An Introduction to the Z Shell


                        Paul Falstad
                       pf@ttisms.com






zsh is a shell designed for interactive use, although it  is
also  a  powerful  scripting  language.   Many of the useful
features of bash, ksh, and tcsh were incorporated into  zsh;
many  original  features  were added.  This document details
some of the  unique  features  of  zsh.   It  assumes  basic
knowledge of the standard UNIX shells; the intent is to show
a reader already familiar with one of the other major shells
what  makes zsh more useful or more powerful.  This document
is not at all comprehensive; read the  manual  entry  for  a
description  of  the  shell  that  is  complete and concise,
although somewhat overwhelming and devoid of examples.

Filename Generation

Otherwise known as globbing, filename  generation  is  quite
extensive in zsh.  Of course, it has all the basics:

% ls
Makefile   file.pro   foo.o      main.o     q.c        run234     stuff
bar.o      foo        link       morestuff  run123     run240     sub
file.h     foo.c      main.h     pipe       run2       run303
% ls *.c
foo.c  q.c
% ls *.[co]
bar.o   foo.c   foo.o   main.o  q.c
% ls foo.?
foo.c  foo.o
% ls *.[^c]
bar.o   file.h  foo.o   main.h  main.o
% ls *.[^oh]
foo.c  q.c


Also, if the EXTENDEDGLOB option is set, some  new  features
are  activated.   For  example,  the ^ character negates the
pattern following it:















                           - 2 -

% setopt extendedglob
% ls -d ^*.c
Makefile   file.pro   link       morestuff  run2       run303
bar.o      foo        main.h     pipe       run234     stuff
file.h     foo.o      main.o     run123     run240     sub
% ls -d ^*.*
Makefile   link       pipe       run2       run240     stuff
foo        morestuff  run123     run234     run303     sub
% ls -d ^Makefile
bar.o      foo        link       morestuff  run123     run240     sub
file.h     foo.c      main.h     pipe       run2       run303
file.pro   foo.o      main.o     q.c        run234     stuff
% ls -d *.^c
.rhosts   bar.o     file.h    file.pro  foo.o     main.h    main.o


An expression of the form <x-y> matches a range of integers:

% ls run<200-300>
run234  run240
% ls run<300-400>
run303
% ls run<-200>
run123  run2
% ls run<300->
run303
% ls run<>
run123  run2    run234  run240  run303


Grouping is possible:

% ls (foo|bar).*
bar.o  foo.c  foo.o
% ls *.(c|o|pro)
bar.o     file.pro  foo.c     foo.o     main.o    q.c


Also, the string **/ forces a  recursive  search  of  sub-
directories:
























                           - 3 -

% ls -R
Makefile   file.pro   foo.o      main.o     q.c        run234     stuff
bar.o      foo        link       morestuff  run123     run240     sub
file.h     foo.c      main.h     pipe       run2       run303

morestuff:

stuff:
file  xxx   yyy

stuff/xxx:
foobar

stuff/yyy:
frobar
% ls **/*bar
stuff/xxx/foobar  stuff/yyy/frobar
% ls **/f*
file.h            foo               foo.o             stuff/xxx/foobar
file.pro          foo.c             stuff/file        stuff/yyy/frobar
% ls *bar*
bar.o
% ls **/*bar*
bar.o             stuff/xxx/foobar  stuff/yyy/frobar
% ls stuff/**/*bar*
stuff/xxx/foobar  stuff/yyy/frobar



It is possible to exclude certain files  from  the  patterns
using  the  ~  character.   A  pattern of the form *.c~bar.c
lists all files matching *.c, except for the file bar.c.

% ls *.c
foo.c    foob.c    bar.c
% ls *.c~bar.c
foo.c    foob.c
% ls *.c~f*
bar.c



One can add a number of qualifiers to  the  end  of  any  of
these  patterns,  to restrict matches to certain file types.
A qualified pattern is of the form

        pattern(...)


with single-letter qualifiers inside the parentheses.














                           - 4 -

% alias l='ls -dF'
% l *
Makefile    foo*        main.h      q.c         run240
bar.o       foo.c       main.o      run123      run303
file.h      foo.o       morestuff/  run2        stuff/
file.pro    link@       pipe        run234      sub
% l *(/)
morestuff/  stuff/
% l *(@)
link@
% l *(*)
foo*        link@       morestuff/  stuff/
% l *(x)
foo*        link@       morestuff/  stuff/
% l *(X)
foo*        link@       morestuff/  stuff/
% l *(R)
bar.o       foo*        link@       morestuff/  run123      run240
file.h      foo.c       main.h      pipe        run2        run303
file.pro    foo.o       main.o      q.c         run234      stuff/


Note that  *(x)  and  *(*)  both  match  executables.   *(X)
matches  files  executable  by  others,  as opposed to *(x),
which matches files executable by the owner.  *(R) and  *(r)
match  readable files; *(W) and *(w), which checks for writ-
able files.  *(W) is especially important, since  it  checks
for world-writable files:

% l *(w)
bar.o       foo*        link@       morestuff/  run123      run240
file.h      foo.c       main.h      pipe        run2        run303
file.pro    foo.o       main.o      q.c         run234      stuff/
% l *(W)
link@   run240
% l -l link run240
lrwxrwxrwx  1 pfalstad       10 May 23 18:12 link -> /bin/false*
-rw-rw-rw-  1 pfalstad        0 May 23 18:12 run240


You can filter out the symbolic links with the ^ character:

% l *(W^@)
run240
% l *(x)
foo*        link@       morestuff/  stuff/
% l *(x^@/)
foo*


To find all plain files, you can use .:













                           - 5 -

% l *(.)
Makefile  file.h    foo*      foo.o     main.o    run123    run234    run303
bar.o     file.pro  foo.c     main.h    q.c       run2      run240    sub
% l *(^.)
link@       morestuff/  pipe        stuff/
% l s*(.)
stuff/   sub
% l *(p)
pipe
% l -l *(p)
prw-r--r--  1 pfalstad        0 May 23 18:12 pipe


*(U) matches all files owned by  you.   To  search  for  all
files not owned by you, use *(^U):

% l -l *(^U)
-rw-------  1 subbarao       29 May 23 18:13 sub


This searches for setuid files:

% l -l *(s)
-rwsr-xr-x  1 pfalstad       16 May 23 18:12 foo*


This checks for a certain user's files:

% ypmatch subbarao passwd
subbarao:*:3338:35:Kartik Subbarao:/u/subbarao:/usr/princeton/bin/zsh
% l -l *(u3338)
-rw-------  1 subbarao       29 May 23 18:13 sub



Startup Files

There are five startup files that  zsh  will  read  commands
from:

$ZDOTDIR/.zshenv
$ZDOTDIR/.zprofile
$ZDOTDIR/.zshrc
$ZDOTDIR/.zlogin
$ZDOTDIR/.zlogout


If ZDOTDIR is not set, then the value of HOME is used;  this
is the usual case.

.zshenv is sourced on all invocations of the  shell,  unless
the -f option is set.  It should contain commands to set the
command search path, plus other important environment  vari-
ables.   .zshenv  should  not  contain commands that produce
output or assume the shell is attached to a tty.

.zshrc is sourced in interactive shells.  It should  contain
commands  to  set  up aliases, functions, options, key bind-
ings, etc.





                           - 6 -
.zlogin is sourced in login shells.  It should contain  com-
mands  that  should be executed only in login shells.  .zlo-
gout is sourced when login shells exit.  .zprofile is  simi-
lar  to  .zlogin,  except  that it is sourced before .zshrc.
.zprofile is meant as an  alternative  to  .zlogin  for  ksh
fans; the two are not intended to be used together, although
this could certainly be done if desired.  .zlogin is not the
place  for  alias definitions, options, environment variable
settings, etc.; as a general rule, it should not change  the
shell  environment at all.  Rather, it should be used to set
the terminal type and run  a  series  of  external  commands
(fortune, msgs, etc).

