itermmacosterminal
Example:
cookie:~ j$ date
Sun Aug 5 02:14:29 CEST 2012
cookie:~ j$
Just as it's pasted here, all three lines are of the same color. I would like to have "cookie:~ j$" or at least part of the string be of a different color than the rest.
I know that I can specifically enable color coding for specific applications like ls or git, but I haven't found anything like this.
Is there a way to change the coloring and format of the static host/path/user string in the Terminal or iTerm?
Not as part of the iTerm 2 configuration. iTerm has no way of knowing you've gone to root in a remote session -- it's not watching what you're doing that closely (and what you're asking it to figure out is actually really complicated to program).
You can create an iTerm profile that has red text on whatever background colour you want and you always use that profile when you're going to go to root on a machine. It requires no changes to the root environment on the remote machine. But it does require you remember to use that profile for your rooted session.
Edit: while digging around I found this interesting article that talks about how you can change the background image in iTerm to show the hostname of the host you've ssh'ed in to. Notice how it's all based around the environment in your client's Mac shell -- once you're on the remote machine there's not a lot iTerm can do. The changing of a tab title does appear to be controlled by $PROMPT_COMMAND, as set in the remote session's environment, but there appear to be no documented hooks in iTerm 2 that let you extend what iTerm does when it changes the tab title. Pity.
I tell ya: mad props if anyone can figure out how to do this. It'd be handy for sure.
You can use iTerm2's system-wide hotkey with the Hotkey Window profile to do this.
In iTerm2 preferences, click on the "Keys" tab and choose "Hotkey". Click "Create a Dedicated Hotkey Window…" and assign the hotkey you'd like to use.
Check the "Hotkey toggles a dedicated window with profile:" option and choose "Hotkey Window" in the popup menu below (should be selected by default).
With default settings, the Hotkey Profile window will stretch across the top of the screen, and the hotkey will drop the window down from the top, complete with animation.
You can customize the settings for the "Hotkey Window" profile under the "Profiles" tab. To make it look like a Quake drop-down terminal, you can use similar "Window" preferences:
Best Answer
What you are looking for us customizing the prompt in the bash shell. Many articles on the web including this one.
This is basically done by setting the variable PS1 e.g.
gives for user mark on machine flat
This includes \t as time, \u as user \h as hostname and \w current working directory
The \[ then \octal number \] send commands to the terminal , in this case acting as an xterm and sets the colours.