On any reasonable unix, you should be able to simply type `man cmd` where `cmd` is the command you're looking to learn more about. You can try this with `man ma

On any reasonable unix, you should be able to simply type `man cmd` where `cmd` is the command you're looking to learn more about. You can try this with `man man` for instance. Learning how to operate a shell isn't very difficult, but to really become proficient takes some time. It's also important to make a difference between the shell and the operating system it runs on. Some utilities for instance, may have the same name but slightly different flags or modes of operation, which can throw you off. You'll learn these things along the way, and mostly it doesn't matter unless you find yourself having to deal with many different unix systems (such as developing general purpose shell scripts.) I'd certainly argue it's worth learning how to use a shell, if you find yourself having to drop in to one relatively often, or if you're just somewhat interested. There are plenty of resources online, but I'm partial to tldp's guides[1]. I couldn't say much about PowerShell, I know next to nothing about it. I also have the benefit of not having to touch Windows systems much, and when I do I usually drop into git bash or something similar anyway. I'd say the answer to that question might lie in what systems you usually work in, and which ones you want to work in. If you have little interest in unix based systems, then by all means go forth and Windows up, but otherwise I'd suggest learning more about unix shells and specifically: bash. Why bash? It may be the javascript of unix shells – there are certainly more (and less) capable shells out there – but it has the benefit of ubiquity. You can find bash pretty much anywhere. (And with git bash and the likes, even on Windows!) [1]: http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Bash-Prog-Intro-HOWTO.html http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Bash-Prog-Intro-HOWTO.html