for loop to add text to multiple files

loadedmind · 12-04-2013, 03:48 PM

Ok, yes, I'm a newb, but at least I'm trying to learn bash shell scripting. 8^)

From what I've learned about for loops, it seems like the following should work:

for i in $(ls ~) do;
> echo 'Pristine text for file ' > $i

Before I can continue the script, I get an error after hitting Enter (after $i):
bash: syntax error near unexpected token `echo'

I've tried using double quotes around the statement after echo, but I get the same results. The reason I'm doing all of this to test subversion version control, so I've made file1 file2 and so on for a total of 5 files. Since I'm still new at bash shell scripting, I'm not sure how else to have each file contain "Pristine text for file1", then for file2: "Pristine text for file2" and so on. The thought was, after each file gets the first echo statement, I could go back through each file and append (>>) the number to the end of each, containing 1, 2 and so on.

Any/all feedback is greatly appreciated.

evo2 · 12-04-2013, 07:23 PM

Hi,

the semicolon should be before the "do", not after it.
Eg

Code:

for i in ~/* ; do 
  #echo 'Foo bar' > $i
done

Note two other things:
1. Better to use shell globbing instead of ls.
2. I don't really understand what you are trying to achieve, but not that you will be replacing every file in your home directory with this single line of text. So, running the above is VERY DANGEROUS and almost certainly not what you want to do (it is for this reason I put a comment before the echo).

Evo2.

loadedmind · 12-05-2013, 09:41 AM

Thanks for your reply. I'm testing subversion so I've created a couple of directores, d1 and d2. Within them, I have file1 through file5. I wanted to quickly generate text specific to each file - hence the script requirement. Obviously, if there's a better way to achieve this than what I'm doing, I'd definitely appreciate the help.

evo2 · 12-05-2013, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loadedmind

Thanks for your reply. I'm testing subversion so I've created a couple of directores, d1 and d2. Within them, I have file1 through file5.

Ok that's fine, but in the code you posted, the script will be operating on all the files in your home directory, not in the directories d1 and d2.

Quote:

I wanted to quickly generate text specific to each file - hence the script requirement.

Ok, that's fine, but you need to change the first line of the for loop. For example

Code:

for i in ~/d1/* ~/d2/* ; do

Quote:

Obviously, if there's a better way to achieve this than what I'm doing, I'd definitely appreciate the help.

I don't know the purpose of the test. Anyway what you are doing will make the contents of these files identical.

Evo2.

SAbhi · 12-05-2013, 07:41 PM

one more thing do not use ls in find command it is not recommended nor required use it the way @evo2 mentioned above.