Using This Course on an Android Tablet

Time: ~30 minutes setup
Goal: Use your Android tablet as a learning environment using Termux (a full Linux terminal) and Acode (a touch-friendly code editor).

Why Android?

You do not need a Mac or Windows PC to follow this course. A modern Android tablet running Termux gives you a real Bash shell with git, node, npm, and every other tool used in Lessons 1–4. The experience is nearly identical to a desktop terminal.

What you need Minimum spec
Android tablet or phone Android 7.0 (Nougat) or newer
Storage ~500 MB free (for Termux + packages)
Keyboard On-screen keyboard works; a Bluetooth keyboard is highly recommended

How Termux Works

Termux is not an emulator — it runs a real Linux environment directly on Android’s Linux kernel. Here’s a simplified view of the architecture:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                 Android Device                  │
│                                                 │
│  ┌──────────────────────┐  ┌─────────────────┐  │
│  │     Termux App       │  │    Acode App    │  │
│  │                      │  │   (code editor) │  │
│  │  ┌────────────────┐  │  └────────┬────────┘  │
│  │  │  Bash Shell    │  │           │           │
│  │  │  (your prompt) │  │           │           │
│  │  └───────┬────────┘  │           │           │
│  │          │           │           │           │
│  │  ┌───────▼────────┐  │  ┌────────▼────────┐  │
│  │  │ pkg Packages   │  │  │ ~/storage/      │  │
│  │  │ git, node, npm │  │  │ shared/         │  │
│  │  │ nano, python   │  │  │ (shared files)  │  │
│  │  └───────┬────────┘  │  └────────┬────────┘  │
│  │          │           │           │           │
│  │  ┌───────▼───────────┼───────────▼────────┐  │
│  │  │ Termux Home Dir: ~/                    │  │
│  │  │ /data/data/com.termux/files/home       │  │
│  │  └────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
│  └──────────────────────┘                       │
│                                                 │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐    │
│  │   Android Linux Kernel                  │    │
│  │   (Termux runs natively — no emulation) │    │
│  └─────────────────────────────────────────┘    │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Key points:

  • Termux provides a self-contained Linux file system under /data/data/com.termux/files/. Packages installed with pkg live here.
  • Acode is a separate Android app. It accesses your project files through Android’s shared storage (accessed as ~/storage/shared/ in Termux, or via the system file picker in Acode), which Termux creates via termux-setup-storage.
  • Both apps talk to the same underlying Linux kernel — there’s no virtual machine or performance penalty.

Part 1 — Install Termux

⚠️ Do NOT install Termux from the Google Play Store. The Play Store version is outdated and no longer maintained. Use F-Droid instead.

Step 1 — Install F-Droid

F-Droid is a free, open-source app store that carries the current Termux build.

  1. Open your browser and go to f-droid.org.
  2. Tap Download F-Droid to download the .apk.
  3. When the download finishes, tap the file and follow the prompts to install it.
    • If asked, enable “Install unknown apps” for your browser — this is safe for F-Droid.
  4. Open F-Droid and let it refresh the repository index (may take a minute).

Step 2 — Install Termux from F-Droid

  1. In F-Droid, tap the search icon and search for Termux.
  2. Tap the Termux result (by Fredrik Fornwall) and tap Install.
  3. Once installed, open Termux — you’ll see a black terminal with a $ prompt.
Welcome to Termux!

Community forum: https://termux.com/community
Gitter chat:     https://gitter.im/termux/termux
IRC channel:     #termux on libera.chat

Working subscriptions can be found at https://termux.com/donate.html

$ _

Part 2 — Set Up Termux

Run these commands in Termux to update and install the tools needed for this course.

Understanding pkg — Termux’s package manager

On a regular Linux desktop you’d use apt (Debian/Ubuntu) or dnf (Fedora) to install software. Termux ships its own package manager called pkg.

Command What it does
pkg update Refreshes the list of available packages from Termux’s repositories (like apt update)
pkg upgrade Upgrades all installed packages to their latest versions (like apt upgrade)
pkg install <name> Downloads and installs a package (like apt install <name>)
pkg search <name> Searches for packages by name or keyword
pkg uninstall <name> Removes an installed package

💡 Why pkg instead of apt? pkg is a thin wrapper around apt that automatically runs apt update when needed and formats output for the smaller mobile screen. You can use apt directly, but pkg is the recommended way in Termux.

