GNU bug report logs - #14373
echo command

Previous Next

To add a comment to this bug, you must first unarchive it, by sending
a message to control AT debbugs.gnu.org, with unarchive 14373 in the body.
You can then email your comments to 14373 AT debbugs.gnu.org in the normal way.

Toggle the display of automated, internal messages from the tracker.

Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Cesar Celis Hernández <cesar.celis.h <at> gmail.com>
To: bug-coreutils <at> gnu.org, JP INTEL <castellanos.juan.pablo <at> gmail.com>
Subject: echo command
Date: Wed, 8 May 2013 17:30:17 -0500

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

echo --help



It is not giving me the help information. It is printing --help

I would like to use the echo options but it seems that is not working as
the man echo says. So I am little bit lost here. How to use the echo
options?



Thank you very much in advance for your help.



-Cesar

[Message part 2 (text/html, inline)]

Message #12 received at 14373-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Eric Blake <eblake <at> redhat.com>
To: Cesar Celis Hernández
 <cesar.celis.h <at> gmail.com>
Cc: castellanos.juan.pablo <at> gmail.com, 14373-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#14373: echo command
Date: Wed, 08 May 2013 17:11:12 -0600

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

tag 14373 notabug
thanks

On 05/08/2013 04:30 PM, Cesar Celis Hernández wrote:
> echo --help
> 
> 
> 
> It is not giving me the help information. It is printing --help

That means you aren't testing coreutils' echo.

Try 'env echo --help' or '/bin/echo --help'.  And once you DO test
coreutils' echo, notice this disclaimer as part of that help text:

NOTE: your shell may have its own version of echo, which usually supersedes
the version described here.  Please refer to your shell's documentation
for details about the options it supports.

which explains why your simpler 'echo --help' didn't do what you expected.

As such, I'm closing this as not a bug, although you may feel free to
add further comments or questions.

-- 
Eric Blake   eblake redhat com    +1-919-301-3266
Libvirt virtualization library http://libvirt.org

[signature.asc (application/pgp-signature, attachment)]

Message #15 received at 14373 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Eric Blake <eblake <at> redhat.com>
To: Cesar Celis Hernández
 <cesar.celis.h <at> gmail.com>
Cc: 14373 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, castellanos.juan.pablo <at> gmail.com
Subject: Re: bug#14373: echo command
Date: Wed, 08 May 2013 20:28:39 -0600

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

On 05/08/2013 04:30 PM, Cesar Celis Hernández wrote:
> I would like to use the echo options but it seems that is not working as
> the man echo says. So I am little bit lost here. How to use the echo
> options?

One other thing:

POSIX itself says that echo's options are inherently non-portable.  If
you are trying to use 'echo -n' or 'echo -e', you should REALLY consider
rewriting your script to use printf(1) instead, because then you won't
run into portability nightmares when your script is run on a different
platform (this is true whether you use the shell's builtin echo, or
whether you use 'env echo' to bypass the shell builtin and get whatever
is installed on PATH).

-- 
Eric Blake   eblake redhat com    +1-919-301-3266
Libvirt virtualization library http://libvirt.org

[signature.asc (application/pgp-signature, attachment)]

Previous Next

GNU bug tracking system
Copyright (C) 1999 Darren O. Benham, 1997,2003 nCipher Corporation Ltd, 1994-97 Ian Jackson.