bash Cookbook

Who Should Read This Book

This book is for anyone who uses a Unix or Linux system, as well as system administrators who may use several systems on any given day. With it, you will be able to create scripts that allow you to accomplish more, in less time, more easily, consistently, and repeatably than ever before.

Anyone? Yes. New users will appreciate the sections on automating repetitive tasks, making simple substitutions, and customizing their environment to be more friendly and perhaps behave in more familiar ways. Power users and administrators will find new and different solutions to common tasks and challenges. Advanced users will have a collection of techniques they can use at a moment’s notice to put out the latest fire, without having to remember every little detail of syntax.

Ideal readers include:

• New Unix or Linux users who don’t know much about the shell, but want to do more than point and click

• Experienced Unix or Linux users and system administrators looking for quick answers to shell scripting questions

• Programmers who work in a Unix or Linux (or even Windows) environment and want to be more productive

• New Unix or Linux sysadmins, or those coming from a Windows environment who need to come up to speed quickly

• Experienced Windows users and sysadmins who want a more powerful scripting environment

This book will only briefly cover basic and intermediate shell scripting—see Learning the bash Shell by Cameron Newham (O’Reilly) and Classic Shell Scripting by Nelson H.F. Beebe ...