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How do I get help on a Unix system?

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One of the best ways to get information on a Unix command, function or program is through use of the man command. The man command provides in depth information about the target command. Prior to using the man command you will have to SSH into the system. At the system prompt enter

man command

where command is replaced by the name of the command.

If you don't know the name of the Unix command you can use the -k option with the man command. This allows you to search for a word that would be used in the description of the command.

man -k keyword

If wanted to compile a java program but didn't know the name of the compiler you could enter

man -k java

a partial listing of results would appear as

java            java (1)       - Java interpreter
javac        javac (1)       - Java compiler
javadoc    javadoc (1) - Java API Documentation Generator
javah        javah (1)       - C header and stub file generator
javakey    javakey (1)    - Java security tool

For additional information concerning the man command, at the system prompt enter

man man

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