CIS 90 Lab 2

Objectives

The purpose of this lab is to explore command usage with the shell and miscellaneous UNIX commands.

Forum

If you get stuck, have a question or want to share something you learned with this lab then use the CIS 90 Forum at http://simms-teach.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=9

Procedure

You must log on to the Opus server using your personal account acquired from turning in lab01. The following questions pertain collectively to the following unix commands:

banner bash bc cal clear date echo exit finger history id man passwd ps type uname whatis who

Print out a copy of this lab and use it to record the answers to the questions in the lab. You don't need to record the output of the commands.

The Shell

What shell are you currently using? What command did you use to determine this?

Use the following commands as arguments to the type command, to find out where each of the commands resides.

    cmd               argument
    type     man
    type     uname
    type     tryme
    type     echo
    type     type

Use the echo command to find the values of each of the following shell variables.

	echo $HOME
	echo $TERM
	echo $LOGNAME
	echo $PS1
	echo $SHELL
	echo $PATH

Set the TERM environment variable to "dumb", and execute the clear command. What does it do? Set TERM back to "vt100" or "ansi" What happens?
```
	dumb
	ansi
```
What happens when you enter the following commands? Why?
```
	DATE
	Date
	date
```
What results do you get from the command: who -g What program outputs this message?

How many arguments do each of the following command lines have?

	echo one    two         threefour
	echo "My TERM type is " $TERM
	echo one.two.three

What is the difference in output between the following two commands?

	$ echo red 'white
	> and blue'
and
	$ echo red white \
	> and blue
Note: the [enter] key is pressed immediately after the last character
of each line.

Use the shell metacharacter ";" to write out a one line command that will clear the screen, print out the date and the current month's calendar.
```
	$ ________________________________________
```
Commands
If you have not already done so, use the passwd command to change your password. Name three things you should never do with your password:
```
	1.____________________
	2.____________________
	3.____________________
```
Using the uname command what options would you use to display just the operating system, it's release numbers and the machine's network node name?
What is the difference in output between the following two commands:
```
	banner I am fine
	banner "I am fine" 
```
Use the finger command to find out what guest90's plan is.
(Use guest90 as an argument to the finger command.)
```
	guest90's plan:
```
What is your user id number?
Using online documentation
Issue a man bc command. Use q to quit.
What is the whatis command? Use the command with the argument, bc How does this compare to using the man command with -f option?
```
	man -f bc
```
Is tryme a UNIX command? How do you know?
Use the manual pages and the who command to find out the number of users logged on.
Run the command: man -k boot Use the manual pages to find out what the -k option does. What command is man -k equivalent to? Run the equivalent command and verify.
Run the command: info bash See if you can explore the hot links (marked with a *). Use the up and down arrows to select a link. Use Enter key to follow a link. Use L to go back to last page. Use Q to quit.
Now use your PC browser (outside of Opus) and google "linux bc command". If you find any interesting sites you can post them to the forum.
Here's a challenging task: Use the man command to discover how you can use the bc command to obtain the square root of 361. The bc command is an example of an interactive command, because you must enter the numbers to calculate from the keyboard while the program is running.

Now that you have finished this lab, you may submit your work using the following two commands:
history -a submit
When the command asks you which assignment to submit, respond with 2 followed by the enter key. Then answer the three questions that it asks of you.

CIS 90 Linux Lab Exercise

Lab 2: Using Commands

Fall 2008

Objectives

Forum

Procedure

The Shell

Commands

Using online documentation