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Backslashes are used in many Unix (GNU/Linux, *BSD, Mac OS X) based command line shells when typing out directories and files with spaces.. (ie. /home/user/this\ is\ my\ file.ext) Failing to use a backslash within your file strings confuses the command line to look for multiple files. This may not be relevant to everyone, but it shows a prominent use of the backslash for the many command line users out there.