Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!mcsun!ukc!warwick!cudcv From: cudcv@warwick.ac.uk (Rob McMahon) Newsgroups: comp.unix.shell Subject: Re: How to sort on exactly one field only Message-ID: <1990Oct24.161210.15831@warwick.ac.uk> Date: 24 Oct 90 16:12:10 GMT References: <1094@massey.ac.nz> Sender: news@warwick.ac.uk (Network news) Organization: Computing Services, Warwick University, UK Lines: 40 In article quan@sol.surv.utas.oz (Stephen Quan) writes: >ARaman@massey.ac.nz (Anand Venkata Raman) writes: > >>I want to sort a file exclusively on field #2. >>For example, >>A portion of the file looks like >>appl1 3 Submitted >>appl2 4 Submitted >>appl1 3 Started >>appl3 5 Submitted >>appl2 4 Started >>appl1 3 Finished(0) >>appl2 4 Finished(7) >>appl3 5 Started >>appl3 5 Finished(3) > >cat -n file | awk "{print \$3,\$1,\$2,\$4}" | sort | awk "{print \$3,\$1,\$4}" Close, but there's no need for two awks (which will mess up the formatting if white space is important), and you were right about the missing -n: cudcv (5) > cat -n xx | sort -n +2 -3 +0 -1 | colrm 1 8 appl1 3 Submitted appl1 3 Started appl1 3 Finished(0) appl2 4 Submitted appl2 4 Started appl2 4 Finished(7) appl3 5 Submitted appl3 5 Started appl3 5 Finished(3) cudcv (6) > (SystemV-ers will use `cut -c8-' instead of `colrm 1 8'.) Rob -- UUCP: ...!mcsun!ukc!warwick!cudcv PHONE: +44 203 523037 JANET: cudcv@uk.ac.warwick INET: cudcv@warwick.ac.uk Rob McMahon, Computing Services, Warwick University, Coventry CV4 7AL, England