Getting Help in UNIX
UNIX is not a user-friendly computer system. While not actively
user-hostile, it is perfectly willing to sit there and taunt you with
a blank screen and a blinking
cursor.
If you need help with some UNIX command, there is an online help
system which is comprised of a set of "manual" pages.
The manual pages tell you which options a particular command can take, and
how each option modifies the behaviour of the command.
-
Type man command to read the manual page for a
particular command.
"Ah Ha!" you say. But what if you don't know what command to use to
accomplish a particular task? Aye, there's the rub.
-
If you have some vague clue what it is that you want to do, try the command
apropos keyword where
keyword is some term that is related to the
task that you are trying to accomplish.
-
Apropos will give you a list of commands that
contain that keyword in their manual page header.
Other than that, I suggest that you get youself a good "Intro to UNIX"
book and make out a wallet card with your favorite ten commands and a
list of a few online UNIX tutorials:
Using Computers for Molecular Biology
Stuart M. Brown, Ph.D, RCR, NYU Medical Center
Comments to: browns02@mcrcr.med.nyu.edu