Helping Hand Questions for 101-500

The i and a commands are two of the most commonly used commands in the vi editor to enter the insert mode. The insert mode allows the user to insert text into the file. The difference between the i and a commands is that the i command inserts text before the current cursor position, while the a command inserts text after the cursor position. For example, if the cursor is on the letter “e” in the word “editor”, then pressing i will allow the user to insert text before the “e”, while pressing a will allow the user to insert text after the “e”. The user can exit the insert mode by pressing the Esc key, which will return to the command mode. References:

• Basic vi commands (cheat sheet)
• VI Editor with Commands in Linux/Unix Tutorial
• How to use Vi editor in Linux (with examples)

A hard link is a directory entry that refers to the same inode as another file. An inode is a data structure that stores the metadata and the location of the data blocks of a file. A hard link allows multiple names to refer to the same file content, as long as they are on the same filesystem. However, if the source and the target of the hard link are on different filesystems, the ln command will return an error, because the inode numbers are not consistent across different filesystems. Therefore, the ln command cannot create a hard link that crosses filesystem boundaries. The other options are either incorrect or not applicable. The source file being hidden, read-only, a shell script, or not owned by the user does not prevent the creation of a hard link, as long as the user has the permission to write to the target directory and the source and the target are on the same filesystem. References:

• LPIC-1 Exam 101 Objectives, Topic 103: GNU and Unix Commands, 103.3 Perform basic file management
• LPIC-1 Linux Administrator 101-500 Exam FAQ, LPIC-1 Exam 101 Objectives, GNU and Unix Commands (Total Weight: 25)

The mkdir command is used in a Linux environment to create a new directory. The mkdir command takes one or more arguments that specify the name and path of the directory to be created. For example, mkdir foo will create a directory named foo in the current working directory, while mkdir /home/bar will create a directory named bar in the /home directory. The mkdir command can also create multiple directories at once by using the -p option, which creates any missing parent directories along the path. For example, mkdir -p /tmp/a/b/c will create the directories /tmp, /tmp/a, /tmp/a/b and /tmp/a/b/c if they do not exist already. References:

• LPIC-1 Exam 101 Objectives, Topic 103: GNU and Unix Commands, 103.3 Perform basic file management
• LPIC-1 Linux Administrator 101-500 Exam FAQ, LPIC-1 Exam 101 Objectives, GNU and Unix Commands (Total Weight: 25)

The command that will copy the current line into the vi buffer is yy. The yy command is a shorthand for yank yank, which means to yank (copy) the current line. The vi buffer is a temporary storage area where thecopied text is stored until it is pasted somewhere else. The yy command can also be preceded by a number to indicate how many lines to copy. For example, the command 3yy will copy the current line and the next two lines into the buffer.

The other commands are incorrect for the following reasons:

• A. c: This command is a shorthand for change, which means to delete the text specified by the following motion and enter insert mode. For example, the command cw will delete the current word and allow the user to type a new one.
• B. cc: This command is a shorthand for change change, which means to delete the current line and enter insert mode. This command is similar to dd followed by i, but it is faster and more convenient.
• C. 1c: This command is not valid, as it is missing a motion after the change command. The motion specifies what text to delete and replace. For example, the command 1cw will delete one word and enter insert mode.
• E. 1y: This command is also not valid, as it is missing a motion after the yank command. The motion specifies what text to copy into the buffer. For example, the command 1yw will copy one word into the buffer.

References:

• [LPI Exam 101 Detailed Objectives], Topic 103: GNU and Unix Commands, Objective 103.8: Perform basic file editing operations using vi, Weight: 3, Key Knowledge Areas: Navigate a document using vi.
• Vi Cheat Sheet, Topic: Basic vi commands.