pwd

From Homestar Runner Wiki

pwd is the POSIX (a standard for Unix-like systems) command for "print working directory." This is for command line interfaces, where file browsing is the core component of most shells. Thus, this command means "tell me what folder I'm in" in plain English. It has been used in most of Videlectrix's text adventures, as a secret command to show your location in a POSIX directory style.

Like more consumer-centric operating systems, most Unix-like systems use user accounts, and give them their own personal directory. This folder is called the "home directory" on such systems, and POSIX uses ~ (a tilde) as a shorthand to use when inputting a directory. A username can follow this ~, pointing to said user's directory (for example, ~peasantsquest/Mountain Pass points to the "Mountain Pass" folder in the home directory of the user "peasantsquest"). However, in the real world, the ~ is primarily used by itself (that is, without a user name following it) to refer to the current user's home directory, as accessing another user's home directory is restricted or denied.

Appearances

• Thy Dungeonman II — ~Xdungeonman/DUNGEON/CELL
  • The X is the first letter of the name you give at the start of the game
• Peasant's Quest — ~peasantsquest/Mountain Pass
• Thy Dungeonman 3 — Wastes of time/Dumb Games/Dungeonman 3/Yon Dungeon

See Also

• Linux