Copyright (C) 2000-2012 |
GNU Info (gawk.info)Read TerminalRunning `awk' Without Input Files --------------------------------- You can also run `awk' without any input files. If you type the following command line: awk 'PROGRAM' `awk' applies the PROGRAM to the "standard input", which usually means whatever you type on the terminal. This continues until you indicate end-of-file by typing `Ctrl-d'. (On other operating systems, the end-of-file character may be different. For example, on OS/2 and MS-DOS, it is `Ctrl-z'.) As an example, the following program prints a friendly piece of advice (from Douglas Adams's `The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'), to keep you from worrying about the complexities of computer programming. (`BEGIN' is a feature we haven't discussed yet.): $ awk "BEGIN { print \"Don't Panic!\" }" -| Don't Panic! This program does not read any input. The `\' before each of the inner double quotes is necessary because of the shell's quoting rules--in particular because it mixes both single quotes and double quotes.(1) This next simple `awk' program emulates the `cat' utility; it copies whatever you type at the keyboard to its standard output. (Why this works is explained shortly.) $ awk '{ print }' Now is the time for all good men -| Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country. -| to come to the aid of their country. Four score and seven years ago, ... -| Four score and seven years ago, ... What, me worry? -| What, me worry? Ctrl-d ---------- Footnotes ---------- (1) Although we generally recommend the use of single quotes around the program text, double quotes are needed here in order to put the single quote into the message. automatically generated by info2www version 1.2.2.9 |