Making a simple multi-level user menu using select

Earlier in this book, we saw that you can make a script that uses recursive functions and conditional logic to create a simple menu. It worked, but another tool that can be used is select. Select works using a provided list (for example, it can be a wildcard selection for files) and will give you a list, such as:

Select a file from the list:
1.) myfirst.file
2.) mysecond.file
You chose: mysecond.file

Clearly, a menu such as about is very trivial; it can be useful for utility functions and for repeatable subtasks like deleting users or modifying files/archives. 

Note

Simple select scripts could also be useful for a number of activities such as mounting a drop box, decrypting or mounting a drive, or generating administrative reports.

Getting ready

Select is already a part of the Bash shell, but it has a few less than obvious points. Select relies on three variables:

• PS3: The prompt that's echoed to the user before the menu is created
• REPLY: The index...