Shell Tutorials

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    Get Directory Size from Shell

    My first goal when coding is usually to make it work and then clean up the code into a more maintainable format.  Many people prefer to keep code clean from start to finish but thinking "maintenance first" slows me down --- I like to GO GO GO!

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    Get Git Branches Checked Out on a Date

    I don't use any type of git UI -- I try to be hardcore and stick to the command line.  This makes git usage quicker but I also probably miss out on a lot of the functionality that would be nice to know.  The functionality is there, of course...

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    Recursively Delete Files from Command Line

    I'm one of those people who can't stand a messy laptop;  I don't keep around files I don't need and I refuse to install apps unless I absolutely need them.  Unfortunately Mac OS X and Windows generate files whenever they like, like .DS_Store and Thumbs.db.  Sure they serve their purpose...

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    Git Update Commit Message

    One of my faults as a professional developer is that my commit messages aren't always as descriptive as they could be.  Sometimes I even notice a spelling error in them.  Bleh -- that's not cool, man.  When I do catch that my last commit message isn't good...

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    CanIUse Command Line

    Every front-end developer should be well acquainted with CanIUse, the website that lets you view browser support for browser features.  When people criticize my blog posts for not detailing browser support for features within the post, I tell them to check CanIUse:  always up to date, unlike...

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    Follow Redirects with cURL

    I love playing around with cURL. There's something about loading websites via command line that makes me feel like some type of smug hacker, just like tweeting from command line does. I recently cURL'd the Google homepage and saw the following: I found it weird that Google...

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    Copy a Directory from Command Line

    Copying a directory for the sake of backup is something I do often, especially when I'm trying to figure out why something isn't working when I use an external library.  I'll copy the directory structure as a backup, mess around with the original source until I find a solution...

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    File Extension Change Shortcut

    Changing the extension of a file seems like something you would do often enough to know how to do it from command line.  One annoying part of moving a file is repeating the file name a second time when all I want to do is change the...

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    Get Image Dimensions from Command Line

    The command line is a gold mine if you come from the perspective of a UI lover.  Getting information from the shell instead of opening an app, finding a file or directory, etc...what a novel concept.  Opening different image files opens up different apps on my Mac...

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    Remove Audio From Video

    Sometimes I want to display live motion without the audio, since the audio is either bad quality or it's just extra load, which is especially important on mobile.  You could probably argue converting the video to GIF is more appropriate, but GIFs can be larger and more taxing on...