Each Linux command returns an exit code, with 0 indicating success and non-zero values indicating failure. You can use the $? variable to access the exit code and control program flow in scripts ...

If you are writing serious bash scripts, we suggest you write them carefully. You can even find a “ lint ” program that can test for errors for you.

However, we often don’t write programs or shell scripts to take advantage of this. However, there’s no reason for this, as you’ll see. Bash Support ...

Wicked Cool Shell Scripts: 101 Scripts for Linux, OS X, and Unix Systems by Dave Taylor and Brandon Perry, 2 nd edition, no starch press (2017) is a book that can lift you up a notch in the super ...

We've spent the last three columns talking about the basic nuts and bolts of shell script programming, so I think it's time to start digging into a real shell script, and build something interesting ...

Jack Wallen shows how you can create a Linux shell script that requires a password without having to save a password within the script.