User is new to shell scripting

This script is passed two arguements, a filename pattern and a prefix. The problem seems to be in passing an arguement with wildcards (I had it working fine when the wildcards were in the script itself). This is a simple task, but I need this same methodology to improve a script for generating fade-transitions for key frame animations.

<code>
#!/bin/sh

list=(`ls "$1"`)
#echo ${list[@]}
for filename in "${list[@]}"
do
mv $filename $2"_"$filename
done
</code>

A sample call would go as follows

$ rnmpp *uhood-casc*png 13

Thanks for any help, I'm a new linux user but I love it!

Just use the rename command. For your example:

rename "" "$2_" $1

Which for your example parameters would be:

rename "" "13_" *uhood-casc*png

thanks for the tip macemoneta

the problem is that I need to use this kind of thing in other instances. From the current directory, I want to list the files of a certian designation, and assign each filename to an element in an array. Simply using the `ls *$1*png` will not work, because in these cases the interpreter runs this command every time through the for loop (and files that have been removed or renamed no longer show up, often immeadiately breaking the loop). There is clearly some subtlety in the syntax that I am overlooking.

Again, thanks for the help.

For example, I have a directory of many png files, and in particular I wish to rename all files begining with "final" to be prepended. If I use

list=`ls $1*png`

and pass "final" it will succesfully insert each matching png filenames into the array
however, if i use:

list=`ls $1`

and pass "final*png" it only hits the first matching file

Then you would:

rename "final" "$2_final" final*png

Read 'man rename'.

Thanks macemoneta, the rename command will absolutely fill the needs of the script I've given as an example.

But I need to be able to do this particular thing in many other instances...not renaming files, but listing files that fit passed criteria and putting their names into an array. I imagine my error involves how the wildcard would be interepreted in the statement list=`ls $1` if the wildcards are part of the passed arguement.
Sorry for not being more clear before.

To test the problem I'm having, I made a test script as follows.

#!/bin/sh

ls $1

If I call test final*png it only prints the very first matching filename, as opposed to the list of matching filenames.

I know this must be a rudimentary mistake, so I apologize for wasting your time.

Well, I've come to the real issue.

$ test final*png

will pass the function all filenames that match the description, the substitution is of course done immeadiately, instead of passing the literal arguement to $1.

The only solution I know would be to require this syntax for calling the script

$ test "final*png"

Thanks for all your help.