Advanced UNIX Programming

Command-Line Conventions

The general conventions used for most UNIX commands are as follows:

$ command_name [-options] [arg1 [arg2 [argn]]]
					

The square brackets indicate optional item zones on the command line. Options immediately follow the command name and begin with a hyphen. Each option consists of a single character—usually a letter but possibly a number or another character. When used, arguments follow the options. The number of valid arguments is determined by the command being invoked. An example of a typical UNIX command is as follows:

$ rm -f core
					

The option shown is specified by the hyphen and the letter f. The option -f is then followed by one argument, the filename core in this case.

Using Multiple Options

There can be several ...