Starting Applications
I installed an application I downloaded from the Internet,
and everything seemed to go fine, but I still get "command not found"
when I type its name. I think I have the right name, so why will it
not start?
If you are trying to start an application from the shell prompt
and it is not working, try typing out the full directory path before the
name of the application's executable (such as
/usr/local/bin/my-executable).
For example, imagine that you have downloaded the
setiathome client application and want to try it
out. You follow the directions for installing the software, which
creates a subdirectory in your home directory called
seti/. Now, start the application using the full
path to the executable file as shown below:
/home/joe/seti/setiathome |
The reason you may need to use the full pathnames in order to
start an application is because the executable wasn't placed in a
directory where your user shell environment knew it could be found
(such as /usr/local/bin).
You can customize your settings so that you won't be required to
use the type the full path to the application each time. To do this,
you will have to edit your PATH environment variable.
Editing Your PATH
If you frequently start programs that are not located in a
directory that your user shell has been configured to search, you will
have to edit your user shell configuration file to add the directory
containing the executable you wish to run. You can do this by adding
the directory to your PATH environment variable.
 | Caution |
|---|
| | These instructions are intended only for
user accounts. Avoid modifying files such as the root user's
.bash_profile, because of the potential
security risks. |
Start a text editor, such as pico, at a
shell prompt. You can open the file called
.bash_profile by typing the following:
You will see a PATH statement, similar to the one shown
below.
PATH=$PATH:$HOME/bin:/usr/local/bin: |
To the end of this statement, add ./ as shown
below:
PATH=$PATH:$HOME/bin:/usr/local/bin/:$HOME/seti: |
Now, type
[Ctrl]-[x]; you
will be asked whether you want to save "the modified buffer" (that's
what Pico calls an updated file); type
[y] for "yes." Next, you will see the name the file
will be saved as; press the [Enter] key.
You can then make the changes to
.bash_profile take effect immediately by typing the
following command:
By doing the above, you do not have to manually add
./ to the beginning of the executable to start an
application located in the directory you've added to your
PATH.
