In my very first coding class, we were taught how to use the terminal to write, compile, and run all of our code. At the time, it felt unnecessary. Why bother with something that looks so old and clunky? But when I started my first real software job, I realized that terminal is everywhere. I was using it all day, every day. It’s one of the most fundamental tools in coding because in the terminal, you have everything you need to move faster, solve problems quicker, and actually understand what’s happening behind the scenes.

Throughout the years, I realized that if you want to get serious at coding, you need to learn how to use the terminal. In this video, I’ll show you the essential terminal commands that I used every day throughout my software development career. These commands are commands that you can start using to code better today.

By walking through navigation, file management, editing code, compiling, and running programs, you’ll gain foundational skills that will boost your confidence and efficiency as a coder. Whether you’re a beginner or someone who’s struggled with using development environments, this terminal guide will simplify your workflow and help you truly understand what’s going on under the hood.

In this video, you’ll learn:
🖥️ How to navigate your file system efficiently using terminal commands like ls, cd, and pwd.
✍️ How to create, edit, move, and delete files and directories directly in terminal with commands like mkdir, rm, mv, and using the vi editor.
⚙️ How to compile and run C code using the GCC compiler from the terminal, bypassing the need for an IDE.

Thank you for watching, and happy coding! 💻
-Henrik