercise
      • Abstract Data Types
      • Case Study: Static 1D Array From Java
    • Competitive Programming
      • Is This Sum Possible?
        • Is the dataset sorted?
        • Searching for a value
        • Determine if the difference between an integer from the array and the target value exists
        • Sorting Algorithms
        • Using Two Pointers
      • Two Sum - LeetCode
        • Generate all possible pairs of values
        • Subtract each value from the target, see if the difference exists in the list
      • Longest Common Prefix - LeetCode
        • Compare all possible prefixes
        • Create the longest common prefix with the direct neighbour
      • Length of Last Word - LeetCode
        • Compare all possible prefixes
      • Where can I go from one point to another?
      • Sample Outline
    • IB Recipe Book
  • 💾Python & Databases
    • Intro to Databases & Data Modeling
      • Common Data Types in SQL
      • Introduction to ERDs
      • Primary Keys and Foreign Keys
      • Database Normalization
    • What is SQL?
      • Getting Started
      • SELECT Queries
        • Selection with Conditions
        • Selection with Fuzziness
        • Selection and Sorting in Order
        • Selection without Duplicates
        • Selection with Limited Number of Outputs
      • AGGREGATE Queries
        • Counting Rows
        • Sum, Average, Min/Max Queries
        • Working with Aggregate Queries
        • Power of using Groups
        • Exercise
      • Interacting with Multiple Table
      • Inserting Data
      • External Resource
  • ☕Java Essentials
    • Basics
      • Starting Java
      • Data & Variables
      • Handling User Inputs & Type Conversion
      • Arithmetic
      • IPO Model
      • Basic Built-in Methods
      • Exercise Questions
    • Conditionals
      • Boolean Operators
      • Compare Strings
      • If Statements
      • If Else Statements
      • Making Multiple Decisions
      • Using Switch
      • Flowchart Symbols
      • Exercise Questions
    • Iterations
      • While Loops
      • For Loop
      • Exercises
    • Java Type Casting
    • Strings
      • Common String Practices
      • String Formatting
      • Java Special Characters
    • Collection
      • Arrays
      • For Each Loop
      • ArrayList
      • Exercise Questions
    • Static Methods
      • (Aside) Clearing your Console
    • Randomness in Java
    • Delayed Output in Java
    • Java Output Formatting
    • Java Style Guide
  • 🛠️JavaScript Programming
    • Our Programming Editor & Workflow
      • Hello, world!
      • Commenting & Variables
      • Data in JavaScript
      • Operators
      • String Formatting
      • Getting User Input
    • JavaScript Exercise Set 1
    • Making Decisions
      • Comparing Values
      • Combining Boolean Comparisons
      • Creating Branches
    • JavaScript Exercise Set 2
    • While Loops
      • Infinite While Loop
      • While Loops and Numbers
      • While Loops and Flags
      • While loops w/ Strings
    • JavaScript Exercise Set 3
    • Subprograms & Functions
      • Creating a Function in JavaScript
      • Function with Input and Assignable Output
    • JavaScript Exercise Set 4
  • 💾Topics in CS
    • Computer Environments & Systems
      • Computer Components
        • In-depth Explanations
      • File Maintenance
      • Computer & Safety
      • Software Development
      • Bits & Binary
    • Careers related to Computer Science
    • Postsecondary Opportunities
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On this page
  • Windows: Command Prompt & PowerShell
  • macOS: Terminal
  • Important Commands for both PowerShell & Terminal
  1. Prerequisite Skills

Use of Command Line

PreviousFiles & DirectoriesNextGit & GitHub

Last updated 5 months ago

An ubuntu command-line interface

Command line proficiency empowers programmers with efficiency, flexibility, automation capabilities, remote access, and deeper system-level understanding, making it an essential skill for software development and system administration.

Windows: Command Prompt & PowerShell

Command Prompt and PowerShell are both command-line interfaces found in Windows operating systems, but they serve different purposes and offer varying capabilities.

Command Prompt is a basic command-line interpreter in Windows. It provides a way to interact with the operating system using text-based commands. Users can execute various commands to perform tasks like navigating the file system, running programs, managing files and directories, and more. Command Prompt commands are often simple and use commands like "dir" to list files and "cd" to change directories. While it's been a core part of Windows for a long time, it has limitations in terms of scripting and automation.

PowerShell is a more advanced and versatile command-line shell and scripting language developed by Microsoft. It offers a more comprehensive set of tools and capabilities compared to the traditional Command Prompt. PowerShell enables automation, task scripting, and system administration tasks through its object-oriented scripting approach. It's built on the .NET framework and allows users to manipulate various data sources (such as files, registry, and services) as if they were objects. This makes it particularly powerful for managing and automating complex tasks in Windows environments.

macOS: Terminal

In macOS, the "Terminal" is an application that provides a command-line interface (CLI) to interact with the operating system. It allows users to enter text-based commands to perform various tasks, navigate the file system, run programs, manage files and directories, and more. The Terminal is similar to the Command Prompt in Windows and the shell in Unix-like systems.

Important Commands for both PowerShell & Terminal

Example:

cd C:\User\Park\Documents

will navigate the command line interface to the Documents directory.
  1. Listing Files and Directories:

    • List files and directories: ls (macOS) or dir (PowerShell)

    • List all files (including hidden): ls -a (macOS) or dir -Force (PowerShell)

  2. Changing Directories:

    • Change directory: cd [directory]

  3. Working with Files and Directories:

    • Create a new directory: mkdir [directory]

    • Create a new file: touch [filename]

    • Copy a file: cp [source] [destination]

    • Move or rename a file: mv [source] [destination]

    • Delete a file: rm [filename] (use with caution)

    • Delete a directory: rmdir [directory] (empty directory) or

  4. Displaying Text:

    • Display text: echo [text] (PowerShell) or echo [text] or echo "[text]" (macOS)

  5. Getting Help:

    • Get help for a command: man [command] (macOS) or Get-Help [command] (PowerShell)

  6. Viewing File Contents:

    • View file contents: cat [filename] (macOS) or Get-Content [filename] (PowerShell)

  7. Running Programs:

    • Run a program or script: [program] or ./[script.sh] (macOS) or .\[script.ps1] (PowerShell)

  8. Getting Current Location:

    • Print current working directory: pwd (macOS) or Get-Location (PowerShell)

  9. Exiting the Terminal/PowerShell:

    • Exit the Terminal/PowerShell: exit

🧠
How to use Window's Terminal
How to use the macOS terminal.