Shell Specifics

Prompt

The prompt provides information to the user and means the shell is waiting for a command. The prompt in a bash shell usually consists of a dollar ($) sign and may also contain other information, such as your username and your current directory, i.e., ~, which, as you will learn shortly, is short for your home directory. We will mostly refer to the prompt as just $, i.e.,

$

To execute a command, type it into the prompt and press Enter. When the command completes you be returned to the prompt.