Which pathnames begin at the current working directory?

The correct answer is relative pathnames. Relative pathnames are designed to point to a location within the file system in relation to the current working directory. When you use a relative pathname, you are specifying the path to the desired file or directory based on where you currently are in the directory structure. This means that if you change your current working directory, the same relative path might point to a different location.

In contrast, absolute pathnames provide the complete path from the root of the file system, which does not depend on the current working directory. Therefore, no matter which directory you are in, an absolute pathname always leads to the same file or directory.

Understanding this distinction is crucial for navigating file systems effectively, as it impacts how commands and scripts are written and executed in a computing environment. Relative paths offer a more flexible way to reference files without needing to provide the full path, making them especially useful when working within a specific directory structure context.