Command Line Interface
The command line interface is a primitive (old) way to interact with the computer. Before Operating Systems (OS) became graphical you had to interact with the computer through the command line.
The command line is still used today because sometimes it allows you to get things done without using the OS (although 99% of the time the OS is better). Here you will learn how to open and use the command line interface to delete files that you created. Follow along and use the pictures to help guide you. (If you click on an image it will get bigger) |
This is what the command line looks like.
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Step #1
We are going to use Microsoft Word to create two documents with the same sentence but saved as different file types.
Open up Microsoft Word and write this simple sentence;
I will delete this file using the command line interface. Save the file by clicking File > Save As Name the file: Filetoerase Spell it exactly as I did with a capital F and no spaces. Save it to your desktop Save the file again File > Save As Under Save As Type choose Plain Text (see picture) Close the program and find the two files on your desktop. |
This is the icon for the Word Document
This is the icon for the Text Document
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Step #2
We are now going to move the files to your student folder.
Open your travel folder (on your desktop) drag the files into the folder.
Keep that window open but minimize it. |
Step #3
We are now going to use the command line interface to delete the files you just created.
Click Start > Programs > Accessories > Command Prompt
Type: DEL Filetoerase.DOC (there is a space between the L and the F) Hit Enter Type: DEL *.TXT (see note to know why you typed this). Hit Enter Go back to the user folder that you dragged the files into folder and see if the files have been deleted. |
Note: the "*" means any, so this command DEL *.TXT tells the computer to delete any (and all) files with the .TXT file type.
If you wanted to just delete one specific file you could type DEL Filename.TXT and it would find the file with that name. |