[plug] shell scripting reference

[Bernd Felsche]

On Wed, Aug 27, 2003 at 01:26:24PM +0800, Kirk Turner wrote:
> On Wed, 2003-08-27 at 13:21, Bernd Felsche wrote:
> > On Wed, Aug 27, 2003 at 10:46:41AM +0800, Richard Mortimer wrote:
> > > > > PS any suggestions for a good reference text on shell
> > > > > scripting?  Sure I can Google but a recommendation from
> > > > > someone in our community who's used the book(s) would be
> > > > > "gold".
> > > >
> > > > At the risk of sounding like a "me too", I wouldn't mind knowing
> > > > either :)
> > 
> > > When I was first getting into scripting I used the SHELLdorado
> > > site to help me understand:
> > > 
> > > http://www.shelldorado.com/
> > > 
> > > Hope you can find some usefull stuff in there.
> > 
> > There's nothing like a book...
> > 
> > "The UNIX Programming Environment" Kernighan/Pike
> > "UNIX Shell Programming" Kochan/Wood
> > 
> > Classics!

> If you just looking for the basics there is a chapter in
> "A Practical Guide to Linux" Mark G. Sobell

> Additionally has a good reference to many of the unix tools such as awk,
> grep, cut, etc... going beyond the man references and giving some
> practical examples. And goes into bash, tc shell.
> 
> And finally if your a Linus fan/stalker the forward is written by him :)

Maybe that book. Sobell's previous "A Practical Guide to UNIX System V"
(can you see the pattern?) was fairly readable but not nearly as
informative and useful as the other two titles mentioned; especially
the latter.

With shell programming, the first thing to do is to abandon the
notion that "scripting" is taking place. It's very much programming
in every sense; quite unlike batch file _scripting_.

> It was the book for one of my uni courses so there may be second hand
> copies floating about the bookshops.

-- 
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