Linux Pocket Guide, 2nd Edition

Creating a File Quickly

You can quickly create an empty file (for later editing) using the touch command:

$ touch newfile

or the echo -n command (see File Properties):^[9]

$ echo -n > newfile2

or write data into a new file by redirecting the output of a program (see Input/output redirection):

$ echo anything at all > newfile

^[9] The -n option prevents a newline character from being written to the file, making it truly empty.