Wicked Cool Linux
A Monthly Tutorial Column from LinuxWorld Magazine
Starting with the August, 2004 issue, I have been writing a monthly introductory column for LinuxWorld Magazine with the snappy title of Wicked Cool Linux. Since those columns are all published under the creative commons license, I have also taken the liberty of reproducing them here on my own site to help you, the reader, find solid, helpful tutorial information on Linux, Unix and shell script programming.
I've also been writing books about Unix, Linux, shell script programming, and many other topics for quite a few years too, and invite you to check out my most recent titles by clicking on a book cover that sounds interesting, or just click on the helpful little Amazon button to buy it. They're all good books. Really. :-) And if you have a Linux or Unix question, Ask Dave Taylor and you'll get your answer!
I also write Linux-related articles for other publications too, and wheneever possible, republish them on my own site too. Here's one to get you started: Can I Track an RSS Feed with a Shell Script?
Current Best-Sellers by Dave Taylor | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
But enough of this! How about the columns? These columns are listed here in the order that they've been published. The exact wording here might vary ever so slightly from what was published in the magazine, but only very minor ways.
- The Power of Redirection
- In a lot of ways, Linux seems pretty similar to other modern operating systems, with overlapping windows, a mouse, games, an email program that talks to Outlook, an application that can read and write Microsoft Word documents, etc. What's different, though, is that Linux is built atop a very powerful underlying kernel that supports a wide variety of hardware and offers all users access to its power without any of the graphical layers that get in the way of real power users... [continue]
- The Lowdown on File Descriptors
- Last month I began this column by talking about the many different file redirection options available from within the shell, whether you're a bash or csh fan (or some variant thereof). What I deliberately ignored, however, was the fact that there are actually three file descriptors, three I/O channels, that you can control from the command line (and therefore, from within shell scripts)... [continue]
- Make C Shell Jump Through Hoops!
- By this point in our discussion, you should be comfortable with the idea of the three file descriptors associated with the Linux command line: stdin, stdout and stderr (pronounced standard in, standard out and standard error). If you're using a descendant of the Bourne Shell (such as Bash) you also learned last month about how to use the x>&y notation to redirect the different descriptors from the command line, and therefore from within a script too. This time I'll turn my attention to the C Shell with its different command line syntax... [continue]
And more to come! If you have a specific topic or facet of shell script programming -- or Linux -- that you'd like to see me address either in the pages of LinuxWorld Magazine or even here on my Web site, please don't hesitate to contact me and let me know about it!