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From: afsipmh@cidsv01.cid.aes.doe.CA
Newsgroups: comp.unix.shell
Subject: Passing a var thru a file
Message-ID: <1991Jun18.153222.20836@cid.aes.doe.CA>
Date: 18 Jun 91 15:32:22 GMT
Sender: afsipmh@cid.aes.doe.CA (Patrick Hertel)
Reply-To: afsipmh@cidsv01.cid.aes.doe.CA ()
Distribution: na
Organization: Environment Canada
Lines: 17

Say i have a file that (just for the sake of this question) contains
just one word:
$ENVAR

Say $ENVAR is an environmental variable

What is it about the shell that prevents interpretation:

#!/bin/sh
var=`cat file`
echo $var     #gives (literally) $ENVAR
echo `echo $var`  #also gives (literally) $ENVAR
-- 
Pat Hertel                 Canadian Meteorological Centre
Analyst/Programmer         2121 N. Service Rd.        
phertel@cmc.aes.doe.ca     Dorval,Quebec             
Environment Canada         CANADA           H9P1J3