Get help on the CLI

- [Instructor] Knowing how to get information…about commands in Linux is paramount…to understanding such a powerful operating system.…Let's start by using the built-in --help option.…Open a terminal by going to…Applications, Favorites, and Terminal.…I'm going to make mine full screen and bump the font size.…Type in ls --help and hit Enter.…The --help information is built in to most Linux commands…so it will always be available.…If the output is too long, use the scroll bar…or press Shift + Page Up to scroll up.…

At the top of the output of ls --help,…it shows the command syntax or usage.…- -help doesn't work for all commands.…For instance, cd --help results in an error message.…The reason for this is that cd is built into the bash shell…so it doesn't exist as a separate command on the disk.…For those commands built into the bash shell,…we can use the help command to get the syntax.…Type in help cd and hit Enter.…

Between the --help option and the help command,…we should be able to get quick help on most any command.…