what is the difference between pwd and cd ?

what is the difference between pwd and cd ? I get the same folder when I tyoe command in MATLAB.

Answer 1

[Stephen23]

Actually pwd just calls cd internally, so there is no real difference.

However I would suggest using pwd: Changing directories is a very slow way to write code (it is much faster to pass relative/absolute paths to any functions that access files of any kind), so using pwd has the advantage that it stylistically make it clear "this does NOT change the directory, we just need the path...".

In other words, using pwd encourages better programming habits.

Some faster alternatives to cd / pwd:

• relative path names
• the '.' notation refers to the current directory.

More useful info here: http://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/matlab_env/specify-file-names.html

Answer 2

[Nina]

pwd stands for "Print Working Directory", while cd stands for "Change Directory". Use pwd to see what folder you are currently in and use cd to go to a different folder. For example use cd .. to go up one folder or cd Desktop/ to go to your desktop.

[Walter Roberson]

cd Desktop/

will attempt to switch directories to the directory named Desktop underneath the current directory.

For MacOS and Linux,

cd ~/Desktop

which change directories to your desktop

As far as I know, there is no Windows equivalent to the ~ shortcut.

[Walter Roberson]

if ispc()
    cd( fullfile(getenv('userprofile'), 'Desktop'))
else
    cd ~/Desktop
end

Answer 3

[Walter Roberson]

Both cd and pwd come from Unix.

Historically cd in Unix was used to change directories, and had no ability to return the name of the current directory. Historically cd in Unix with no parameters changed directories to the "home" directory.

Historically pwd in Unix was used to return the name of the current directory.

As implemented in MATLAB, cd is primarily used to change directories, and primarily returns the old directory, but cd with no parameters returns the current directory.

As implemented in MATLAB, pwd returns the current directory, with no option for changing directory.

Functionally, in MATLAB, you can use cd with no parameters interchangeably with pwd with no parameters. The reason pwd still exists is a convenience