Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!wuarchive!emory!hubcap!ncrcae!opusc!yarnall
From: yarnall@opusc.csd.scarolina.edu (Ken Yarnall)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.tech
Subject: Re: Wildcard types
Message-ID: <1990Nov1.231738.21537@opusc.csd.scarolina.edu>
Date: 1 Nov 90 23:17:38 GMT
References: <87.272D0968@myamiga.UUCP> <1990Nov01.061846.27994@hoss.unl.edu> <1990Nov1.181023.21485@jato.jpl.nasa.gov>
Organization: Math Department, University of South Carolina (ahem; The USC)
Lines: 43

In article <1990Nov1.181023.21485@jato.jpl.nasa.gov> jdickson@jato.Jpl.Nasa.Gov (Jeff Dickson) writes:
+
+	I too despise CBM's choice of wild card characters, although '#' is
+more logical than '*'.

But they don't mean the same thing!  `*' in Un*x means `match 0 or more
characters, while `#' in AmigaOS means `Match 0 or more occurences of the
next item', where `item' can be quite general.  So, `#?" matches 0 or more
characters, but `#p' matches 0 or more p's, #(a|b|c) matches 0 or more a,s or
b's or c's.  Potentially more powerful, eh?

+			 I've gotten used to it by now, but my largest comp-
+laint is that there is no current directory character ala UNIX. Under UNIX
+if you want to copy a file elsewhere to the current directory you can easily
+state '.' as in:
+
+	copy /usr/local/bin/somefile .
+
+	Under AmigaDOS you have to use the actual name or more of some kind
+of convoluted name (slashes '/' and subdirectory names). 

Try
	copy :usr/local/bin/somefile ""

+	Lets be careful not to put IBM PC's above Amigas (in this respect).
+At least Amiga's use the same subdirectory seperatiion character that UNIX 
+does '/'! Why on earth did IBM choose to use back slashes '\' instead? How
+retarded!

And, of course, Un*x is the One True Word, and anyone who says different is
commiting heresy.  Geez, let's get our collective heads out of the sand and 
be a little open to new things.  If no one ever changes the way things are 
done, they'll never get any better.

+						Jeff

  -ken

-- 
     Ken Yarnall                 ///   yarnall@usceast.cs.scarolina.EDU
      Math Department, USC   \\\///   yarnall@ucseast.UUCP
       Columbia, S.C. 29208   \\\/   (803)777-5218
    `You'd better tie me up.' -- from the movie, "Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down"