Document Conventions

Linux commands (and other operating system commands, when used) are represented this way. This style should indicate to you that you can type the word or phrase on the command line and press [Enter] to invoke a command. Sometimes a command contains words that would be displayed in a different style on their own (such as filenames). In these cases, they are considered to be part of the command, so the entire phrase will be displayed as a command. For example:

Use the cat testfile command to view the contents of a file, named testfile, in the current working directory.

Filenames, directory names, paths, and RPM package names are represented this way. This style should indicate that a particular file or directory exists by that name on your Red Hat Linux system. Examples:

The .bashrc file in your home directory contains bash shell definitions and aliases for your own use.

The /etc/fstab file contains information about different system devices and filesystems.

Install the webalizer RPM if you want to use a Web server log file analysis program.

This style should indicate to you that the program named is an end-user application (as opposed to system software). For example:

Use Netscape Navigator to browse the Web.

A key on the keyboard is shown in this style. For example:

To use [Tab] completion, type in a character and then press the [Tab] key. Your terminal will display the list of files in the directory that start with that letter.

A combination of keystrokes is represented in this way. For example:

The [Ctrl]-[Alt]-[Backspace] key combination will exit your graphical session and return you to the graphical login screen or the console.

A title, word, or phrase found on a GUI interface screen or window will be shown in this style. When you see text shown in this style, it is being used to identify a particular GUI screen or an element on a GUI screen (such as text associated with a checkbox or field). Example:

Select the Require Password checkbox if you would like your screensaver to require a password before stopping.

When you see a word in this style, it indicates that the word is the top level of a pulldown menu. If you click on the word on the GUI screen, the rest of the menu should appear. For example:

Under Settings on a GNOME terminal, you will see the following menu items: Preferences, Reset Terminal, Reset and Clear, and Color selector.

If you need to type in a sequence of commands from a GUI menu, they will be shown like the following example:

Click on Programs=>Applications=>Emacs to start the Emacs text editor.

This style indicates that the text will be found on a clickable button on a GUI screen. For example:

Click on the Back button to return to the webpage you last viewed.

When you see text in this style, it indicates text displayed by the computer on the command line. You will see responses to commands you typed in, error messages, and interactive prompts for your input during scripts or programs shown this way. For example:

Use the ls command to display the contents of a directory:

$ ls
Desktop                axhome           logs          paulwesterberg.gif
Mail                   backupfiles      mail          reports

The output returned in response to the command (in this case, the contents of the directory) is shown in this style.

A prompt, which is a computer's way of signifying that it is ready for you to input something, will be shown in this style. Examples:

$

#

[stephen@maturin stephen]$

leopard login:

Text that the user has to type, either on the command line, or into a text box on a GUI screen, is displayed in this style. In the following example, text is displayed in this style:

To boot your system into the text based installation program, you will need to type in the text command at the boot: prompt.