Update the package list

pkg update && pkg upgrade

💡 Press Enter (or type y) when prompted to confirm package upgrades.

Install core tools

# Git — version control (Lesson 3+)
pkg install git

# Node.js and npm — project tooling (Lesson 3+)
pkg install nodejs

# A lightweight text editor (useful for editing files without Acode)
pkg install nano

Here’s what each tool does:

Package Provides Used in
git The Git version control system (git init, git commit, git push, etc.) Lessons 3–4
nodejs Node.js runtime and npm / npx (JavaScript package manager) Lessons 2–4
nano A simple terminal-based text editor — edit files without leaving Termux All lessons

Verify everything installed correctly:

git --version
# git version 2.x.x

node -v
# v20.x.x

npm -v
# 10.x.x

Grant Termux access to your tablet’s storage

This lets you share files between Termux and other Android apps (like Acode).

termux-setup-storage

Tap Allow when Android asks for the permission. This creates symlinks inside ~/storage/ that point to Android’s shared folders:

ls ~/storage/
# downloads/  dcim/  music/  pictures/  shared/
Path Points to
~/storage/shared/ Your tablet’s main internal storage (/storage/emulated/0/)
~/storage/downloads/ The Downloads folder
~/storage/dcim/ Camera photos

💡 Where to keep your projects: For this course, create a folder in shared storage so both Termux and Acode can access the same files:

mkdir -p ~/storage/shared/projects
ln -s ~/storage/shared/projects ~/projects
cd ~/projects

The symlink (ln -s) lets you type cd ~/projects in Termux while the actual files live in shared storage where Acode can see them.

Part 3 — Install Acode

Acode is a free, open-source code editor built for Android. It understands many languages (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Markdown, JSON), has syntax highlighting, and can open files from Termux’s shared storage.

Install from the Play Store or F-Droid

Source Link
Google Play Search Acode in the Play Store
F-Droid Search Acode in F-Droid
GitHub Releases github.com/deadlyjack/Acode/releases ↗

After installing, open Acode — you’ll see a code editor similar to VS Code.

Connect Acode to your Termux project files

Because Android’s scoped storage blocks direct access to Termux’s internal directory on newer devices, we use the shared storage approach set up in Part 2:

  1. In Acode, tap the folder icon in the sidebar.
  2. Tap Add a storage → Select folder.
  3. Navigate to Internal storage → projects (the folder you created with mkdir -p ~/storage/shared/projects).
  4. Tap Use this folder → Allow to grant Acode access.

Your project files now appear in Acode’s file tree. Any edits you make in Acode are immediately visible in Termux (and vice versa) because both apps read/write to the same shared storage location.

💡 If you skipped the symlink step in Part 2, go back and run:

mkdir -p ~/storage/shared/projects
ln -s ~/storage/shared/projects ~/projects

Part 4 — Configure Git (one-time)

Before Lesson 3, set your Git identity in Termux:

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "you@example.com"

For GitHub pushes, create a Personal Access Token (PAT) since HTTPS password authentication is no longer supported:

  1. Go to GitHub → Settings → Developer settings → Personal access tokens → Tokens (classic).
  2. Generate a token with repo scope.
  3. When git push asks for a password, enter the token instead of your GitHub password.

Save credentials in Termux so you don’t re-enter the token every push:

# Option A — Cache credentials in memory for 4 hours (safer)
git config --global credential.helper 'cache --timeout=14400'

# Option B — Store credentials permanently on disk
git config --global credential.helper store

⚠️ Security note: Option B (store) saves your token in plaintext in ~/.git-credentials. This is convenient but means anyone with access to your device can read the token. Option A (cache) is safer — it keeps the token only in memory and automatically forgets it after the timeout (4 hours in the example above). For a personal tablet either option is usually fine, but prefer cache if you share the device.

Part 5 — Following the Course on Android

All four lessons work on Android with Termux. The table below highlights any small differences.

