Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!apple!sun-barr!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!vsi!friedl
From: friedl@vsi.COM (Stephen J. Friedl)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: When is a file name not a file name?
Summary: It could be worse
Message-ID: <1154@vsi.COM>
Date: 22 Jul 89 17:28:14 GMT
References: <20314@adm.BRL.MIL>
Organization: V-Systems, Inc. -- Santa Ana, CA
Lines: 21

[How do I remove a file called "-l"]

Somebody suggests:
>
>      rm ./-l     or,      rm -i *

In article <20314@adm.BRL.MIL>, packman%TAMUNIX.BITNET@tamvm1.tamu.edu (Packman) writes:
> 
> The first one will work ok, but the second one will not because the
> shell expands the "*" to "-l" and then rm thinks it's an option.

Imagine what happens if you ran "rm -i *" and the file you really
wanted to remove was "-f"?

     Steve

-- 
Stephen J. Friedl / V-Systems, Inc.  /  Santa Ana, CA  / +1 714 545 6442 
3B2-kind-of-guy   / {attmail uunet}!vsi!{bang!}friedl  /  friedl@vsi.com

"Why can't I do pointer multiplication in C?" - Blair Houghton