Shell Functions

zsh also allows you to create your own commands by  defining
shell functions.  For example:

% yp () {
>       ypmatch $1 passwd.byname
> }
% yp pfalstad
pfalstad:*:3564:35:Paul John Falstad:/u/pfalstad:/usr/princeton/bin/zsh


This function looks up a user in the NIS password map.   The
$1  expands to the first argument to yp.  The function could
have been equivalently defined in one of the following ways:

% function yp {
>       ypmatch $1 passwd.byname
> }
% function yp () {
>       ypmatch $1 passwd.byname
> }
% function yp () ypmatch $1 passwd.byname


Note that aliases are expanded when the function  definition
is parsed, not when the function is executed.  For example:

% alias ypmatch=echo
% yp pfalstad
pfalstad:*:3564:35:Paul John Falstad:/u/pfalstad:/usr/princeton/bin/zsh


Since the alias was defined after the function  was  parsed,
it  has  no effect on the function's execution.  However, if
we define the function again with the alias in place:

% function yp () { ypmatch $1 passwd.byname }
% yp pfalstad
pfalstad passwd.byname


it is parsed with the new alias definition in place.  There-
fore, in general you must define aliases before functions.

We can make the function take multiple arguments:






                           - 7 -

% unalias ypmatch
% yp () {
>       for i
>       do ypmatch $i passwd.byname
>       done
> }
% yp pfalstad subbarao sukthnkr
pfalstad:*:3564:35:Paul John Falstad:/u/pfalstad:/usr/princeton/bin/zsh
subbarao:*:3338:35:Kartik Subbarao:/u/subbarao:/usr/princeton/bin/zsh
sukthnkr:*:1267:35:Rahul Sukthankar:/u/sukthnkr:/usr/princeton/bin/tcsh


The for i loops through each of  the  function's  arguments,
setting  i  equal to each of them in turn.  We can also make
the function do  something  sensible  if  no  arguments  are
given:

% yp () {
>       if (( $# == 0 ))
>       then echo usage: yp name ...; fi
>       for i; do ypmatch $i passwd.byname; done
> }
% yp
usage: yp name ...
% yp pfalstad sukthnkr
pfalstad:*:3564:35:Paul John Falstad:/u/pfalstad:/usr/princeton/bin/zsh
sukthnkr:*:1267:35:Rahul Sukthankar:/u/sukthnkr:/usr/princeton/bin/tcsh


$# is the number of arguments supplied to the function.   If
it is equal to zero, we print a usage message; otherwise, we
loop through the arguments, and ypmatch all of them.

Here's a function that selects a random line from a file:

% randline () {
>       integer z=$(wc -l <$1)
>       sed -n $[RANDOM % z + 1]p $1
> }
% randline /etc/motd
PHOENIX WILL BE DOWN briefly Friday morning, 5/24/91 from 8 AM to
% randline /etc/motd
SunOS Release 4.1.1 (PHOENIX) #19: Tue May 14 19:03:15 EDT 1991
% randline /etc/motd
| Please use the "msgs" command to read announcements.  Refer to the   |
% echo $z

%


randline has a local variable, z, that holds the  number  of
lines  in  the  file.  $[RANDOM % z + 1] expands to a random
number between 1 and z.  An expression of  the  form  $[...]
expands to the value of the arithmetic expression within the
brackets, and the RANDOM variable returns  a  random  number
each  time  it is referenced.  % is the modulus operator, as
in C.  Therefore, sed -n $[RANDOM%z+1]p picks a random  line
from its input, from 1 to z.






                           - 8 -
Function definitions can be viewed with the functions  buil-
tin:

% functions randline
randline () {
        integer z=$(wc -l <$1)
        sed -n $[RANDOM % z + 1]p $1

}
% functions
yp () {
        if let $# == 0

        then
                echo usage: yp name ...

        fi
        for i
        do
                ypmatch $i passwd.byname

                done

}
randline () {
        integer z=$(wc -l <$1)
        sed -n $[RANDOM % z + 1]p $1

}


Here's another one:

% cx () { chmod +x $* }
% ls -l foo bar
-rw-r--r--  1 pfalstad       29 May 24 04:38 bar
-rw-r--r--  1 pfalstad       29 May 24 04:38 foo
% cx foo bar
% ls -l foo bar
-rwxr-xr-x  1 pfalstad       29 May 24 04:38 bar
-rwxr-xr-x  1 pfalstad       29 May 24 04:38 foo


Note that this could also have been implemented as an alias:

% chmod 644 foo bar
% alias cx='chmod +x'
% cx foo bar
% ls -l foo bar
-rwxr-xr-x  1 pfalstad       29 May 24 04:38 bar
-rwxr-xr-x  1 pfalstad       29 May 24 04:38 foo



Instead of defining a lot of functions in your  .zshrc,  all
of  which  you  may  not  use, it is often better to use the
autoload builtin.  The idea is, you create a directory where
function  definitions  are stored, declare the names in your
.zshrc, and tell the shell where to look for them.  Whenever
you  reference a function, the shell will automatically load





                           - 9 -
it into memory.

% mkdir /tmp/funs
% cat >/tmp/funs/yp
ypmatch $1 passwd.byname
^D
% cat >/tmp/funs/cx
chmod +x $*
^D
% FPATH=/tmp/funs
% autoload cx yp
% functions cx yp
undefined cx ()
undefined yp ()
% chmod 755 /tmp/funs/{cx,yp}
% yp egsirer
egsirer:*:3214:35:Emin Gun Sirer:/u/egsirer:/bin/sh
% functions yp
yp () {
        ypmatch $1 passwd.byname
}


This idea has other benefits.  By adding a #! header to  the
files, you can make them double as shell scripts.  (Although
it is faster to use them as functions, since a separate pro-
cess is not created.)

% ed /tmp/funs/yp
25
i
#! /usr/local/bin/zsh
w
42
q
% </tmp/funs/yp
#! /usr/local/bin/zsh
ypmatch $1 passwd.byname
% /tmp/funs/yp sukthnkr
sukthnkr:*:1267:35:Rahul Sukthankar:/u/sukthnkr:/usr/princeton/bin/tcsh


Now other people, who may not use zsh, or who don't want  to
copy  all  of  your .zshrc, may use these functions as shell
scripts.

Directories

One nice feature of zsh is the way  it  prints  directories.
For example, if we set the prompt like this:

phoenix% PROMPT='%~> '
~> cd src
~/src>


the shell will print the current directory  in  the  prompt,
using  the  ~  character.  However, zsh is smarter than most
other shells in this respect:






                           - 10 -

~/src> cd ~subbarao
~subbarao> cd ~maruchck
~maruchck> cd lib
~maruchck/lib> cd fun
~maruchck/lib/fun> foo=/usr/princeton/common/src
~maruchck/lib/fun> cd ~foo
~foo> cd ..
/usr/princeton/common> cd src
~foo> cd news/nntp
~foo/news/nntp> cd inews
~foo/news/nntp/inews>


Note that zsh prints other users' directories  in  the  form
~user.  Also note that you can set a parameter and use it as
a directory name; zsh will act as if foo is a user with  the
login  directory  /usr/princeton/common/src.   This  is con-
venient, especially if you're sick of  seeing  prompts  like
this:

phoenix:/usr/princeton/common/src/X.V11R4/contrib/clients/xv/docs>


If you get stuck in this position, you can give the  current
directory a short name, like this:

/usr/princeton/common/src/news/nntp/inews> inews=$PWD
/usr/princeton/common/src/news/nntp/inews> echo ~inews
/usr/princeton/common/src/news/nntp/inews
~inews>


When you reference a directory in the form ~inews, the shell
assumes  that you want the directory displayed in this form;
thus simply typing echo  ~inews  or  cd  ~inews  causes  the
prompt to be shortened.  You can define a shell function for
this purpose:

~inews> namedir () { $1=$PWD ;  : ~$1 }
~inews> cd /usr/princeton/bin
/usr/princeton/bin> namedir pbin
~pbin> cd /var/spool/mail
/var/spool/mail> namedir spool
~spool> cd .msgs
~spool/.msgs>


You may want to add this one-line function to your .zshrc.

zsh can also put the current directory in your title bar, if
you  are  using  a  windowing system.  One way to do this is
with the chpwd function, which is automatically executed  by
the  shell  whenever you change directory.  If you are using
xterm, this will work:

chpwd () { print -Pn '^[]2;%~^G' }


The -P option tells print to  treat  its  arguments  like  a





                           - 11 -
prompt  string; otherwise the %~ would not be expanded.  The
-n option suppresses the terminating newline, as with echo.

