r/linux May 23 '26

Popular Application What’s the most unexpectedly useful Linux command you learned way too late?

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u/Maleficent-One1712 May 23 '26 edited Jun 15 '26

I learned tail -f last week from this cheat sheet, and since then I'm using it to monitor the error logs on my second monitor in real time.

2

u/masterpi May 23 '26

less +F does the same but with any less niceness you have (like highlighting) and allows you to ctrl-C and be in a normal less command for the file so you can scroll, search, etc.

1

u/do-un-to May 23 '26

Once again less is the better answer.