unable to use the alias command
 

Hello world,

I am fairly new to linux and just learning how to use the terminal.

I am unable to use the {alias} command (ie: alias list = "ls -a -l -t" )
in fact when i use {whatis alias} i get the message : alias nothing appropriate

i tried {sudo apt-get install alias} but it didn't find anything.

any suggestions?

No spaces allowed around '=', but for a cmd like that you will need single quotes thus
HTH & Welcome to LQ :)

NB: if you type that interactively, it will only persist for the current terminal session.
For permanence, add that line to your .bashrc file (ie /home/<username>/.bashrc.
PS: the 'alias' cmd with no args will list all current aliases.

Note that leading '.' at the start of a filename means its hidden from normal ls cmd; you'll need the -a option to list it.

ty ty

well i know more about whats inside .bashrc and .bash_history now, but my alias still doesn't work

for example:

{alias Biglist = "ls -alt" } still wont work because my terminal does not acknowledge the command alias

also, where are the aliases saved?

As chrism01 said, no spaces between alias and first quote.

aka alias biglist='ls -alt'

not alias biglist = 'ls -alt'

Alias's are saved in your bash environment until you log out, unless you make them permanent as pointed out earlier.

Like I said NO spaces ....
The 'alias' cmd is a built in for the bash shell.
Which shell are you using
NB: *nix is case sensitive for cmds, args filename , options etc..... so type it exactly like that.

Also, please use code tags as specified here https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...do=bbcode#code

i see

thanks brethren i figured it all out

glad to hear that.
Please mark the thread solved if your issue is solved. Also please tell us a few words about the solution you found.

yes,

for all nooblets:

the simple way i found for using aliases is to permanently add them into the terminal using

{gedit .bashrc} then type in any alias you want and restart the terminal to take effect

alias is part of bash, the package is bash, the executable is bash.

$ help alias

$ alias -p

$ unalias ls

$ alias ls='ls --color=auto'

alias is likely common among many shells, but it's part of the shell(s).