Termux: Lightweight Linux Environment for Android

Productivity Sauce

While you can deploy a full-blown Linux distribution on your Android device, opting for a nimble solution like Termux makes more sense in most situations. Installed as a regular app, Termux gives you a terminal emulator and a lightweight Linux environment that offers all basic Linux tools, including the Bash shell and apt utilities. This means that you can use Termux to write Bash scripts and install additional packages right out of the box. Install, for example, the openssh package, and you can manage remote Linux hosts from your Android device as well as run an SSH server on it. Want to use Termux to write and run code? Install Python, Perl, ruby and Node.js from Termux' repositories. Termux supports keyboard shortcuts, which makes it easier to work inside the environment. While the app itself is free and open source, there are also several add-ons you can purchase to extend the default functionality. Termux:API is probably the most useful one, as it gives you access to Android system functionality. This allows you to write scripts that make use of Android hardware like camera and the GPS module.