What is a Current Working Directory (CWD) and How Does it Affect Program Execution?

The Concept of Current Working Directory

Your question pertains to the concept of a current working directory (cwd), a crucial aspect of operating systems that affects how programs locate files and execute commands.

Every program that operates on your computer has its own cwd. By default, a program inherits its cwd from the parent process that launched it. This means that when you open a command shell terminal window, the cwd is typically set to your home directory (e.g., /Users/apple/Documents on macOS).

Each unique program process has its own separate cwd, allowing for independent navigation within the file system. This concept is not restricted to any specific program or language, including Python.

The os.getcwd() function, when called within a Python script, returns the current working directory of the Python process. In your case, it's returning /Users/apple/Documents, indicating that your Python script or interpreter is currently using that directory as its cwd.

This does not imply that Python is solely operating within the Documents folder. Instead, it means that any file names or paths you specify within your Python code that do not begin with the root folder (/) will be interpreted relative to the current working directory (in this case, /Users/apple/Documents).

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