An
absolute path is a path that unambiguously
identifies the location of a file without reference to an additional starting
location
. The elements of a path that determine if it is absolute are
operating system dependent
. A
relative path is
a path that is not absolute, and as such, only unambiguously
identifies the location of a file when resolved relative to
an implied starting location
. The elements of a path that determine if it is
relative are operating system dependent
. [
Note 2:
Pathnames “.” and “..” are relative paths
. —
end note]