mget *.txt
This will transfer copies of every file ending with .txt in the given directory. Before each file is copied, you'll be asked if you're sure you want it. Despite this, mget could still save you considerable time — you won't have to type in every single file name. If you want to save even more time, and are sure you really want ALL of the given files, type
prompt
before you do the mget command. This will turn off the prompt, and all the files will be zapped right into your home directory.
There is one other command to keep in mind. If you want to get a
copy of a computer program, type
bin
and hit enter. This tells the ftp site and your host site that you are sending a binary file, i.e., a program. Most ftp sites now use binary format as a default, but it's a good idea to do this in case you've connected to one of the few that doesn't. To switch to a directory, type
cd directory-name
(substituting the name of the directory you want to access) and hit enter. Type
ls