### 1.1 Running Octave ¶

If you installed Octave from an installer program, it will likely have created some icons on your desktop for you to start Octave, either with the graphical user interface (GUI) or a command line interface (CLI). You can also typically find Octave in the "Start Menu" or equivalent of your computer. You can also type `octave` in a command shell; as long as you have Octave in your path, it will start.

If you start Octave with the GUI, the central window is the Octave’s own command-line interface (also called a REPL by other programming languages for Read-Evaluate-Print-Loop). In this window Octave displays an initial message and then a prompt like `>>` or `octave:1>` indicating it is ready to accept input. If you have chosen the traditional command-line interface then the command prompt appears in the same window that was running a command shell. In either case, you can immediately begin typing Octave commands.

If you get into trouble, you can usually interrupt Octave by typing `Control-C`. Doing this will normally return you to Octave’s prompt.

To exit Octave, type `quit` or `exit` at the Octave prompt.

On systems that support job control, you can suspend Octave by sending it a `SIGTSTP` signal, usually by typing `Ctrl-z`.