| Red Hat Linux 6.2: The Official Red Hat Linux Getting Started Guide | ||
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| Prev | Chapter 15. Q & A: Quick Answers to Common Questions | Next |
Whenever I type ls I can barely see the output of the directory because it scrolls by too quickly. How can I actually read the output?
You can prevent the output of ls from scrolling by too quickly by piping the output to a pager, such as less or more. The results are akin to the DOS command dir somedirectory /p, because you'll see the output one screen, or "page" at at time.
To read the output of /etc with less, for example, at the shell prompt, type:
ls -al /etc | less
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To move forward a screen, press Space; to move back a screen, press the B key; to quit, press Q.
You can achieve the same results with more, another pager.
You can also print the directory by piping the output to a printer in the same way that you piped the output to your screen. Assuming you've configured a printer, to pipe the output type:
ls -al /etc | lpr |