If you are using an IRIS wsh, do this:

chpwd () { print -Pn '^[P1.y%~^[' }


The print -D command has other uses.  For example, to  print
the  current directory to standard output in short form, you
can do this:

% print -D $PWD
~subbarao/src


and to print each component of the path in short form:

% print -D $path
/bin /usr/bin ~locbin ~locbin/X11 ~/bin



Directory Stacks

If you use csh, you may know about  directory  stacks.   The
pushd  command  puts the current directory on the stack, and
changes to a new directory; the popd command pops  a  direc-
tory off the stack and changes to it.

phoenix% cd
phoenix% PROMPT='Z %~> '
Z ~> pushd /tmp
/tmp ~
Z /tmp> pushd /usr/etc
/usr/etc /tmp ~
Z /usr/etc> pushd /usr/bin
/usr/bin /usr/etc /tmp ~
Z /usr/bin> popd
/usr/etc /tmp ~
Z /usr/etc> popd
/tmp ~
Z /tmp> pushd /etc
/etc /tmp ~
Z /etc> popd
/tmp ~


zsh's directory stack commands work similarly.  One  differ-
ence  is the way pushd is handled if no arguments are given.
As in csh, this exchanges the top two elements of the direc-
tory stack:

Z /tmp> dirs
/tmp ~
Z /tmp> pushd
~ /tmp


unless the stack only has one entry:





                           - 12 -

Z ~> popd
/tmp
Z /tmp> dirs
/tmp
Z /tmp> pushd
~ /tmp


or unless the PUSHDTOHOME option is set:

Z ~> setopt pushdtohome
Z ~> pushd
~ ~ /tmp



As an alternative to using directory stacks in this  manner,
we  can  get something like a directory history by setting a
few more options and parameters:

~> DIRSTACKSIZE=8
~> setopt autopushd pushdminus pushdsilent pushdtohome
~> alias dh='dirs -v'
~> cd /tmp
/tmp> cd /usr
/usr> cd bin
/usr/bin> cd ../pub
/usr/pub> dh
0       /usr/pub
1       /usr/bin
2       /usr
3       /tmp
4       ~
/usr/pub> cd -3
/tmp> dh
0       /tmp
1       /usr/pub
2       /usr/bin
3       /usr
4       ~
/tmp> ls =2/df
/usr/bin/df
/tmp> cd -4
~>


Note that =2 expanded to the second directory in the history
list,  and  that  cd  -3 recalled the third directory in the
list.

You may be wondering what all those options  do.   AUTOPUSHD
made  cd act like pushd.  (alias cd=pushd is not sufficient,
for various reasons.) PUSHDMINUS swapped the meaning  of  cd
+1 and cd -1; we want them to mean the opposite of what they
mean in csh, because it makes more sense in this scheme, and
it's easier to type:








                           - 13 -

~> dh
0       ~
1       /tmp
2       /usr/pub
3       /usr/bin
4       /usr
~> unsetopt pushdminus
~> cd +1
/tmp> dh
0       /tmp
1       ~
2       /usr/pub
3       /usr/bin
4       /usr
/tmp> cd +2
/usr/pub>


PUSHDSILENT keeps the  shell  from  printing  the  directory
stack  each  time  we  do a cd, and PUSHDTOHOME we mentioned
earlier:

/usr/pub> unsetopt pushdsilent
/usr/pub> cd /etc
/etc /usr/pub /tmp ~ /usr/bin /usr
/etc> cd
~ /etc /usr/pub /tmp ~ /usr/bin /usr
~> unsetopt pushdtohome
~> cd
/etc ~ /usr/pub /tmp ~ /usr/bin /usr
/etc>


DIRSTACKSIZE keeps the  directory  stack  from  getting  too
large, much like HISTSIZE:

/etc> setopt pushdsilent
/etc> cd /
/> cd /
/> cd /
/> cd /
/> cd /
/> cd /
/> cd /
/> cd /
/> dh
0       /
1       /
2       /
3       /
4       /
5       /
6       /
7       /










                           - 14 -
Command/Process Substitution

Command substitution in zsh can  take  two  forms.   In  the
traditional  form,  a command enclosed in backquotes (`...`)
is replaced on the command line with its  output.   This  is
the  form used by the older shells.  Newer shells (like zsh)
also provide another form, $(...).  This form is much easier
to nest.

% ls -l `echo /vmunix`
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root      1209702 May 14 19:04 /vmunix
% ls -l $(echo /vmunix)
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root      1209702 May 14 19:04 /vmunix
% who | grep mad
subbarao ttyt7   May 23 15:02   (mad55sx15.Prince)
pfalstad ttyu1   May 23 16:25   (mad55sx14.Prince)
subbarao ttyu6   May 23 15:04   (mad55sx15.Prince)
pfalstad ttyv3   May 23 16:25   (mad55sx14.Prince)
% who | grep mad | awk '{print $2}'
ttyt7
ttyu1
ttyu6
ttyv3
% cd /dev; ls -l $(who |
> grep $(echo mad) |
> awk '{ print $2 }')
crwx-w----  1 subbarao  20,  71 May 23 18:35 ttyt7
crw--w----  1 pfalstad  20,  81 May 23 18:42 ttyu1
crwx-w----  1 subbarao  20,  86 May 23 18:38 ttyu6
crw--w----  1 pfalstad  20,  99 May 23 18:41 ttyv3


Many common  uses  of  command  substitution,  however,  are
superseded by other mechanisms of zsh:

% ls -l `tty`
crw-rw-rw-  1 root      20,  28 May 23 18:35 /dev/ttyqc
% ls -l $TTY
crw-rw-rw-  1 root      20,  28 May 23 18:35 /dev/ttyqc
% ls -l `which rn`
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root       172032 Mar  6 18:40 /usr/princeton/bin/rn
% ls -l =rn
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root       172032 Mar  6 18:40 /usr/princeton/bin/rn


A command name with a = prepended is replaced with its  full
pathname.   This  can  be very convenient.  If it's not con-
venient for you, you can turn it off:

% ls
=foo    =bar
% ls =foo =bar
zsh: foo not found
% setopt noequals
% ls =foo =bar
=foo    =bar



Another nice feature is process substitution:





                           - 15 -

% who | fgrep -f =(print -l root lemke shgchan subbarao)
root     console May 19 10:41
lemke    ttyq0   May 22 10:05   (narnia:0.0)
lemke    ttyr7   May 22 10:05   (narnia:0.0)
lemke    ttyrd   May 22 10:05   (narnia:0.0)
shgchan  ttys1   May 23 16:52   (gaudi.Princeton.)
subbarao ttyt7   May 23 15:02   (mad55sx15.Prince)
subbarao ttyu6   May 23 15:04   (mad55sx15.Prince)
shgchan  ttyvb   May 23 16:51   (gaudi.Princeton.)


