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Mastering Linux Shell Scripting

You're reading from   Mastering Linux Shell Scripting A practical guide to Linux command-line, Bash scripting, and Shell programming

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Product type Paperback
Published in Apr 2018
Publisher
ISBN-13 9781788990554
Length 284 pages
Edition 2nd Edition
Languages
Tools
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Authors (2):
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Mokhtar Ebrahim Mokhtar Ebrahim
Author Profile Icon Mokhtar Ebrahim
Mokhtar Ebrahim
Andrew Mallett Andrew Mallett
Author Profile Icon Andrew Mallett
Andrew Mallett
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Table of Contents (17) Chapters Close

Preface 1. The What and Why of Scripting with Bash FREE CHAPTER 2. Creating Interactive Scripts 3. Conditions Attached 4. Creating Code Snippets 5. Alternative Syntax 6. Iterating with Loops 7. Creating Building Blocks with Functions 8. Introducing the Stream Editor 9. Automating Apache Virtual Hosts 10. AWK Fundamentals 11. Regular Expressions 12. Summarizing Logs with AWK 13. A Better lastlog with AWK 14. Using Python as a Bash Scripting Alternative 15. Assessments 16. Other Books You May Enjoy

Significant whitespace

A major difference between Python and most other languages is that additional whitespace can mean something. The indent level of your code defines the block of code to which it belongs. So far, we have not indented the code we have created past the start of the line. This means that all of the code is at the same indent level and belongs to the same code block. Rather than using brace brackets or the do and done keywords to define the code block, we use indents. If we indent with two or four spaces or even tabs, then we must stick to those spaces or tabs. When we return to the previous indent level, we return to the previous code block.

This seems complex but it is really quite simple and keeps your code clean and uncluttered. If we edit the arg.py file to prevent unwelcomed errors, if an argument is not supplied, we can see this in action:

#!/usr/bin/python3...
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