Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!cwjcc!kiwi!chet
From: chet@kiwi.CWRU.EDU (Chet Ramey)
Newsgroups: gnu.bash.bug
Subject: Re: Alias bug in BASH 1.01
Message-ID: <429@cwjcc.CWRU.Edu>
Date: 19 Jul 89 17:18:51 GMT
References: <926@pcsbst.UUCP>
Sender: news@cwjcc.CWRU.Edu
Reply-To: chet@kiwi.INS.CWRU.Edu (Chet Ramey)
Organization: CWRU Andrew R. Jennings Computing Center
Lines: 45

In article <926@pcsbst.UUCP> jkh@meepmeep.pcs.com ( Jordan K. Hubbard ) writes:
>The alias code is broken. Try the following:
>
>bash% alias retch='echo \!*'
>bash% retch foo bar blat
>!* foo bar blat
>bash%
>
>The !* should expand into the current arg list, ala csh.
>None of the other !<arg> constructs work in aliases either.

It's not a bug, it's a design decision.

The alias mechanism in bash is more akin to the way ksh does it
(rather than csh) in that it only performs simple textual substitution.
If you want the ability to use arguments, use shell functions instead.

>function setenv () {
>	eval $1=$2
>	export $2
>}
>

This should be 
	eval $1="$2"
	export $1

or even
	export $1="$2"

You need to quote the second argument because it will be expanded (this
example is from Brian Fox, from a discussion we were having about this):

	foo="foo and bar"
	setenv baz "$foo"
	  setenv->$2 = foo and bar
	  eval $1=$2 -> baz=foo and bar
	NOT             baz="foo and bar"

Chet Ramey

Chet Ramey			"We are preparing to think about contemplating 
Network Services Group, CWRU	 preliminary work on plans to develop a
chet@cwjcc.INS.CWRU.Edu		 schedule for producing the 10th Edition of 
				 the Unix Programmers Manual." -- Andrew Hume