A command of the form =(...) is replaced with the name of  a
file containing its output.  (A command substitution, on the
other hand, is replaced with the output itself.) print -l is
like  echo,  excepts  that  it  prints its arguments one per
line, the way fgrep expects them:

% print -l foo bar
foo
bar


We could also have written:

% who | fgrep -f =(echo 'root
> lemke
> shgchan
> subbarao')


Using process substitution, you can edit  the  output  of  a
command:

% ed =(who | fgrep -f ~/.friends)
355
g/lemke/d
w /tmp/filbar
226
q
% cat /tmp/filbar
root     console May 19 10:41
shgchan  ttys1   May 23 16:52   (gaudi.Princeton.)
subbarao ttyt7   May 23 15:02   (mad55sx15.Prince)
subbarao ttyu6   May 23 15:04   (mad55sx15.Prince)
shgchan  ttyvb   May 23 16:51   (gaudi.Princeton.)


or easily read archived mail:
















                           - 16 -

% mail -f =(zcat ~/mail/oldzshmail.Z)
"/tmp/zsha06024": 84 messages, 0 new, 43 unread
>  1  U  TO: pfalstad, zsh (10)
   2  U  nytim!tim@uunet.uu.net, Re: Zsh on Sparc1 /SunOS 4.0.3
   3  U  JAM%TPN@utrcgw.utc.com, zsh fix (15)
   4  U  djm@eng.umd.edu, way to find out if running zsh? (25)
   5  U  djm@eng.umd.edu, Re: way to find out if running zsh? (17)
   6   r djm@eng.umd.edu, Meta . (18)
   7  U  jack@cs.glasgow.ac.uk, Re: problem building zsh (147)
   8  U  nytim!tim@uunet.uu.net, Re: Zsh on Sparc1 /SunOS 4.0.3
   9     ursa!jmd, Another fix... (61)
  10  U  pplacewa@bbn.com, Re: v18i084: Zsh 2.00 - A small complaint (36)
  11  U  lubkin@cs.rochester.edu, POSIX job control (34)
  12  U  yale!bronson!tan@uunet.UU.NET
  13  U  brett@rpi.edu, zsh (36)
  14  S  subbarao, zsh sucks!!!! (286)
  15  U  snibru!d241s008!d241s013!ala@relay.EU.net, zsh (165)
  16  U  nytim!tim@uunet.UU.NET, Re: Zsh on Sparc1 /SunOS 4.0.3
  17  U  subbarao, zsh is a junk shell (43)
  18  U  amaranth@vela.acs.oakland.edu, zsh (33)
43u/84 1: x
% ls -l /tmp/zsha06024
/tmp/zsha06024 not found


Note that the shell creates a temporary file, and deletes it
when the command is finished.

% diff =(ls) =(ls -F)
3c3
< fortune
---
> fortune*
10c10
< strfile
---
> strfile*


If you read zsh's man page, you may notice  that  <(...)  is
another  form  of  process  substitution which is similar to
=(...).  There is an important difference between  the  two.
In  the  <(...)  case, the shell creates a named pipe (FIFO)
instead of a file.  This is better, since it does  not  fill
up  the  file system; but it does not work in all cases.  In
fact, if we had replaced =(...) with <(...) in the  examples
above,  all  of  them  would have stopped working except for
fgrep -f <(...).  You can not edit a pipe, or open it  as  a
mail  folder;  fgrep, however, has no problem with reading a
list of words from a pipe.  You may wonder why  diff  <(foo)
bar  doesn't  work,  since  foo  | diff - bar works; this is
because diff creates a temporary file if it notices that one
of its arguments is -, and then copies its standard input to
the temporary file.

Aliasing

Often-used commands can be abbreviated with an alias:






                           - 17 -

% alias uc=uncompress
% ls
hanoi.Z
% uc hanoi
% ls
hanoi


or commands with certain desired options:

% alias fm='finger -m'
% fm root
Login name: root                        In real life: Operator
Directory: /                            Shell: /bin/csh
On since May 19 10:41:15 on console     3 days 5 hours Idle Time
No unread mail
No Plan.

% alias lock='lock -p -60000'
% lock
lock: /dev/ttyr4 on phoenix. timeout in 60000 minutes
time now is Fri May 24 04:23:18 EDT 1991
Key:

% alias l='ls -AF'
% l /
.bash_history              kadb*
.bashrc                    lib@
.cshrc                     licensed/
.exrc                      lost+found/
.login                     macsyma


Aliases can also be used to replace old commands:

% alias grep=egrep ps=sps make=gmake
% alias whoami='echo root'
% whoami
root


or to define new ones:






















                           - 18 -

% cd /
% alias sz='ls -l | sort -n +3 | tail -10'
% sz
drwxr-sr-x  7 bin          3072 May 23 11:59 etc
drwxrwxrwx 26 root         5120 May 24 04:20 tmp
drwxr-xr-x  2 root         8192 Dec 26 19:34 lost+found
drwxr-sr-x  2 bin         14848 May 23 18:48 dev
-r--r--r--  1 root       140520 Dec 26 20:08 boot
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root       311172 Dec 26 20:08 kadb
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root      1209695 Apr 16 15:33 vmunix.old
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root      1209702 May 14 19:04 vmunix
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root      1209758 May 21 12:23 vmunix.new.kernelmap.old
-rwxr-xr-x  1 root      1711848 Dec 26 20:08 vmunix.org
% cd
% alias rable='ls -AFtrd *(R)' nrable='ls -AFtrd *(^R)'
% rable
README      func/       bin/        pub/        News/       src/
nicecolors  etc/        scr/        tmp/        iris/       zsh*
% nrable
Mailboxes/  mail/       notes


(The pattern *(R) matches all readable files in the  current
directory, and *(^R) matches all unreadable files.)

Most  other  shells  have  aliases  of  this  kind  (command
aliases).   However,  zsh also has global aliases, which are
substituted anywhere on a line.  Global aliases can be  used
to abbreviate frequently-typed usernames, hostnames, etc.

% alias -g me=pfalstad gun=egsirer mjm=maruchck
% who | grep me
pfalstad ttyp0   May 24 03:39   (mickey.Princeton)
pfalstad ttyp5   May 24 03:42   (mickey.Princeton)
% fm gun
Login name: egsirer                     In real life: Emin Gun Sirer
Directory: /u/egsirer                   Shell: /bin/sh
Last login Thu May 23 19:05 on ttyq3 from bow.Princeton.ED
New mail received Fri May 24 02:30:28 1991;
  unread since Fri May 24 02:30:27 1991
% alias -g phx=phoenix.princeton.edu warc=wuarchive.wustl.edu
% ftp warc
Connected to wuarchive.wustl.edu.


Here are some more interesting uses.

% alias -g M='| more' GF='| fgrep -f ~/.friends'
% who M   # pipes the output of who through more
% who GF  # see if your friends are on
% w GF    # see what your friends are doing


Another example makes use of zsh's process substitution.  If
you run NIS, and you miss being able to do this:

% grep pfalstad /etc/passwd







                           - 19 -
you can define an alias that will  seem  more  natural  than
ypmatch pfalstad passwd:

% alias -g PASS='<(ypcat passwd)'
% grep pfalstad PASS
pfalstad:*:3564:35:Paul John Falstad:/u/pfalstad:/usr/princeton/bin/zsh


If you're really crazy, you can even call it /etc/passwd:

% alias -g /etc/passwd='<(ypcat passwd)'
% grep pfalstad /etc/passwd
pfalstad:*:3564:35:Paul John Falstad:/u/pfalstad:/usr/princeton/bin/zsh


The last example shows one of the perils of global  aliases;
they  have a lot of potential to cause confusion.  For exam-
ple, if you defined a global alias called | (which is possi-
ble), zsh would begin to act very strangely; every pipe sym-
bol would be replaced with the text of your alias.  To  some
extent,  global  aliases are like macros in C; discretion is
advised in using them and in choosing names for them.  Using
names  in all caps is not a bad idea, especially for aliases
which introduce shell metasyntax (like M and GF above).

