Chapter 2:
Getting to the Shell:

• In past: Linux console terminal where shell commands are entered
• Command line environment and how to 'reach it' ?
• Terminal emulation packages ?

Reaching the command line

• CLI = Command Line Interface ; alowed text inputs/outputs only, plus some rudimentary graphics
• Dumb Terminal = dumb text input/output environment; EG. A monitor and keyboard connected to Unix system vaia coummunication cable in the past days
• console = physical terminal
• shell = command line interpreter
• To enter shell commands, still need a text display to access the shell's CLI , problem now is getting to one? 'makes no sense!'
• "sometimes finding a way to get a CLI in a Linux distribution is not an easy task" page-23

Console Terminals

• Take linux system out of graphical desktop mode and place it in text mode; the text mode called the Linux Console
• The Linux console emulates the old days of a hard-wired "console terminal" and is a direct interface to the linux system;
• Linux creates something called Virtual Consoles when it starts
• A virtual console is a terminal session that runs in linux memory -https://www.computernetworkingnotes.com/linux-tutorials/linux-virtual-console-and-terminal-explained.html

console: physical device that emulates a terminal
terminal: a text mode only for writing commands

Graphical Terminals

• Alternative to using virtual console
• aka Terminal Emulation Package

Graphical terminal emulators can be thought as CLI terminials "in the GUI"

Virtual console terminals as CLI terminals "outside the GUI"

Accessing CLI via a Linux Console Terminal

Ctrl+Alt+ function key F1 through F7