The basic principles, methods and experimental results on the generation of cold or ultracold atomic beams and their recent progresses are reviewed. The schemes to produce cold or ultracold atomic beams by laser cooling (Doppler, sub-Doppler and sub-recoil cooling) and magneto-optical trapping technique are introduced in detail, and the applications of cold or ultracold atomic beams in the studies of basic physical problems and atom optics are briefly introduced.