Chapter 3: Bash Get Started

Bash Get Started day — the exact moment you stop being scared of the terminal and start becoming its boss! 😎

I’m going to walk you through how to actually begin using Bash right now, step-by-step, like we’re sitting side-by-side in Hyderabad at your laptop. No rush, lots of examples, copy-paste ready commands, and zero boring theory dumps.

This guide is for absolute beginners who have never written a Bash script before (or maybe typed only 2-3 commands in terminal). By the end, you’ll have run your first real script and understand the setup.

Step 1: Make Sure You Have Bash (99% chance you already do)

Open your terminal right now:

• Ubuntu / Linux Mint / Pop!_OS → press Ctrl + Alt + T
• macOS → Spotlight (Cmd + Space) → type “Terminal”
• Windows → one of these three (easiest first):
  1. Git Bash (if you installed Git for Windows)
  2. Windows Terminal + WSL Ubuntu (very recommended in 2026)
  3. PowerShell (but we’ll pretend it’s Bash — better install Git Bash or WSL)

Now type this and press Enter:

You should see something like:

If you see version 4.x or 5.x → perfect! You’re ready. If command not found → tell me your OS and we’ll fix it together.

Extra quick check (very useful forever):

→ usually shows /usr/bin/bash or /bin/bash

Step 2: Your First 5 Survival Commands (Practice these 10 times today!)

Before scripting, get comfortable typing:

1. Where am I?
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   pwd

2. What files are here? (detailed + hidden)
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   ls -la

3. Go to your home (safest place)
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   cd ~ # or just: cd

4. Make a playground folder
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   mkdir bash_get_started cd bash_get_started

5. Create an empty file
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   touch practice.txt ls

Do these now — feel how fast it becomes muscle memory!

Step 3: Choose Your Text Editor (pick one — don’t overthink)

You need something to write scripts. Options from easiest to powerful:

Recommendation for today → nano (super simple)

Step 4: Write & Run Your VERY FIRST Bash Script (Hello World style)

1. Make sure you’re in the playground folder:

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   cd ~/bash_get_started

2. Create the file:

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   nano first.sh

3. Copy-paste exactly this (very important — first line is magic):

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   #!/bin/bash   echo "====================================" echo "  Namaste from Hyderabad! 🚩       " echo "  Your first Bash script works!     " echo "===================================="   echo "" echo "Today is: $(date)" echo "You are logged in as: $(whoami)" echo "Current folder: $(pwd)" echo "" echo "You just ran your first script — proud of you! 🎉"

4. Save & exit nano:

   • Ctrl + O → Enter (save)
   • Ctrl + X (exit)

5. Make it executable (super important — otherwise Bash says “permission denied”):

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   chmod +x first.sh

   (You only do this once per script)

6. Run it! Two ways:

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   ./first.sh # or full path: bash first.sh

You should see beautiful output like:

Celebrate! 🥳 You wrote + executed code!

Step 5: Quick Upgrade – Make It Ask Your Name (Interactive!)

Edit the same file again:

Replace everything with this better version:

Save → chmod again if needed → run ./first.sh

Now it talks to you!

Step 6: Good Habits Checklist (Teacher’s Golden Rules)

Do these every time you make a new script:

• Always start with #!/bin/bash (shebang line — tells system “use Bash”)
• Use .sh extension (helps you recognize it)
• chmod +x filename.sh before first run
• Run with ./filename.sh (the ./ means “in current folder”)
• Put scripts in ~/bin later (advanced — auto-run from anywhere)
• Add comments with # so future-you understands

Bad example (don’t do):

Good example:

Step 7: Your 7-Day Get-Started Plan (Do this!)

Day 1 (today): Do all steps above + run the two scripts 5 times Day 2: Make a script that shows free disk space (df -h) + battery (if laptop) Day 3: Script that creates backup of ~/Documents folder Day 4: Add colors to echo (search “bash echo color”) Day 5-7: Try small tasks — rename files, count lines, etc.

Where to Go Next (free & best in 2026)

• Ryan’s Tutorials → https://ryanstutorials.net/bash-scripting-tutorial/ (very clear, step-by-step)
• freeCodeCamp Bash article → search “freecodecamp bash scripting tutorial”
• YouTube: “Learn Bash Scripting in 1 Hour” by NetworkChuck or freeCodeCamp
• Official: tldp.org Bash Beginners Guide (classic, free PDF)

Tell your teacher what happened when you ran ./first.sh — did it work? Any error? Or say next topic: “Explain variables in Bash” “Show me 5 useful small scripts” “How to add if-else” “Make script run every morning automatically”

You’re officially started now — no going back! Keep typing, keep breaking, keep fixing. All the best from your Hyderabad Bash guru! 🐧🇮🇳