atom

Open a file or directory

$ atom [path/to/file_or_directory]

$ atom -n [path/to/file_or_directory]

$ atom --add [path/to/file_or_directory]

$ atom --safe

$ atom --foreground

$ atom --wait

atom [OPTIONS] [PATH...]
atom [OPTIONS] [FILE...]

-h, --help
    Displays help information and exits.

-v, --version
    Prints the Atom version number and exits.

-n, --new-window
    Opens a new empty window instead of reusing an existing Atom window.

-a, --add
    Adds the specified path(s) to the last active Atom window. If no window is open, it opens a new one.

--safe
    Launches Atom in safe mode, which means no packages are loaded and the init script is not run. Useful for troubleshooting.

--dev
    Runs Atom in development mode, which might include specific development settings or enable debug tools.

--wait
    Instructs the atom command to wait until all specified files are closed in the editor before the command exits. Useful for integration with version control systems or scripts.

--clear-window-state
    Clears any saved window state, such as open tabs or project folders, before launching Atom.

--foreground
    Keeps the Atom process in the foreground, preventing it from detaching and returning control to the terminal.

The
atom command launches the Atom text editor, an open-source, cross-platform code editor developed by GitHub. Built using the Electron framework, which combines Node.js, Chromium, and web technologies, Atom offers a highly customizable and 'hackable' environment. Users can tailor its appearance and functionality through themes and thousands of community-contributed packages.

Key features include intelligent auto-completion, a flexible file system browser, multiple panes for side-by-side editing, a fuzzy finder for quick file navigation, snippets, and a built-in Markdown preview. Despite its popularity and innovative approach to editor design, Atom's official development ceased in 2022, and it is now largely in a maintenance or archived state.

Atom, being an Electron-based application, can be resource-intensive, potentially consuming more RAM and CPU compared to native editors. Its startup time might also be slower. More critically, official development for Atom has ceased; it was archived in December 2022, meaning it no longer receives active feature development or significant updates, though community forks or efforts might exist.

Atom's extensibility is largely powered by its package ecosystem. The apm command-line tool (Atom Package Manager) is used to install, manage, update, and publish packages and themes. It allows users to easily add new functionalities or change the editor's appearance, significantly enhancing Atom's 'hackable' nature.

Atom was initially developed by GitHub and publicly released in 2014. It quickly gained traction due to its innovative use of web technologies via the Electron framework, allowing extensive customization through HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. In 2015, Atom was open-sourced under the MIT License. Following Microsoft's acquisition of GitHub, Atom's future became uncertain. On June 8, 2022, GitHub announced the deprecation of Atom, citing a shift in focus and the rise of other Electron-based editors like VS Code. The final archival of the project occurred on December 15, 2022, marking the end of its active development.

code(1) - Visual Studio Code, subl(1) - Sublime Text, vim(1) - Vi Improved, emacs(1) - GNU Emacs