Simple shell commands

Alexman · 08-23-2007, 11:56 AM

Hello,
When typing, ls, in a directory with many files, I would like it if as many files as can fit within the shell window are presented, and that there is a prompt for the next screenful to be presented.

I looked at the man page for, more, and did not manage.

Then can I also set it as an enviroment variable to remain so after a reboot?

Thanks,
Alex M.

MS3FGX · 08-23-2007, 12:05 PM

If you have something that is too large to display all at once in the terminal, you can pipe it through either "more" or "less" (whichever is on your system), so that it is broken up into more manageable pieces.

So for example, to parse the output of ls you would do:

Code:

ls | less

This will give you the output in page form, prompting you to continue on to the next lines.

dickgregory · 08-23-2007, 12:57 PM

Try creating an alias to do the ls | less command. Type 'man alias' at the cli to learn how to create and use aliases.

To make it persistent between login sessions, just put your alias command into your ~/.bashrc file.

I could give you step by step instructions, but you will remember better if you figure as much out as possible on your own, before you ask for more help. You will also find that it makes more people willing to help you.

Welcome to LQ.

trashbird1240 · 08-23-2007, 01:11 PM

The pipe ("|") is one of the most important features of Unix (which in this case is Linux). You should learn to use pipes well. Bless you for using a terminal