Linux Shell Scripting with Bash [Paperback]

Ken O. Burtch (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 8, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0672326426 | ISBN-13: 978-0672326424 | Edition: 1

According to IDC, over 170,000 new servers were shipped in the first quarter of 2003. That also means that there were potentially more than 170,000 people like you charged with administering these systems without the proper knowledge or training to do so. Linux Shell Scripting with Bash will help you learn to not only get your system up and running quickly by employing the Bash shell, but it will also show you professional scripting solutions through the use of structured programming and standard Linux development tools. The book focuses on the Linux environment, which the shell relies on to function, and the robust Linux tool set, making this book ideal for learning shell scripting. Real-world scripts are included that are readable, extendable and easy to debug. This book is an asset to any Linux user.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ken Burtch graduated with a Computer Science first class honors degree from Brock University in St. Catharines, Canada and did his Masters work at Queen's University in Kingston, Canada. He has been using Linux since version 0.97, at a time before Linux was popular. He is the founder of PegaSoft Canada (http://www.pegasoft.ca), an association that promotes Linux advocacy, education, and development in southern Ontario. He has worked with a number of companies, including Mackenzie Financial Corporation, one of Canada's largest mutual fund companies. Ken is an active member of the Writers' Circle of Durham Region and his award-winning short story, "Distance," was recently published in the Signatures anthology.

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Sams; 1 edition (February 8, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0672326426
• ISBN-13: 978-0672326424
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #279,146 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #21 in Books > Computers & Technology > Operating Systems > Unix > Shell

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid foundation for Bash/Linux Scripting, February 27, 2004

By 

Laurie Brown (Sacramento, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linux Shell Scripting with Bash (Paperback)

This book, unlike some of the other Bash books on the market, has very accessible and complete examples. It goes beyond simple explanations, but manages to start with the most basic concepts. My only complaint is that it is very text-heavy. Anyone who used Bash on a regular basis, even if they think they are advanced, will find something useful in this book - but if you are new to Bash, the text might be a little too dense. Easier to read than the man pages, and worth the effort, but it will take effort.

Overall, one of the best current books on the subject.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well-motivated guide to use of Bash for scripting, February 20, 2004

By 

Christopher B. Browne "cbbrowne" (Scarborough, Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Linux Shell Scripting with Bash (Paperback)

This is pretty comprehensive book that guides the reader on how to use Bash for a wide variety of purposes.

It is very well-motivated; each chapter introduces the area it examines with an interesting anecdote, and presents a reasonably rich set of examples of how to use Bash along with other Unix tools to solve the problem at hand.

It is not solely about Bash; it shows the use of process control tools like ps, kill, and such, text manipulation tools like grep, sort, cut, sed, and such, and version control using CVS. This is all well and proper: One of the major uses of shell scripting is to paste together other programs, and these examples support that.

Well done...

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars simple, October 31, 2004

By 

W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Linux Shell Scripting with Bash (Paperback)

Amongst recent computer books, this is a rarity. There seems to be only 1 diagram in the entire book. No GUIs to pretty up the scene. In this sense, the book is a throwback to those texts of the 80s. Strictly command line and file I/O.

Bash under linux is shown by the book to be not that different from an earlier Bourne shell. Or even the more rudimentary C shell. The various chapters discuss such items as defining variables and thence using these to build up expressions in a script. Burtch methodically shows how to increase the complexity of your scripting.

If some of you come from an earlier unix background, and have scripted there, then the book is reassuring. It should validate that most of your expertise carries over into bash and linux. Sure, there might be some new material. But the book shows that a typical script is not that different from a unix script of 20 years ago.