Note that zsh aliases are not like csh aliases.  The  syntax
for  defining  them is different, and they do not have argu-
ments.  All your favorite csh aliases will probably not work
under zsh.  For example, if you try:

alias rm mv '\!* /tmp/wastebasket'


no aliases will be defined,  but  zsh  will  not  report  an
error.   In  csh,  this  line defines an alias that makes rm
safe---files that are rm'd will  be  moved  to  a  temporary
directory  instead of instantly destroyed.  In zsh's syntax,
however, this line asks the  shell  to  print  any  existing
alias definitions for rm, mv, or !* /tmp/wastebasket.  Since
there are none, most likely, the shell will not  print  any-
thing,  although alias will return a nonzero exit code.  The
proper syntax is this:

alias rm='mv \!* /tmp/wastebasket'


However, this won't work either:

% rm foo.dvi
zsh: no matches found: !*


While this makes rm safe, it is certainly not what the  user
intended.  In zsh, you must use a shell function for this:

% unalias rm
% rm () { mv $* /tmp/wastebasket }
% rm foo.dvi
% ls /tmp/wastebasket
foo.dvi





                           - 20 -
While this is much cleaner and easier to read  (I  hope  you
will  agree), it is not csh-compatible.  Therefore, a script
to convert csh aliases and variables has been provided.  You
should  only  need  to  use it once, to convert all your csh
aliases and parameters to zsh format:

% csh
csh> alias
l       ls -AF
more    less
on      last -2 !:1 ; who | grep !:1
csh> exit
% c2z >neat_zsh_aliases
% cat neat_zsh_aliases
alias l='ls -AF'
alias more='less'
on () { last -2 $1 ; who | grep $1 }
...


The first two aliases were converted to regular zsh aliases,
while  the  third,  since it needed to handle arguments, was
converted to a function.  c2z can convert  most  aliases  to
zsh  format  without any problems.  However, if you're using
some really arcane csh tricks, or if you have an alias  with
a  name  like do (which is reserved in zsh), you may have to
fix some of the aliases by hand.

The c2z script checks your csh setup, and produces a list of
zsh commands which replicate your aliases and parameter set-
tings as closely as possible.  You could include its  output
in your startup file, .zshrc.

History

There are several ways to manipulate history  in  zsh.   One
way is to use csh-style ! history:

% /usr/local/bin/!:0 !-2*:s/foo/bar/ >>!$


If you don't want to use this, you can turn it off by typing
setopt nobanghist.

Another way is to use the fc command.  For example,  if  you
type an erroneous command:

% for i in `cat /etc/clients`
 do
 rpu $i
 done
zsh: command not found: rpu
zsh: command not found: rpu
zsh: command not found: rpu


typing fc will execute an editor on this  command,  allowing
you  to  fix it.  (The default editor is vi, by the way, not
ed).






                           - 21 -

% fc
49
/rpu/s//rup/p
 rup $i
w
49
q
for i in `cat /etc/clients`
 do
 rup $i
 done
        beam    up  2 days, 10:17,    load average: 0.86, 0.80, 0.50
         bow    up  4 days,  8:41,    load average: 0.91, 0.80, 0.50
        burn    up          17:18,    load average: 0.91, 0.80, 0.50
       burst    up  9 days,  1:49,    load average: 0.95, 0.80, 0.50
         tan    up          11:14,    load average: 0.91, 0.80, 0.50
       bathe    up  3 days, 17:49,    load average: 1.84, 1.79, 1.50
        bird    up  1 day,   9:13,    load average: 1.95, 1.82, 1.51
      bonnet    up  2 days, 21:18,    load average: 0.93, 0.80, 0.50


A variant of the fc command is r, which redoes the last com-
mand, with optional changes:

% echo foo
foo
% r
echo foo
foo

% echo foo
foo
% r foo=bar
echo bar
bar



Command Line Editing

zsh's command line editor, ZLE, is quite  powerful.   It  is
designed  to  emulate  either  emacs  or  vi; the default is
emacs.  To set the bindings for vi mode, type bindkey -v.

In addition to basic editing, the shell allows you to recall
previous  lines in the history.  In emacs mode, this is done
with ^P (control-P):

% ls ~
-           README      file        mail        pub         tmp
Mailboxes   bin         func        nicecolors  scr         zsh
News        etc         iris        notes       src
% echo foobar
foobar
% ^P
% echo foobar^P
% ls ~_







                           - 22 -
Pressing ^P once brings up the previous line (echo  foobar);
pressing  it  again  brings  up the line before that (ls ~).
The cursor is left at the end of the line, allowing  you  to
edit  the  line  if  desired  before  executing it.  In many
cases, ZLE eliminates the need for the fc command, since  it
is powerful enough to handle even multiline commands:

% for i in a b c d e
> do
> echo $i
> done
a
b
c
d
e
% ^P
% for i in a b c d e
 do
 echo $i
 done_


Now you can just move up to the part you want to change...

% for i in _ b c d e
 do
 echo $i
 done


change it, and execute the new command.

% for i in f g h i j
 do
 echo $i
 done
f
g
h
i
j


Also, you can search the history for a certain command using
ESC-P:

% set ESC-P
% setopt autolist ESC-P
% setopt nocorrect_


Another way is to do an incremental search, emacs-style:












                           - 23 -

% ^R
% _
i-search:

% l_ /usr/bin
i-search: l

% date > foofile_c
i-search: le


Another useful feature of the editor is command and filename
completion.

% compTAB
% compress _

% ls /nicTAB
% ls /nicecolors _

% ls /usr/prTAB
% ls /usr/princeton/_

% ls -l =comTAB
% ls -l =compress _


If the completion is ambiguous, the editor will  beep.   You
can list possible completions by pressing ^D:

% ls /vmuTAB -beep-
% ls /vmunix_
% ls /vmunix^D
vmunix                    vmunix.old
vmunix.new.kernelmap.old  vmunix.org


Or, you could just set the AUTOLIST option:

% setopt autolist
% ls /vmuTAB -beep-
vmunix                    vmunix.old
vmunix.new.kernelmap.old  vmunix.org
% ls /vmunix_


Another option you could set is RECEXACT, which causes exact
matches  to  be  accepted,  even if there are other possible
completions:

% setopt recexact
% ls /vmuTAB -beep-
vmunix                    vmunix.old
vmunix.new.kernelmap.old  vmunix.org
% ls /vmunix_TAB
% ls /vmunix _


The fignore variable  lists  suffixes  of  files  to  ignore





                           - 24 -
during completion.

% ls fooTAB -beep-
foofile.c  foofile.o
% fignore=( .o \~ .bak .junk )
% ls fooTAB
% ls foofile.c _


Since foofile.o has a suffix that is in the fignore list, it
was not considered a possible completion of foo.

Username completion is also supported:

% ls ~pfalTAB
% ls ~pfalstad/_


and parameter name completion:

% echo $ORGTAB
% echo $ORGANIZATION _


and hostname completion, if you give the  shell  a  list  of
hosts to complete:

% hosts=( phoenix.princeton.edu uunet.uu.net nic.ddn.mil
> diskfarm.princeton.edu gnu.ai.mit.edu
> eniac.seas.upenn.edu )
% telnet diskTAB
% telnet diskfarm.princeton.edu _

% ftp uuTAB
% ftp uunet.uu.net _

% mail subbarao@phTAB
% mail subbarao@phoenix.princeton.edu _


and option completion:

% setopt noclTAB
% setopt noclobber _


and binding completion:

% bindkey '^X^X' puTAB
% bindkey '^X^X' push-line _



The compctl command is used to control how completion works.
For example, to specify that certain commands show take com-
mands as arguments, you use compctl -c:

% compctl -c man nohup
% man uptTAB
% man uptime _





                           - 25 -
To specify that a command  should  complete  filenames,  you
should use compctl -f.  This is the default.  It can be com-
bined with -c, as well.

