Git & GitHub Real World Vademecum

Part I: Terminal Fundamentals

Before talking about Git, we must learn to talk to the computer. The graphical interface (mouse, folders) is the "tourist shop". The Terminal is the "engine room".

1. Navigation and Creation Commands

Here you will find the 6 fundamental commands. Don't memorize them; try to understand their purpose.

Action	macOS / Linux / Git Bash	Windows (PowerShell)	Concept
Where am I?	pwd	pwd	The GPS
What's here?	ls	ls or dir	The Eyes
Enter...	cd folder	cd folder	The Teleport
Go back	cd ..	cd ..	Reverse Gear
Create folder	mkdir name	mkdir name	The Builder
Clean	clear	cls or clear	The Clean Slate

Real World Scenarios

pwd (Print Working Directory) - The GPS

When to use it: As soon as you open the terminal. You never know if you are in the User folder, on the Desktop, or elsewhere. If you run a command in the wrong place, you can cause damage.

• Scenario: "I want to be sure I am in my project folder before deleting files."
• Example:

pwd

Output: /Users/username/Desktop/my-project Ok, I'm in the right place, I can proceed.

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ls (List) - The Eyes

When to use it: You want to see if the files you downloaded or created actually exist.

• Scenario: "I cloned the repo, but is the package.json file there or is it missing?"
• Example:

ls

Output: index.html style.css package.json README.md I see the file list: everything is ok.

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​​​​cd (Change Directory) - The Teleport

When to use it: To enter a specific folder. It's the equivalent of a double-click with the mouse.

• Scenario: You are on the Desktop and want to enter the work folder.
• Example:

cd work

Now the terminal cursor will show that you are inside work.

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cd .. - Reverse Gear

When to use it: You ended up too deep in a subfolder and want to go back up.

• Rule: The two dots .. mean "the parent folder" (the one above).
• Scenario: You are in project/src/components and want to go back to project/src.
• Example:

cd ..

I jump out of components and land in src.

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mkdir (Make Directory) - The Builder

When to use it: To start a new project from scratch.

• Scenario: You want to create a clean folder for your new portfolio site.
• Example:

mkdir portfolio-2026

The computer creates the folder, then you can enter it with cd portfolio-2026.

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clear / cls - The Clean Slate

When to use it: After running many commands, the screen is full of text, errors, and logs. You need mental order.

• Scenario: You just finished installing a library that printed 100 lines of text. You want to clean everything.
• Example:

clear

All text disappears. You have a clean screen ready to use.

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The Drag & Drop Trick

Typing paths by hand is slow and leads to typos (cd Desktop -> Error). Use this trick:

1. Type the command (e.g., cd).
2. Press Space (Fundamental!).
3. Grab the folder from Finder (Mac) or File Explorer (Windows) with the mouse.
4. Drag it into the black terminal window.
5. The computer will magically write the perfect path (e.g., /Users/username/Documents/Projects/App).
6. Press Enter.