Conquer the command line (3rd ed.)

Sometimes only words will do. Graphical user interfaces (GUIs) were a great advance, creating an easy route into computers for non-technical users. But for complex tasks, GUIs can block off choices and require a circuitous route even for simple tasks. Enter the command line: the blinking cursor many thought had faded away in the 1990s. For getting instructions from user to computer — in a clear, quick, and unambiguous form — nothing beats the command line. It never disappeared on UNIX and Linux