Help: Bash scritp and wildcards it seems simple but it isn't.

[Yuzem]

I am making a bash script (imdb-thumbnailer (http://www.gtkfiles.org/app.php/imdb-thumbnailer)) and I want to enable the use of wildcards.

For example:

imdb-thumbnailer --update ~/Films/2008*

What if the file es called '2008*'. How do I differentiate this:

imdb-thumbnailer --update 'home/user/Films/ 2008'*
from this:

imdb-thumbnailer --update 'home/user/Films/ 2008*'

"find" can do that:

find 'home/user/Films/ 2008'*
Is different than:

find 'home/user/Films/ 2008*'

[kaibob]

Deleted by Kaibob

[jinksys]

If you have a file with an asterisk in the name, you can just escape it using \

Example: To remove file*one.jpg you type

rm file\*one.jpg

[Yuzem]

Yes, the scape method work but that is from the user point of view.
My question is from the developer point of view. If the user uses quotes:
"file*one.jpg"
How can I know the difference with: "file"*"one.jpg"
Does the find command see the actual quotes?
Or how can it differentiate the commands.

Lets assume that there are no filenames with wildcards.
Then to get the wildcards working for this:

imdb-thumbnailer /Films/2008*
I do:

find $1
But what if the name has spaces (assuming that the wildcard isn't part of the name):

imdb-thumbnailer "/Films/ 2008*"
or:

imdb-thumbnailer "/Films/ 2008"*
This doesn't work anymore (because the space breaks the name):

find $1
This neither work (because the asterisk is taken as part of the name):

find "$1"

Is there a "simple is beautiful" way to do it?

The only way I can think off is no simple neither beautiful.
First check if the literal name exist (wildcars part of the filename):

if [[ -f "$1" ]]; then
If it doesn't exist use sed to escape all special chars including spaces etc but not the wildcards:

edited_filename=$(echo "$1" | sed -e 's/ /\\ /g' -e 's/!/\\!/g' -e 's/(/\\(/g' etc and etc...)
Then:

find $edited_filename
Thats all, it is not incredible complicated.
I thought that being such a common task there would be a simple automatic way to do it.

[aloshbennett]

I thought the shell does the job for you and you dont need to worry about handling wild characters.

Wouldnt this work if irrespective of the user input?


file_list = "$@"
for file in $file_list; do
whatever
done;

[Yuzem]

I think not. If a file name contains spaces the "for" loop gets broken.



input="movie"* #allways works.
input="movie*" #gets expanded when it shouldn't (find "movie*" doesn't)
input="movie 2007" #fails
input="movie\ 2007" #fails

for i in $input; do
stat $i
done

[mssever]

file_list = "$@"
for file in $file_list; do
whatever
done;
That's wrong. Use this, instead:
file_list="$@"
for file in "$file_list"; do
whatever
done

[mssever]

input="movie*" #gets expanded when it shouldn't (find "movie*" doesn't)
That's because you aren't using double quotes around "$input". Always surround variable references with double quotes if there's any possibility that their values could anything that the shell might consider special (such as spaces or asterisks).

[Yuzem]

Quotes there will make all files be taken as one large parameter and wildcards will not work:


file_list="$@"
for file in "$file_list"; do
echo "$file"
done

Nothing gets expanded and all parameters get echoed in one single line.

I want to add that my solution, the "not simple neither beautiful" one is also neither perfect.

For example:

imdb-thumbnailer "/Films/ 2008"*
If the file exist it will not get expanded with my solution.
The find command expand that correctly and I don't know how it does it.
I am thinking that it enters a special mode in which it can see the matrix, I mean the quotes...