this post was submitted on 03 Jan 2025
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Linux

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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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Which Linux command or utility is simple, powerful, and surprisingly unknown to many people or used less often?

This could be a command or a piece of software or an application.

For example I'm surprised to find that many people are unaware of Caddy, a very simple web server that can make setting up a reverse proxy incredibly easy.

Another example is fzf. Many people overlook this, a fast command-line fuzzy finder. It’s versatile for searching files, directories, or even shell history with minimal effort.

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[–] markstos@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

For some cases I use “|| true”.

The idiom accepts that the preceding command might fail, and that’s OK.

For example, a script where mkdir creates a directory that might already exist.

[–] kablammy@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 days ago (1 children)

mkdir -p will not complain if the dir exists

[–] markstos@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Right, it was an example of a pattern. In that case, -p could be used.

[–] kablammy@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago

I figured as much. Just wanted to show another option.