UUssiinngg CCOOHHEERREENNTT -- Overview

For an ordinary  user -- that is, one who  neither administers the COHERENT
system nor writes programs for it -- using COHERENT mainly involves issuing
commands to  the COHERENT system.   The Lexicon entry  ccoommmmaannddss names every
command that  comes with the COHERENT system.  The  commands are grouped by
function.  You should look carefully at  the shell commands -- that is, the
commands that work closely with the shell to help you control the execution
of other  commands.  What other groups  you study will depend  on just what
you want to do with your COHERENT system.

Pay particular  attention to the Lexicon entries for  the commands sshh, kksshh,
and vvsshh. These introduce the _s_h_e_l_l_s -- that is, the programs with which you
can issue  commands to COHERENT.   Each has its  own syntax; kksshh  and sshh in
fact implement fully flown programming languages on their own.

vvsshh is  a visual shell, and  is especially useful to  beginners.  It uses a
visual  interface and  drop-down menus  to make  it easy  for you  to issue
commands without having to remember convoluted command syntax.  The Lexicon
entry for vvsshh describes it, and how you can customize it for yourself.

The Lexicon  entry for MMSS-DDOOSS compares COHERENT  with MS-DOS, and describes
how they differ.  It also gives a table of COHERENT equivalents to commonly
used MS-DOS  commands.  If you  are used to  using MS-DOS, you  should find
this useful.

The follow commands help you to find information about your system:

aapprrooppooss
     This command  searches the description  of each Lexicon  article for a
     keyword  that you  enter.  In  this  way, you  can quickly  find which
     articles discuss a given topic, such as ``printer'' or ``modem''.

hheellpp This  command displays  a brief  summary of  each Lexicon  article, by
     name.

mmaann  This command displays Lexicon articles on your screen, by name.

The following  three articles introduce files that are  stored in your home
directory.   By modifying  these  files, you  can  customize your  COHERENT
account to suit your tastes:

.kksshhrrcc
     Script  $HHOOMMEE/.kksshhrrcc configures  the Korn shell  to suit  your tastes.
     You will need to edit this file if you decide to use the Korn shell.

.llaassttllooggiinn
     File $HHOOMMEE/.llaassttllooggiinn records the date  and time you last logged in to
     your COHERENT system.

.pprrooffiillee
     Script $HHOOMMEE/.pprrooffiillee  holds commands that  are executed when  a given
     user logs in to your COHERENT system.

The following Lexicon  entries hold technical information that you probably
will find useful:

bblloocckk
     This defines the size of a ``block'' on a mass-storage device.

eennvviirroonnmmeennttaall vvaarriiaabblleess
     This article lists  the commonly used environmental variables that are
     described  in  the  Lexicon.   These  variables  control many  of  the
     behaviors of the COHERENT system.

mmaann  This summarizes  the mmaann  macros that  are used by  the text-formatter
     nnrrooffff.

mmss   This  summarizes the  mmss macros  that are  used by  the text-formatter
     nnrrooffff.

Finally, the following Lexicon entries define technical terms that are used
in this manual:

    ccaavveeaatt uuttiilliittoorr
    ddaaeemmoonn
    ddiirreeccttoorryy
    ffiillee
    ffiilltteerr
    ii-nnooddee
    nnaammeedd ppiippee
    ppiippee
    pprroocceessss
    rroooott
    ssttiicckkyy bbiitt
    ssuuppeerruusseerr
    wwiillddccaarrddss

AAddmmiinniisstteerriinngg CCOOHHEERREENNTT, CCOOHHEERREENNTT, PPrrooggrraammmmiinngg CCOOHHEERREENNTT
