Unix Shell Programming Tools (Unix Tools)

Complete--This title is the most comprehensive collection of shell programming tools available anywhere. It provides UNIX programmers the tools necessary to unlock the power of the UNIX operating system using literals, variables, operators, functions, constructs, and commands. Practical programming in C, Perl, Tcl--The book uses the key programming languages that UNIX programmers are familiar with in developing the tools. Many different UNIX shells--This is the first book to collect and distribute them on a CD-ROM. All of the code on the CD is "open" for modification, and customization. Tied in with the series--This title is completely cross-referenced with the other UNIX Tools books in the series.

David Medinets's Unix Shell Programming Tools surveys the commands and code elements of the three scripting languages that are most commonly used in Unix: the Bash shell, Perl, and the Tool Command Language (Tcl). The book catalogs each of the different languages and uses short, descriptive code samples to demonstrate standard usage for most of the items discussed.

Medinets dedicates nearly half of the book to an ample discussion of the Bash shell and creates special chapters focused on the constituent elements of shell programming, including the creation of variables and procedures. While discussions on Perl and Tcl are separated into distinct chapters, each has fewer code samples to illustrate variations on code writing and usage. Instead, the author supplements the discussions on Perl and Tcl with dictionary-entry-style charts describing each language component by component.

Later chapters in the book examine debugging and pattern matching in all three languages and include a Unix command list. The accompanying CD-ROM includes shareware tools, utilities, and all of the code samples shown in the book. --Ryan Kuykendall