Unix Third Edition: Visual Quickstart Guide

Viewing File Endings with tail

Occasionally, you might also need to use tail, which displays the last lines of a file. tail is particularly handy for checking footers or for updating information in a footer (see Code Listing 6.5). Just as with head (described in the previous pages), tail offers several options for viewing files.

Code Listing 6.5. tail lets you check out just the end of files.

[ejr@hobbes manipulate]$ tail honeydo Empty diaper pails Take garbage out. —End of today's list— Buy more garbage bags Get cleaning supplies at store Take cat to vet Fix lawnmower [ejr@hobbes manipulate]$

To view file endings with tail:

• tail honeydo

  At the shell prompt, type tail followed by the filename. As Code Listing 6.5 shows, you’ll see the last ...