Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 2 1
Th
e Quick Linux Glossary
Term/Concept
Deinition
Bash
he most popular
shell
choice, used in the majority of Linux distributions.
Bootloader
Software responsible for loading the Linux kernel. he most common is GRUB.
Console
A version of the terminal which is always available, and the irst thing you see
on the Pi.
Desktop
environment
Software to make the GUI look pretty. GNOME and KDE are popular desktop
environments.
Directory
he Linux term for what Windows calls
folders
, where iles are stored.
Distribution
A particular version of Linux. Fedora Remix, Arch and Debian are distributions.
Executable
A ile that can be run as a program. Linux iles must be marked executable in
order to run.
EXT2/3/4
he EXTended ile system, the most common format used in Linux.
File system
he way a hard drive or other storage device is formatted so it's ready for ile
storage.
GNOME
One of the most common Linux desktop environments around.
GNU
A free software project, which provides many of the tools used in Linux
distributions.
GRUB
he GRand Uniied Bootloader, created by GNU and used to load the Linux
kernel.
GUI
A graphical user interface, in which the user operates the computer via a mouse
or touch.
KDE
Another extremely popular Linux desktop environment.
Linux
Properly, the kernel used by GNU/Linux. Popularly, an open-source operating
system.
Live CD
A Linux distribution provided as a CD or DVD, which doesn't require installation.
Package
A collection of iles required to run an application, typically handled by the
package manager.
Package manager
A tool for keeping track of, and installing new, software.
Partition
A section of a hard drive which is ready to have a ile system applied to it for
storage.
Root
he main user account in Linux, equivalent to the Windows
administrator
account.
Shell
A text-based command prompt, loaded in a terminal.
sudo
A program that allows restricted users to run a command as the
root
user.
Superuser
See
Root
.
Terminal
A text-based command prompt in which the user interacts with a
shell
program.
X11
he X Window system, a package that provides a graphical user interface (GUI).
