(libc.info)Word Expansion


Shell-Style Word Expansion
==========================

   "Word expansion" means the process of splitting a string into
"words" and substituting for variables, commands, and wildcards just as
the shell does.

   For example, when you write `ls -l foo.c', this string is split into
three separate words--`ls', `-l' and `foo.c'.  This is the most basic
function of word expansion.

   When you write `ls *.c', this can become many words, because the
word `*.c' can be replaced with any number of file names.  This is
called "wildcard expansion", and it is also a part of word expansion.

   When you use `echo $PATH' to print your path, you are taking
advantage of "variable substitution", which is also part of word
expansion.

   Ordinary programs can perform word expansion just like the shell by
calling the library function `wordexp'.

Expansion Stages: What word expansion does to a string.
Calling Wordexp: How to call `wordexp'.
Flags for Wordexp: Options you can enable in `wordexp'.
Wordexp Example: A sample program that does word expansion.
Tilde Expansion: Details of how tilde expansion works.
Variable Substitution: Different types of variable substitution.

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