mkdir says that file exists when it doesn't

Question

When I run

mkdir ~/.ipython/extensions/

I get

mkdir: cannot create directory ‘/home/droudy/.ipython/extensions/’: File exists

However when I navigate to /home/droudy, there is no .ipython folder or anything resembling that

Solution

By default, file management tools, such as ls, dir, or even the graphical file manager, don't show hidden files or directories (those where the name begins with a dot, e.g. .ipython). This is why mkdir is telling you that it already exists, even though you cannot see it by using ls or the file manager.

To see hidden files, you can use ls -a (From the ls manpage : "-a, --all do not ignore entries starting with ."), or, in the graphical file manager (nautilus), press Ctrl + H to show hidden files and directories.