Requirements

Solution: You can use screen on any unix/linux based OS to connect to a serial device, but I prefer minicom on linux. Haven't tried it on OS X but it should. QuickTerm is a basic ASCII terminal emulator. It can use any attached serial port, whether built-in or installed using an adapter such as a Keyspan USB-to-serial adapter. It allows full setting of serial port parameters, with or without handshaking. Not an alternative? Report a problem.

You have assembled your Arduino* expansion board or your mini breakout expansion board, installed the appropriate drivers, and flashed the OS image (formerly called firmware).

Steps to Set Up a Serial Terminal

1. Launch Spotlight by pressing Cmd + Space.
2. Type terminal.
3. Select the Terminal app.
4. In the Terminal window, enter the command:

   ls /dev/cu.usbserial-*

5. In the list of connected devices, look for a device that contains cu.usbserial. In the example above, the device name is /dev/cu.usbserial-A402YSYU.
   

   Note: If your device is not in the list, verify that your board is powered on and connected to your system. Select the appropriate link below: Assembling the Intel® Edison board with the Intel® Edison mini breakout board

6. Connect to the USB serial device using the Terminal screen utility by entering the command:

   screen /dev/xx.usbserial-XXXXXXXX 115200 –L

   where /dev/xx.usbserial-XXXXXXXX is replaced by your device unique name. Using the example above, the command would be:

   screen -L /dev/cu.usbserial-A402YSYU 115200 –L

   Note: Adding –L to the command, as shown above, turns on output logging so you can see the results of your commands. To end a session in Screen type Ctrl + A and then Ctrl + K to kill the session. You will be prompted to end the session.

7. At the blank screen, press Enter twice. A login screen is displayed.
8. At the login prompt, type root and press Enter.
9. Press Enter when prompted for a password. The following screen is displayed:

   
   You have now established a serial communication with your board. You can interact with your board by entering common Linux commands. For a summary of useful commands, see Common commands for the Intel® Edison board.