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I hate typing long pathnames when uploading files. Isn there a better way?

April 26, 2017files hate pathnames Typing

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I hate typing long pathnames when uploading files. Isn there a better way?

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• This being Unix, there are several better ways. My favorite is the symlink (also called soft link or symbolic link). • You probably know that the Unix filesystem is a hierarchical tree structure. A symlink is a special structure that lets you jump across the tree from one file or directory to another. You can install a symlink almost anywhere, you only have to do it once, and it works with telnet, FTP, and every other service because it works at the operating system level. • Suppose your real Web directory is located at: /usr/local/etc/httpd/htdocs/depts/accc/stuff but when you log in (via SSH, telnet, or FTP) you’d rather just type: cd stuff to get to it rather than the whole long path. Just set the symlink: ln -s /usr/local/etc/httpd/htdocs/depts/accc/stuff ~/stuff • That’s it! The files haven’t moved, but it will appear like they are only one subdirectory deep in your personal file system. (The “~” stands for your home directory in Unix.