Lesson Works on Android? Notes
1 — CLI Basics ✅ All commands (pwd, whoami, echo, clear) work identically in Termux
2 — Navigation & Files ✅ Use pkg install nodejs to get npx for the practice-files download
3 — Bootstrap a Project ✅ git, npm init, npm install all work; use nano or Acode to edit files
4 — Create Your Portfolio ✅ Build the site locally; deploy to GitHub Pages from Termux with git push

Opening a text editor

Throughout the course you’ll need to edit files. On Android you have two good options:

Option A — nano (inside Termux)

nano .gitignore
# Edit, then press Ctrl+X → Y → Enter to save

Option B — Acode (touch-friendly)

Open the file from the Acode file tree (after connecting it to Termux storage above), edit it, then tap Save (Ctrl+S or the save icon).

Termux Keyboard Tips

Android’s on-screen keyboard lacks keys like Ctrl, Tab, Esc, and Arrow keys that are essential in a terminal. Here’s how to access them.

Volume-key shortcuts (Termux built-in)

Key combination Result
Volume Down + C Ctrl+C (cancel a running command)
Volume Down + L Ctrl+L (clear screen)
Volume Down + T Tab (auto-complete)
Volume Down + 1 F1
Volume Down + E Escape
Volume Down + W/A/S/D Arrow keys (↑ ↓ ← →)

Show Termux’s extra-keys row

Termux can show a row of extra keys above the on-screen keyboard (Ctrl, Alt, Tab, arrows, etc.).

  1. In Termux, long-press the terminal (or swipe down from the top) to reveal the notification.
  2. Tap Keyboard in the Termux notification, or create the config file:
mkdir -p ~/.termux
cat > ~/.termux/termux.properties << 'EOF'
extra-keys = [['ESC','/','-','HOME','UP','END','PGUP'],['TAB','CTRL','ALT','LEFT','DOWN','RIGHT','PGDN']]
EOF
  1. Restart Termux (swipe away and reopen) — the extra-keys bar will appear.

Use a Bluetooth keyboard

For the best experience, pair any Bluetooth keyboard with your tablet. All desktop shortcuts (Ctrl+C, Tab completion, arrow keys) work exactly as described throughout the course.

Termux-Specific Commands

A few commands are unique to Termux or behave slightly differently from a desktop Linux:

Task Termux command Description
Install a package pkg install <name> Downloads and installs software. Wrapper around apt that auto-updates the package index.
Search for a package pkg search <name> Finds available packages by name or keyword.
Update all packages pkg update && pkg upgrade Refreshes the package list, then upgrades everything to the latest version. Run periodically.
Set up shared storage termux-setup-storage Creates symlinks in ~/storage/ so Termux can read/write Android’s shared folders. Run once.
Access Android clipboard termux-clipboard-get / termux-clipboard-set Copy/paste between Termux and other apps. Requires pkg install termux-api.
Open a URL in browser termux-open-url <url> Opens a link in your default Android browser. Requires pkg install termux-api.
List running sessions Swipe right in Termux Opens the sessions sidebar — like browser tabs for terminals.

Common commands compared: Termux vs Desktop Linux

Most CLI commands work identically, but here are the key differences:

Action Desktop Linux Termux Why different?
Install software sudo apt install git pkg install git Termux has no sudo — you’re already the admin of your Termux environment
System root / /data/data/com.termux/files/ Termux is sandboxed inside its own app directory
Home directory /home/username /data/data/com.termux/files/home Same idea, just a different path
Config files ~/.bashrc ~/.bashrc ✅ Identical
Run node/git/npm node, git, npm node, git, npm ✅ Identical

Practice File Setup on Android

The Lesson 2 practice files work identically on Android:

# Make sure npx is available (installed with nodejs)
npx --version

# Download the practice files
cd ~
npx degit ZEZE1020/cli-starter/practice cli-practice
cd cli-practice
ls

✅ Android Setup Checklist

  • Installed F-Droid from f-droid.org (not the Play Store)
  • Installed Termux from F-Droid
  • Ran pkg update && pkg upgrade
  • Installed git, nodejs, and nano with pkg install
  • Ran termux-setup-storage and granted storage permission
  • Verified git --version, node -v, and npm -v all print version numbers
  • Installed Acode and connected it to the Termux shared projects folder
  • Set up Git global config (user.name and user.email)
  • Configured the Termux extra-keys bar (or paired a Bluetooth keyboard)
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