this post was submitted on 19 Aug 2024
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ELI5?
Short answer: Windows doesn't let you name a file "con".
Long answer: Tom Scott video
NTFS in general has a bunch of ridiculous, archaic restrictions that a more modern-ish one like ext4 doesn't. Does NTFS still not allow you to use a question mark in your filename?
Name a file in Linux ~ and then delete it again.
rm \~?Well if you put it in like that it would give an error. But if you used the right slash you can kiss your home folder goodbye probably. Maybe rm ./~ would work
~ resolves to your home folder only if it's at the beginning of a path. /~ isn't the same as ~. Go ahead and test it with something other than rm if you don't believe me (this is the Internet, I could be lying).
Hey you're right, I tried it with rm because I'm a maniac.
in tab completion I trust...
Apparently not.
Bro you either know what the fuck is in that file, or you shouldn't be renaming it in the first place.
Unnamed(7)FinalFinalThisTimePlease?
the question mark is a wildcard, so is asterisk. slashes are used in paths. characters you can't use usually have implications for the OS. otherwise you can name your file pretty much anything.
Yeah, I think it's just funny comparing it with the usual situation on Linux, where there's even less restrictions. I believe you can actually put a newline in a file name, for example, though I'll need to check and come back later.
I'd need to rename a massive amount of files if I ever wanted to go back to Windows.
P.S. yup. Generally, just avoid
/,null, and you're good to go.If only there were a special path like, oh I don't know,
/devfor device handles.Small businesses like Microsoft don't have the funding to develop such an advanced system.
In Windows certain words are reserved for system use. When naming files and directories, you are unable to use these words. Con, being short for "console", is one of these words. Con is also the Spanish word for "with", so a Spanish speaking user could not, for example, have a directory called "Fotos con Jim".