Damn. It really would save me time to just learn Unix. And to remember about case sensitivity. And calm down instead of deciding it doesn’t work.
3 thoughts on “getting stuck in stupid ways”
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I'm Jill Walker Rettberg, Co-Director of the Center for Digital Narrative at the University of Bergen, and Professor of Digital Culture. Blogging here since October 2000.
Eirik
* the following is played to the tune of “You’re in the Army now” *
Welcome to the incredibly frustrating, but – at the end of the day – rewarding world of *nix! For most daily users of OS X in terminal mode, Linux, FreeBSD or whatever, the wisest strategy is probably not to set the goals too high (“learning Unix” surely is one such goal?), and rather aim for knowing just the things you need to get your work done.
Regardless of the complexity, there is something to be said for an OS which has been in development for decades. For instance, I’ve found that there’s _always_ an obscure (or blindingly obvious) Unix command which will solve your specific problem. And I’ve learnt from bitter experience that it pays to write down exactly what you did, as you will surely have forgotten it the next time you need it. 🙂
Jill
That’s probably my main problem – I do things too rarely. I thought I could install MoveableType in my sleep but had forgotten STUPID little things (like I can’t ssh that server not because I’ve forgotten the password or have the wrong command but because the admin won’t allow ANYONE to ssh it, argh) and OH it’s so annoying! Actually I suppose that’s not about me not knowing Unix but about me not being in charge of the server, isn’t it…
Still, it’s (almost) working now 🙂 And next time I’ll remember!
“Learn Unix” is too high a goal? Oh dear…
Eirik
Well, what can I say: “Linux in a nutshell” (of the usual high O’Reilly-standard, thus highly recommended) is a _thick_ book (928 pages in the fourth edition). I shudder at the thought of how much is outside the nutshell. 😉