Ubuntu Unleashed 2013 Edition: Covering 12.10 and 13.04, Eighth Edition

Using Wildcards and Regular Expressions

Each of these commands can be used with pattern-matching strings known as wildcards or regular expressions. For example, to delete all files in the current directory beginning with the letters abc, you can use an expression beginning with the first three letters of the desired filenames. An asterisk (*) is then appended to match all these files. Use a command line with the rm command like this:

matthew@seymour:~$ rm abc*

Linux shells recognize many types of file naming wildcards, but this is different from the capabilities of Linux commands supporting the use of more complex expressions. You learn more about using wildcards in Chapter 10, “Command-Line Master Class,” and in Chapter 12, “Automating Tasks ...