[SOLVED] any linux-desktop equivalent to the "start" command?

dombrowsky · 12-28-2009, 01:17 PM

I recently moved back to an ubuntu desktop environment from a cygwin/windows desktop. The only real windows-y thing that I miss is the ability to type

Code:

cygstart .

to open up a windows explorer window from my CWD (for example, if I want to drag-drop a file into another application). The other very useful trick was the ability to type

Code:

cygstart foobar.pdf

and have the system open the PDF in whatever application the system has associated to open PDF files. Is there anything in the ubuntu desktop that has this feature? I've tried using the "nautilus" command, but that only opens a folder. I also don't think its designed to be used that way because it complains at length, like

Code:

(nautilus:18654): Eel-CRITICAL **: eel_preferences_get_boolean: assertion `preferences_is_initialized ()' failed
Initializing nautilus-gdu extension

** (nautilus:18654): WARNING **: No marshaller for signature of signal 'UploadFinished'

** (nautilus:18654): WARNING **: No marshaller for signature of signal 'DownloadFinished'

** (nautilus:18654): WARNING **: No marshaller for signature of signal 'ShareCreateError'
Nautilus-Share-Message: Called "net usershare info" but it failed: 'net usershare' returned error 255: net usershare: cannot open usershare directory /var/lib/samba/usershares. Error No such file or directory
Please ask your system administrator to enable user sharing.

Any suggestions?

vrmartin2 · 12-28-2009, 02:46 PM

You could try konqueror. Something like:

konqueror somefile.pdf > /dev/null 2>&1 &

konqueror somedir > /dev/null 2>&1 &

If you don't have it installed, Google for help.

ArfaSmif · 12-28-2009, 04:51 PM

It looks like you are using gnome desktop, so something like :-

gnome-open filename

will use the default gnome application.

dombrowsky · 01-15-2010, 08:42 AM

@ArfaSmif, thanks for the info. I knew there had to be a simple command to do it. I now have an equivalent script:

Code:

$ cat ~/bin/start
#!/bin/sh 

/usr/bin/gnome-open $* > /dev/null 2>&1

I don't like the fact that it hides errors, but gnome-open complains too much to keep them.

ArfaSmif · 01-16-2010, 12:54 AM

You might want to change the name of your script because on my F12 system "start" is a symbolic link to "initctl". I don't know if this is the same on Debian.