% compctl -cf echo
% echo uptTAB
% echo uptime _

% echo foTAB
% echo foo.c


Similarly, use  -h  to  specify  hostnames,  -o  to  specify
options,  -v  to  specify variables, and -b to specify bind-
ings.

% compctl -h rlogin
% compctl -hfc rsh
% compctl -b bindkey


You can also use -k to specify a custom list of keywords  to
use in completion.

% ftphosts=(ftp.uu.net wuarchive.wustl.edu)
% compctl -k ftphosts ftp
% ftp wuTAB
% ftp wuarchive.wustl.edu _

% friends=(cpirazzi subbarao sukthnkr)
% compctl -k friends mail finger su
% finger cpTAB
% finger cpirazzi _



In addition to completion, TAB performs expansion if  possi-
ble.

% ls *.cTAB
% ls foofile.c fortune.c rnd.c strfile.c unstr.c_


For example, suppose you have a bunch of weird files  in  an
important directory:

% ls
  * * *       ; & % $??foo  dspfok        foo.c
  !"foo"!       ` \ `         foo           rrr


You want to remove them, but you don't want to damage foo.c.
Here is one way to do this:

% rm *TAB
% rm \ \ \*\ \*\ \*\ \ \  \!\"foo\"\! \;\ \&\ %\ \$'
'foo \`\ \\\ \` dspfok foo foo.c rrr_


When you expand *, zsh inserts the names of  all  the  files





                           - 26 -
into  the  editing  buffer, with proper shell quoting.  Now,
just move back and remove foo.c from the buffer:

% rm \ \ \*\ \*\ \*\ \ \  \!\"foo\"\! \;\ \&\ %\ \$'
'foo \`\ \\\ \` dspfok foo _rr


and press return.  Everything except foo.c will  be  deleted
from the directory.

Here's another trick; let's say you have typed this  command
in:

% gcc -o x.out foob.c -g -Wpointer-arith -Wtrigraphs_


and you forget which library you want.  You need  to  escape
out  for  a  minute and check by typing ls /usr/lib, or some
other such command; but you don't want to retype  the  whole
command  again,  and  you can't press return now because the
current command is incomplete.  In zsh, you can put the line
on  the  buffer stack, using ESC-Q, and type some other com-
mands.  The next time a prompt is printed, the gcc line will
be  popped  off  the  stack  and  put  in the editing buffer
automatically; you can then enter the  proper  library  name
and  press  return  (or, ESC-Q again and look for some other
libraries whose names you forgot).

A similar situation: what if you forget the  option  to  gcc
that  finds  bugs using AI techniques?  You could either use
ESC-Q again, and type man gcc, or  you  could  press  ESC-H,
which  essentially  does the same thing; it puts the current
line on the buffer stack, and executes the command  run-help
gcc, where run-help is an alias for man.

Another interesting command is  ESC-A.   This  executes  the
current  line,  but  retains  it  in  the buffer, so that it
appears again when the next prompt is  printed.   Also,  the
cursor  stays in the same place.  This is useful for execut-
ing a series of similar commands:

% cc grok.c -g -lc -lgl -lsun -lmalloc -Bstatic -o b.out
% cc fubar.c -g -lc -lgl -lsun -lmalloc -Bstatic -o b.out
% cc fooble.c -g -lc -lgl -lsun -lmalloc -Bstatic -o b.out



The ESC-' command is useful for managing the shell's quoting
conventions.  Let's say you want to print this string:

don't do that; type 'rm -rf \*', with a \ before the *.


All that is necessary is to type it into the editing buffer:

% don't do that; type 'rm -rf \*', with a \ before the *.


press ESC-' (escape-quote):






                           - 27 -

% 'don'\''t do that; type '\''rm -rf \*'\'', with a \ before the *.'


then move to the beginning and add the echo command.

% echo 'don'\''t do that; type '\''rm -rf \*'\'', with a \ before the *.'
don't do that; type 'rm -rf \*', with a \ before the *.


Let's say you want to create an alias to do this  echo  com-
mand.   This  can  be done by recalling the line with ^P and
pressing ESC-' again:

% 'echo '\''don'\''\'\'''\''t do that; type '\''\'\'''\''rm -rf
\*'\''\'\'''\'', with a \ before the *.'\'''


and then move to the beginning and add the command to create
an alias.

% alias zoof='echo '\''don'\''\'\'''\''t do that; type '\''\'\'''\''rm
-rf \*'\''\'\'''\'', with a \ before the *.'\'''
% zoof
don't do that; type 'rm -rf \*', with a \ before the *.



Another interesting option is  MENUCOMPLETE.   This  affects
the way TAB works.  Let's look at the /vmunix example again:

% setopt menucomplete
% ls /vmuTAB
% ls /vmunixTAB
% ls /vmunix.new.kernelmap.oldTAB
% ls /vmunix.old_


Each time you press TAB, it displays the next possible  com-
pletion.   In  this  way, you can cycle through the possible
completions until you find the one you want.

The AUTOMENU option makes a  nice  compromise  between  this
method  of  completion  and  the regular method.  If you set
this option, pressing the TAB key repeatedly after an  ambi-
guous  completion  will  cycle  through the possible comple-
tions.

Bindings

Each of the above editor commands was  actually  a  function
bound  by  default  to a certain key.  The real names of the
commands are:

expand-or-complete   TAB
push-line            ESC-Q
run-help             ESC-H
accept-and-hold      ESC-A
quote-line           ESC-'






                           - 28 -
These bindings are arbitrary; you could change them  if  you
want.  For example, to bind accept-line to ^Z:

% bindkey '^Z' accept-line


Another idea would be to bind the delete key to delete-char;
this might be convenient if you use ^H for backspace.

% bindkey '^?' delete-char


Or, you could bind ^X^H to run-help:

% bindkey '^X^H' run-help


Other examples:

% bindkey '^X^Z' universal-argument
% bindkey ' ' magic-space
% bindkey -s '^T' 'uptime
> '


universal-argument multiplies the next command by  4.   Thus
^X^Z^W might delete the last four words on the line.  If you
bind space to magic-space, then csh-style history  expansion
is done on the line whenever you press the space bar.

The -s flag to bindkey specifies that you  are  binding  the
key  to  a  string,  not  a  command.   Thus bindkey -s '^T'
'uptime\n' lets you VMS lovers get the load average whenever
you press ^T.

If you have a NeXT keyboard, the one with the | and  \  keys
very  inconveniently placed, the following bindings may come
in handy:

% bindkey -s '\e/' '\\'
% bindkey -s '\e=' '|'


Now you can type ALT-/ to get a backslash, and ALT-= to  get
a  vertical  bar.   This  only  works inside zsh, of course;
bindkey has no effect on the key  mappings  inside  talk  or
mail, etc.

Another use of the editor is to edit the value of variables.
For  example,  an easy way to change your path is to use the
vared command:

% vared PATH
> /u/pfalstad/scr:/u/pfalstad/bin/sun4:/u/maruchck/scr:/u/subbarao/bin:/u/maruc
hck/bin:/u/subbarao/scripts:/usr/princeton/bin:/usr/ucb:/usr/bin:/bin:/usr/host
s:/usr/princeton/bin/X11:/./usr/lang:/./usr/etc:/./etc


You can now edit the path.  When you press return, the  con-
tents of the edit buffer will be assigned to PATH.





                           - 29 -
Parameter Substitution

In zsh, parameters are set like this:

% foo=bar
% echo $foo
bar


Spaces before or after the = are frowned upon:

% foo = bar
zsh: command not found: foo


Also, set doesn't work for setting parameters:

% set foo=bar
% set foo = bar
% echo $foo

%


Note that no error message was  printed.   This  is  because
both of these commands were perfectly valid; the set builtin
assigns its arguments to the positional parameters ($1,  $2,
etc.).

% set foo=bar
% echo $1
foo=bar
% set foo = bar
% echo $3 $2
bar =


If you're really intent on using the csh  syntax,  define  a
function like this:

% set () {
>    eval "$1$2$3"
> }
% set foo = bar
% set fuu=brrr
% echo $foo $fuu
bar brrr


But then, of course you can't  use  the  form  of  set  with
options,  like set -F (which turns off filename generation).
Also, the set command by itself won't list all  the  parame-
ters  like  it  should.   To get around that you need a case
statement:











                           - 30 -

% set () {
>    case $1 in
>    -*|+*|'') builtin set $* ;;
>    *) eval "$1$2$3" ;;
>    esac
> }


For the most part, this should make csh users happy.

The following sh-style operators are supported in zsh:

% unset null
% echo ${foo-xxx}
bar
% echo ${null-xxx}
xxx
% unset null
% echo ${null=xxx}
xxx
% echo $null
xxx
% echo ${foo=xxx}
bar
% echo $foo
bar
% unset null
% echo ${null+set}

% echo ${foo+set}
set


Also, csh-style : modifiers may be appended to  a  parameter
substitution.

% echo $PWD
/home/learning/pf/zsh/zsh2.00/src
% echo $PWD:h
/home/learning/pf/zsh/zsh2.00
% echo $PWD:h:h
/home/learning/pf/zsh
% echo $PWD:t
src
% name=foo.c
% echo $name
foo.c
% echo $name:r
foo
% echo $name:e
c


The equivalent constructs in ksh (which are  also  supported
in zsh) are a bit more general and easier to remember.  When
the shell expands  ${foo#pat},  it  checks  to  see  if  pat
matches  a  substring  at the beginning of the value of foo.
If so, it removes that portion of foo,  using  the  shortest
possible  match.   With  ${foo##pat},  the  longest possible





                           - 31 -
match is removed.  ${foo%pat}  and  ${foo%%pat}  remove  the
match  from  the end.  Here are the ksh equivalents of the :
modifiers:

% echo ${PWD%/*}
/home/learning/pf/zsh/zsh2.00
% echo ${PWD%/*/*}
/home/learning/pf/zsh
% echo ${PWD##*/}
src
% echo ${name%.*}
foo
% echo ${name#*.}
c


zsh also has upper/lowercase modifiers:

% xx=Test
% echo $xx:u
TEST
% echo $xx:l
test


and a substitution modifier:

% echo $name:s/foo/bar/
bar.c
% ls
foo.c    foo.h    foo.o    foo.pro
% for i in foo.*; mv $i $i:s/foo/bar/
% ls
bar.c    bar.h    bar.o    bar.pro


One possible source of confusion is the fact  that  in  zsh,
the  result  of  parameter  substitution  is  not split into
words.  Thus, this will not work:

% srcs='glob.c exec.c init.c'
% ls $srcs
glob.c exec.c init.c not found


This is considered a feature, not a bug.  If splitting  were
done  by  default,  as it is in most other shells, functions
like this would not work properly:

$ ll () { ls -F $* }
$ ll 'fuu bar'
fuu not found
bar not found

% ll 'fuu bar'
fuu bar not found


Of course, a hackish workaround  is  available  in  sh  (and
zsh):





                           - 32 -

% setopt shwordsplit
% ll () { ls -F "$@" }
% ll 'fuu bar'
fuu bar not found


If you like the sh behaviour, zsh can accomodate you:

% ls ${=srcs}
exec.c  glob.c  init.c
% setopt shwordsplit
% ls $srcs
exec.c  glob.c  init.c


Another way to get the $srcs trick to  work  is  to  use  an
array:

% unset srcs
% srcs=( glob.c exec.c init.c )
% ls $srcs
exec.c  glob.c  init.c


or an alias:

% alias -g SRCS='exec.c glob.c init.c'
% ls SRCS
exec.c  glob.c  init.c


Another option that modifies parameter  expansion  is  RCEX-
PANDPARAM:

% echo foo/$srcs
foo/glob.c exec.c init.c
% setopt rcexpandparam
% echo foo/$srcs
foo/glob.c foo/exec.c foo/init.c
% echo foo/${^srcs}
foo/glob.c foo/exec.c foo/init.c
% echo foo/$^srcs
foo/glob.c foo/exec.c foo/init.c



Shell Parameters

The  shell  has  many  predefined  parameters  that  may  be
accessed.  Here are some examples:














                           - 33 -

% sleep 10 &
[1] 3820
% echo $!
3820
% set a b c
% echo $#
3
% echo $ARGC
3
% ( exit 20 ) ; echo $?
20
% false; echo $status
1


($? and $status are equivalent.)

% echo $HOST $HOSTTYPE
dendrite sun4
% echo $UID $GID
701 60
% cd /tmp
% cd /home
% echo $PWD $OLDPWD
/home /tmp
% ls $OLDPWD/.getwd
/tmp/.getwd


~+ and ~- are short for $PWD and $OLDPWD, respectively.

% ls ~-/.getwd
/tmp/.getwd
% ls -d ~+/learning
/home/learning
% echo $RANDOM
4880
% echo $RANDOM
11785
% echo $RANDOM
2062
% echo $TTY
/dev/ttyp4
% echo $VERSION
zsh v2.00.03
% echo $USERNAME
pf



The cdpath variable sets the search path for the cd command.
If you do not specify . somewhere in the path, it is assumed
to be the first component.











                           - 34 -

% cdpath=( /usr ~ ~/zsh )
% ls /usr
5bin         dict         lang         net          sccs         sys
5include     etc          lector       nserve       services     tmp
5lib         export       lib          oed          share        ucb
adm          games        local        old          skel         ucbinclude
bin          geac         lost+found   openwin      spool        ucblib
boot         hosts        macsyma_417  pat          src          xpg2bin
demo         include      man          princeton    stand        xpg2include
diag         kvm          mdec         pub          swap         xpg2lib
% cd spool
/usr/spool
% cd bin
/usr/bin
% cd func
~/func
% cd
% cd pub
% pwd
/u/pfalstad/pub
% ls -d /usr/pub
/usr/pub


PATH and path both set the search path for commands.   These
two  variables  are  equivalent, except that one is a string
and one is an array.  If the user modifies PATH,  the  shell
changes path as well, and vice versa.

% PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/tmp:.
% echo $path
/bin /usr/bin /tmp .
% path=( /usr/bin . /usr/local/bin /usr/ucb )
% echo $PATH
/usr/bin:.:/usr/local/bin:/usr/ucb


The same is true of CDPATH and cdpath:

% echo $CDPATH
/usr:/u/pfalstad:/u/pfalstad/zsh
% CDPATH=/u/subbarao:/usr/src:/tmp
% echo $cdpath
/u/subbarao /usr/src /tmp


In general, parameters  with  names  in  all  lowercase  are
arrays; assignments to them take the form:

name=( elem ... )


Parameters with names in  all  uppercase  are  strings.   If
there  is  both  an  array  and a string version of the same
parameter, the string version  is  a  colon-separated  list,
like PATH.

HISTFILE is the name of the history file, where the  history
is saved when a shell exits.





                           - 35 -

% zsh
phoenix% HISTFILE=/tmp/history
phoenix% SAVEHIST=20
phoenix% echo foo
foo
phoenix% date
Fri May 24 05:39:35 EDT 1991
phoenix% uptime
  5:39am  up 4 days, 20:02,  40 users,  load average: 2.30, 2.20, 2.00
phoenix% exit
% cat /tmp/history
HISTFILE=/tmp/history
SAVEHIST=20
echo foo
date
uptime
exit
% HISTSIZE=3
% history
   28  rm /tmp/history
   29  HISTSIZE=3
   30  history



In zsh, if you say

% >file


the command cat is normally assumed:

% >file
foo!
^D
% cat file
foo!


