Using programs and commands that do not have a graphical user interface (GUI) but are rather controlled by typing text commands into a terminal program, or shell.
9
votes
4answers
3k views
Changing a file or folder icon using the Terminal
How can I change or set the icon for a file or folder, in the terminal, do I need to use a scripting language?
15
votes
5answers
15k views
How to always show menubar with fullscreen apps?
Does anyone know if it is possible to keep the menubar in Mac OS Lion visible for fullscreen apps instead of hidden until hovered over with a mouse or trackpad?
I imagine there's some Terminal ...
5
votes
4answers
3k views
How do I take a steathy picture with my iSight camera from the command line?
Is there a command line utility that allows me to take a picture from the built in camera? Something like screencapture allows for, well, screen captures.
The reasoning for a command line tool is I ...
4
votes
4answers
1k views
Monitor a folder for changes, and run a command when a change is detected
Is there a simple way to automatically run a (Terminal) command every time a file is changed in a specific folder?
This should be possible via the command line, or a system built-in application, no ...
2
votes
2answers
1k views
How to change tap to click using “defaults write” from command line?
I want to change the trackpad tap-to-click property from the command line. Graphically, I can do it by clicking System Preferences -> Trackpad -> Tap to Click. How can I do it from the command line?
...
2
votes
2answers
268 views
How do I set the creation time of a file?
I have a script that converts a file to another format, and I want the resulting file to have the same timestamps as the original, including the creation time (as shown by ls -lU).
I can use touch to ...
10
votes
2answers
416 views
cd to a directory just by typing its name?
For example if a directory 'blob' exists, I just type 'blob[return]' and the system cds into the blob directory for me.
In Linux (Ubuntu) I can use shopt -s autocd and I add it to my .bashrc file, ...
8
votes
4answers
1k views
How do I speed up new Terminal tab loading time?
How can i speed up the terminal startup in Lion?
I'm not referring to the startup of the Terminal application, but to the startup terminal windows, like when i open a new tab.
I don't have anything ...
9
votes
3answers
1k views
How can I force command-line arguments to a program shortcut in the dock?
I have Chrome installed in Applications, and a shortcut to it in the Dock.
How can I achieve to force some command-line arguments to each start-up of this app?
Let me be clearer, in the Terminal, I ...
7
votes
3answers
1k views
Can Finder and the “open” command treat files with .sh or other typical extensions just like .command files?
I am looking for a way to inject some more extensions into the OS X launch services database systematically so that when clicked, they execute in the terminal app just like .command files do by ...
5
votes
1answer
841 views
Why is a command line change to ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.LaunchServices.plist not effective immediately?
When the Info window of Finder is used to associate files of a particular type with an application:
the preference is effective immediately.
When Terminal is used to make a comparable addition ...
3
votes
2answers
2k views
How to change the creation (st_birthtime) date/time of a file in Lion?
touch(1) can only change modification and access times, but has no options for creation time. This does not work, at least not on Lion.
So how do I change the creation time, also referred to as ...
6
votes
2answers
2k views
How does 'stuck' (in results of 'top') relate to 'not responding' (in Activity Monitor), 'spin' or 'hang'?
In results of top commands, I sometimes see stuck.
Apple's top(1) OS X Manual Page does not explain this use of the word.
How, if it all, does stuck relate to the following?
not responding – ...
4
votes
2answers
2k views
How to start OS X applications from the command line with optional arguments?
I am looking for an easy way to start different GUI OS X applications from the command line and with different parameters.
If possible I would like to add them to the system PATH in order to call ...
4
votes
0answers
153 views
“Open with” in Finder.app gives duplicate entries [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How to omit apps from external drives in “Open With” menu?
in finder's open with menu are a lot of dups. I am running latest OX X and patches.
I googled and found ...
4
votes
2answers
93 views
Can command-line commands be made insensitive to order of filenames and options?
I'm new to Mac usage. It seems that most commands trip over options given after the file names. In linux, which I've used for years, it doesn't matter. On Apple, it does. Is there some setting ...
3
votes
3answers
1k views
.tar files on OS X Lion
How am I supposed to deal with .tar files with OS X Lion? I'm trying to install Ruby Version Manager, but Lion is throwing a fit about not being able to expand the tar file. This isn't the first time ...
2
votes
3answers
4k views
Use curl to download images from website using wildcard?
Is there a way to use curl to download non-sequential images with a wildcard? I want to download all the panoramas I upload to my account at 360 Panorama to a local folder so I don't have to do this ...
2
votes
1answer
188 views
How can I run a shell command at login time without showing a Dock entry? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How to run something automatically when the system boots or a use logs on?
I need to automatically run a command when I log in but I don't want to add an item to the ...
18
votes
7answers
30k views
Why doesn't .bashrc run automatically?
I put some alias commands in my .bashrc file, so that they might be loaded everytime I open a new Terminal window. Yet this doesn't happen.
I have to select run script: in the ...
