Forum rules
There are no such things as "stupid" questions. However if you think your question is a bit stupid, then this is the right place for you to post it. Stick to easy to-the-point questions that you feel people can answer fast. For long and complicated questions use the other forums in the support section.
Before you post read how to get help. Topics in this forum are automatically closed 6 months after creation.
Post by PaulL » Sat May 06, 2023 12:23 pm
I don't see anything in the Linux Mint user manual here on this site that lists the commands available for use in the Terminal.
For example, I saw a tip on a Web site, that told me I can use kill to stop a process that's stuck, but to do that you need the process ID, and the documentation for kill doesn't say how to find that. Should I just type in random commands to see if I can get a list of process ID's, or at least a hint from the help system about what command to look up? It would be a great help if there were something in writing that could be referred to.
I also find it confusing when the response from the system is to look up such-and-such a command, but following the instructions in the documentation that pops up results in a message saying that that command doesn't exist. If it doesn't exist, why is there documentation for it in the system?
Enquiring minds want to know!
Last edited by LockBot on Mon Nov 06, 2023 11:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
Post by deepakdeshp » Sat May 06, 2023 12:34 pm
If I have helped you solve a problem, please add [ SOLVED] t o your first post title , it helps other users looking for help.
Regards,
Deepak
Mint 22 Cinnamon 0U/8gb
deepakdeshp Level 21Post by deepakdeshp » Sat May 06, 2023 1:03 pm
Rather than list all commands search common commands. One such list is
https://www.crio.do/blog/20-basic-linux . wlEALw_wcB
If I have helped you solve a problem, please add [ SOLVED] t o your first post title , it helps other users looking for help.
Regards,
Deepak
Mint 22 Cinnamon 0U/8gb
Koentje Level 8Post by Koentje » Sat May 06, 2023 6:28 pm
PaulL wrote: ⤴ Sat May 06, 2023 12:23 pm Should I just type in random commands to see if I can get a list of process ID's
ps aux gives you a list of running processes..
ps aux | grep 'nemo-desktop' with grep you can find the one you seek..
ps aux | grep 'nemo-desktop' | awk '' and with awk you pick the PID(s)..
So if you want to kill nemo-desktop you could use this line:
kill -s9 $(ps aux | grep 'nemo-desktop' | awk '')
Or install htop , makes your live way easier!
Last edited by Koentje on Sat May 06, 2023 6:40 pm, edited 1 time in total. rene Level 20Post by rene » Sat May 06, 2023 6:40 pm
killall takes a name (and note that the "all" also immediately says why you need a specific PID for not all).
Midnight True Level 8
Posts: 2241 Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2022 3:23 am Location: Southern and Southwestern area of Mato Contact:
Post by Midnight True » Sat May 06, 2023 11:51 pm
PaulL wrote: ⤴ Sat May 06, 2023 12:23 pmMoreover, you can install this app to give you some idea about the basic of commands https://github.com/tldr-pages/tldr#readme
to install please try this in the terminal:
apt update && apt install tldrPost by axrusar » Sun May 07, 2023 5:20 am
Hi Paul.PaulL wrote: ⤴ Sat May 06, 2023 12:23 pm I don't see anything in the Linux Mint user manual here on this site that lists the commands available for use in the Terminal.
In my opinion, Linux Mint, is a friendly linux distribution targeted to the DESKTOP usage. There is really no need for documentation to use terminal commands, let alone "commands available for use in the terminal" as these are literally gazillions and there is no human in this world that could remember all of them and their variations. You can learn a bunch of super useful basic commands and take it from there as a starting point, but you will most likely always need to go back looking at documentation and your own guides with stuff you did previously. It is a great and fascinating / powerful / rewarding computer experience, just take it easy and be patient.
For example, I saw a tip on a Web site, that told me I can use kill to stop a process that's stuck, but to do that you need the process ID, and the documentation for kill doesn't say how to find that. Should I just type in random commands to see if I can get a list of process ID's, or at least a hint from the help system about what command to look up? It would be a great help if there were something in writing that could be referred to.
Remember there are usually multiple ways to accomplish the same task in linux, this is part of its great flexibility.
In Mint it is very easy to look at the various available GUI system monitor tools listing the processes names along their PID number and other bits of information, stopping them, killing and so on.. You can do the same using the terminal using simple graphical tools like HTOP as previously suggested, or go hardcore chaining up and piping multiple commands as Koentje suggested. There are even more options, it just depends how you want or what you need to do and how.
I also find it confusing when the response from the system is to look up such-and-such a command, but following the instructions in the documentation that pops up results in a message saying that that command doesn't exist. If it doesn't exist, why is there documentation for it in the system?
Last tips here. Although the linux Mint documentation is a good starting point to get to know the features and many other options, you don't need to rely solely on its documentation to find how a specific command works in the terminal. For that you use the man command, which stands for "manual".
So for example:
man inxiwill show you the whole manual for the inxi command (that we use here in the forums all the time to get help), including usage examples, and all the options you need.
You can also use the --help switch after commands:
inxi --helpAnd if you are trying to do something from a tutorial somewhere and the command (program) is not installed in your system, you will get a message that the command is not installed and can be installed using sudo apt install commandName if it is available in the repositories for your system.
Looking at a database of commands makes no sense in my opinion as you wont have any idea of what you are looking for in the first place, it will be better if you use youtube tutorials series with step by step clear instructions and explanations so you will get the idea little by little, then you will get proficient enough to look for anything on your own, it is actually easier than it looks.
LearnlinuxTV with Jay, Or Chris Titus Have a ton of excellent tutorials very easy to follow.
Linux Mint Una Cinnamon 20.3 Kernel: 5.15.x | Quad Core I7 4.2Ghz | 24GB Ram | 1TB NVMe | Intel Graphics
Pjotr Level 24
Posts: 20828 Joined: Mon Mar 07, 2011 10:18 am Location: The Netherlands (Holland) 🇳🇱 🇮🇱 Contact: