Spaces in Directory Names 1

[jmarkus]

I am trying to execute a script which reads directory pathnames from a file and using them as options of a command. The problem is the pathnames contain spaces and the command interprets these spaces as separating multiple options instead of a single one.

Is there a "universal" way to substitute spaces for a character and have UNIX interpret them correctly?

Barring that, is there a way to do it in Solaris?

Thanks,
Jeff

 

[PHV]

Something like this ?
while read dir
do
YourCommand [red]"[/red]$dir[red]"[/red] YourOptions
done </path/to/listofdirs

Hope This Help, PH.
Want to get great answers to your Tek-Tips questions? Have a look at FAQ219-2884

 

[vgersh99]

use double-quotes around the dir. name variables in your script (of the ways).

Post a script if you need help.

vlad
+----------------------------+
| #include<disclaimer.h> |
+----------------------------+

 

[jmarkus]

I don't follow.

If we assume the command is something simple like "ls" and the directories are:

/directory one
/directory two
/directory the third

how would that work?

Thanks,
Jeff

 

[PHV]

[tt]ls [purple]"[/purple]/directory one[purple]"[/purple][/tt]

Hope This Help, PH.
Want to get great answers to your Tek-Tips questions? Have a look at FAQ219-2884

 

[jmarkus]

Sorry, I guess ls is a bad example. I understand how it would work by simply putting double quotes around it, but I don't understand how the while-do loop would work.

Also, the command I am executing doesn't seem to care if things are bounded by quotes or not, it still recognizes the spaces as divisions between new options.

Jeff

 

[vgersh99]

pls post a sample code.

vlad
+----------------------------+
| #include<disclaimer.h> |
+----------------------------+

 

[jmarkus]

The command is called ugpc. The format is

ugpc -p/dir1 -p/dir2 -p/dir3 myfile

but /dir1 is actually named /directory one..etc and the list is in dirfile (a text file)

CODE:
ugpc `sed -e 's!^!-p!' "$dirfile"` $myfile

Jeff

 

[aigles]

Have you tried this syntax ?

[tt]ugpc -p"$dir_file" $myfile[/tt]

Jean Pierre.

 

[jmarkus]

This command requires -p to prefix each and every directory in the list in "dirfile", so that doesn't appear to work.

Jeff

 

[vgersh99]

ok, so how are you reading the content of the 'dirfile' and invoking 'ugpc'? A sample pls!

vlad
+----------------------------+
| #include<disclaimer.h> |
+----------------------------+

 

[jmarkus]

As I posted above:

CODE:
ugpc `sed -e 's!^!-p!' "$dirfile"` $myfile

 

[aigles]

Your variable 'dirfile' contains filenames, how are they delimited ?

If the delimiter is a space, there is no way to distinguish the different filenames since they may contain spaces.
Use another delimiter, "," as example and do :
[tt]
ugcp `echo $dirfile | awk '{for (i=1; i<=NF; i++) print "-p\"" $i "\""}' FS=,` myfile[/tt]

Jean Pierre.

 

[jmarkus]

Each directory is on a separate line in the file.

 

[Ygor]

Try...

eval gpc `sed -e 's!^!-p"!' -e 's!$!"!' "$dirfile"` $myfile

 

[aigles]

[tt]
ugcp `echo "$dirfile" | sed 's/\(.*\)/-p"\1"/' myfile[/tt]

Jean Pierre.

 

[PHV]

Something like this ?
while read dir
do
args=args" -p'$dir'"
done </path/to/listofdirs
ugpc $args myfile

Hope This Help, PH.
Want to get great answers to your Tek-Tips questions? Have a look at FAQ219-2884

 

[aigles]

Sorry, your file list is in a file not a variable
[tt]ugcp `sed 's/\(.*\)/-p"\1"/' $dirfile` myfile [/tt]

Jean Pierre.

 

[vgersh99]

something like that?

ugpc $(sed -e 's:\(.*\)"\1":g;s:`echo '\t'`:" :g' jmarkus.txt)

vlad
+----------------------------+
| #include<disclaimer.h> |
+----------------------------+

 

[vgersh99]

ooops, sorry:

ugpc $(sed -e 's:\(.*\)"\1":g;s:`echo '\n'`: :g' jmarkus.txt)

vlad
+----------------------------+
| #include<disclaimer.h> |
+----------------------------+