20
votes
5answers
4k views
How to move files to trash from command line?
I do a lot of terminal work, and today had the experience of typing
rm fileInQuestion.txt
Before finding out that I did actually need fileInQuestion.txt. If I'd deleted in the GUI then I would have ...
14
votes
8answers
9k views
Password dialog appears when SSH private key permissions are set to 0600
I installed my SSH private key in ~/.ssh/id_rsa and set its permissions to 0600. When I connect to an SSH server which uses my private key in Terminal.app via ssh, a dialog pops up and asks me to ...
9
votes
3answers
338 views
What is the “+” mark at the end of file description?
When I execute 'ls -al~', I see + marks, and it prevents me from moving/deleting files.
drwxr-xr-x+ 5 prosseek admin 170 Oct 5 03:43 Desktop
drwxr-xr-x+ 17 prosseek admin 578 Sep 25 ...
8
votes
1answer
2k views
Why does it appear that I apparently “do not have access to Command Line Tools” in ML?
I just upgraded to Mountain Lion, and now gcc, make, g++, etc. are not found when trying to launch them in Terminal.
So I went to Xcode Preferences, Downloads, and clicked "Install" next to Command ...
8
votes
2answers
696 views
Can user accounts be managed via the command line?
Is there any way to add, remove, or modify user accounts via the command line? I'm not talking about an account for a system process or daemon, I mean is there any way to add a user account, change, ...
5
votes
1answer
2k views
How to control AirPort wireless radio from the command line?
I want to know how to control (specifically turn off) the networking (specifically AirPort - I want to turn off the radio) from the command line (specifically from bash in Terminal.app, being run by ...
4
votes
3answers
627 views
How do I delete a locked, invisible file in the Trash?
On an external disk (that contains a clone), the /.Trashes/501/Users/myusername/Desktop folder contains (within some subfolders) a locked invisible file that I cannot delete. The whole folder starting ...
3
votes
3answers
772 views
How to list all available .plist keys on a certain domain application by defaults command?
I want to know all keys (property list) which available on certain domain application, as example i could list available key for com.apple.dock by entering this command:
$ defaults read ...
8
votes
3answers
484 views
Copying files to the clipboard using applescript
Often I find myself at the command line wanting to copy files to the clipboard, so that I can paste them as attachments in Mail. If I have an image file, image1.png, I can accomplish this with
...
5
votes
3answers
637 views
Updating modifier key mappings through defaults command tool
I am trying to automate the inital setup of my macbook, that includes installing software and changing OS X configuration to my needs.
I have tried to update the modifier keys with defaults, the ...
4
votes
2answers
420 views
Is there a better way to shutdown/restart OSX?
Whenever I want to shutdown/restart OSX I click on the menu, select shutdown, and then click the box for not saving the session, and then click OK. Then there's always at least one program that ...
2
votes
3answers
657 views
How does Mountain Lion set the default text editor for the “open -t” terminal command?
OSX seem to offer open -t command line shortcut to open arbitrary files in the system default text editor.
Where is this default text editor set?
Can I change it from the command line (if possible) ...
2
votes
3answers
414 views
Editing iPhoto-specific metadata
Perpetua:2011-01-16 ashley$ mdls IMAG0107.jpg
...
kMDItemComment = "Cat with is tongue out."
So, here's my question. xattr can be used to modify some ...
1
vote
2answers
236 views
Exclude files from “central metadata store”
I'm fairly familiar with the mdfind utility. I find it's very useful when I can't find a file or when I need to find a file with certain contents. The problem is that I need to exclude some files from ...
1
vote
2answers
130 views
Why does the Dock executable not yield any useful strings, unlike other OS X apps?
When I run the strings command on the executable file in most OS X apps (•.app/Contents/MacOS/•), I get a list of routine names, possible hidden preferences, etc. When I run the command on the Dock ...
1
vote
1answer
515 views
“readlink” gets the original path of a symlink; what's the equivalent for Mac aliases?
In the terminal, I can use readlink on a symlink and it prints the target path of the symlink. E.g.
ln -s original.txt symlink.txt
readlink symlink.txt # prints original.txt
How do I do this for ...
4
votes
2answers
1k views
What is the difference between .bash_profile and .bashrc?
To make an alias for the Terminal in OS X, you can either put the aliases in .bash_profile or .bashrc. What is the difference between the two and why would I choose to put aliases in one and not the ...
0
votes
2answers
1k views
Setting a custom log
I have to get all the chromium and firefox info logs out of /var/log/system.log and into a nice quiet /var/log/{chromium,firefox}.log.
However I can neither recall or find how to set that in ...
-2
votes
1answer
285 views
Running *ix Commandline tools in Macbook Air? VNC? Virtual-machine? Usable or too slow? [closed]
I haven't used OS X since an awful experience with its commandline tools and CD Xcode about 2009, that time getting rid of all Apple stuff but coming back after iPhone/iPad/FaceTime/iCloud/etc. Now I ...