Thus, you can view a file simply by typing:

% <file
foo!


However, this is not csh or sh compatible.  To correct this,
change  the  value of the parameter NULLCMD, which is cat by
default.

% NULLCMD=:
% >file
% ls -l file
-rw-r--r--  1 pfalstad        0 May 24 05:41 file


If NULLCMD is unset, the shell reports an error if  no  com-
mand is specified (like csh).







                           - 36 -

% unset NULLCMD
% >file
zsh: redirection with no command


Actually, READNULLCMD is used whenever you have a null  com-
mand  reading  input  from a single file.  Thus, you can set
READNULLCMD to more or less rather than cat.  Also,  if  you
set  NULLCMD  to  : for sh compatibility, you can still read
files with < file if you leave READNULLCMD set to more.

Prompting

The default prompt for zsh is:

phoenix% echo $PROMPT
%m%#


The %m stands for the short form of  the  current  hostname,
and  the  %# stands for a % or a #, depending on whether the
shell is running as root or not.  zsh  supports  many  other
control sequences in the PROMPT variable.

% PROMPT='%/> '
/u/pfalstad/etc/TeX/zsh>

% PROMPT='%~> '
~/etc/TeX/zsh>

% PROMPT='%h %~> '
6 ~/etc/TeX/zsh>


%h represents the number of current history event.

% PROMPT='%h %~ %M> '
10 ~/etc/TeX/zsh apple-gunkies.gnu.ai.mit.edu>

% PROMPT='%h %~ %m> '
11 ~/etc/TeX/zsh apple-gunkies>

% PROMPT='%h %t> '
12 6:11am>

% PROMPT='%n %w tty%l>'
pfalstad Fri 24 ttyp0>


Also available is the RPROMPT parameter.  If  this  is  set,
the shell puts a prompt on the right side of the screen.













                           - 37 -

% RPROMPT='%t'
%                                                      6:14am

% RPROMPT='%~'
%                                               ~/etc/TeX/zsh

% PROMPT='%l %T %m[%h] ' RPROMPT=' %~'
p0 6:15 phoenix[5]                              ~/etc/TeX/zsh


These special escape sequences can also be used with the  -P
option to print:

% print -P %h tty%l
15 ttyp1



The POSTEDIT parameter is printed whenever the editor exits.
This  can  be  useful  for termcap tricks.  To highlight the
prompt  and  command  line  while  leaving  command   output
unhighlighted, try this:

% POSTEDIT=`echotc se`
% PROMPT='%S%% '



Login/logout watching

You can specify login or logout events to monitor by setting
the  watch variable.  Normally, this is done by specifying a
list of usernames.

% watch=( pfalstad subbarao sukthnkr egsirer )


The log command reports all people logged in  that  you  are
watching for.

% log
pfalstad has logged on p0 from mickey.
pfalstad has logged on p5 from mickey.
% ...
subbarao has logged on p8 from phoenix.
% ...
subbarao has logged off p8 from phoenix.
% ...
sukthnkr has logged on p8 from dew.
% ...
sukthnkr has logged off p8 from dew.


If you specify hostnames with an @ prepended, the shell will
watch for all users logging in from the specified host.









                           - 38 -

% watch=( @mickey @phoenix )
% log
djthongs has logged on q2 from phoenix.
pfalstad has logged on p0 from mickey.
pfalstad has logged on p5 from mickey.


If you give a tty name with a % prepended,  the  shell  will
watch for all users logging in on that tty.

% watch=( %ttyp0 %console )
% log
root has logged on console from .
pfalstad has logged on p0 from mickey.


The format of the reports may also be changed.















































                           - 39 -

% watch=( pfalstad gettes eps djthongs jcorr bdavis )
% log
jcorr has logged on tf from 128.112.176.3:0.
jcorr has logged on r0 from 128.112.176.3:0.
gettes has logged on p4 from yo:0.0.
djthongs has logged on pe from grumpy:0.0.
djthongs has logged on q2 from phoenix.
bdavis has logged on qd from BRUNO.
eps has logged on p3 from csx30:0.0.
pfalstad has logged on p0 from mickey.
pfalstad has logged on p5 from mickey.
% WATCHFMT='%n on tty%l from %M'
% log
jcorr on ttytf from 128.112.176.3:0.
jcorr on ttyr0 from 128.112.176.3:0.
gettes on ttyp4 from yo:0.0
djthongs on ttype from grumpy:0.0
djthongs on ttyq2 from phoenix.Princeto
bdavis on ttyqd from BRUNO.pppl.gov
eps on ttyp3 from csx30:0.0
pfalstad on ttyp0 from mickey.Princeton
pfalstad on ttyp5 from mickey.Princeton
% WATCHFMT='%n fm %m'
% log
jcorr fm 128.112.176.3:0
jcorr fm 128.112.176.3:0
gettes fm yo:0.0
djthongs fm grumpy:0.0
djthongs fm phoenix
bdavis fm BRUNO
eps fm csx30:0.0
pfalstad fm mickey
pfalstad fm mickey
% WATCHFMT='%n %a at %t %w.'
% log
jcorr logged on at 3:15pm Mon 20.
jcorr logged on at 3:16pm Wed 22.
gettes logged on at 6:54pm Wed 22.
djthongs logged on at 7:19am Thu 23.
djthongs logged on at 7:20am Thu 23.
bdavis logged on at 12:40pm Thu 23.
eps logged on at 4:19pm Thu 23.
pfalstad logged on at 3:39am Fri 24.
pfalstad logged on at 3:42am Fri 24.


If you have a .friends file in your home directory,  a  con-
venient  way to make zsh watch for all your friends is to do
this:

% watch=( $(< ~/.friends) )
% echo $watch
subbarao maruchck root sukthnkr ...


If watch is set to all, then all users  logging  in  or  out
will be reported.







                           - 40 -
Options

Some options have already been mentioned;  here  are  a  few
more:

% cd /
% setopt autocd
% bin
% pwd
/bin
% ../etc
% pwd
/etc


Using the AUTOCD option, you can simply type the name  of  a
directory, and it will become the current directory.

% setopt cdablevars
% foo=/tmp
% cd foo
/tmp


With CDABLEVARS, if the argument to cd  is  the  name  of  a
parameter  whose  value is a valid directory, it will become
the current directory.

CORRECT turns on spelling correction for commands,  and  the
CORRECTALL option turns on spelling correction for all argu-
ments.

% setopt correct
% sl
zsh: correct `sl' to `ls' [nyae]? y
% setopt correctall
% ls x.v11r4
zsh: correct `x.v11r4' to `X.V11R4' [nyae]? n
/usr/princton/src/x.v11r4 not found
% ls /etc/paswd
zsh: correct to `/etc/paswd' to `/etc/passwd' [nyae]? y
/etc/passwd


If you press y when the  shell  asks  you  if  you  want  to
correct  a  word,  it will be corrected.  If you press n, it
will be left alone.  Pressing  a  aborts  the  command,  and
pressing e brings the line up for editing again, in case you
agree the word is spelled  wrong  but  you  don't  like  the
correction.

Normally, a quoted expression may contain a newline:

% echo '
> foo
> '

foo

%





                           - 41 -
With CSHJUNKIEQUOTES set, this is illegal, as it is in csh.

% setopt cshjunkiequotes
% ls 'foo
zsh: unmatched '


GLOBDOTS lets files beginning with a .  be  matched  without
explicitly specifying the dot.

% ls -d *x*
Mailboxes
% setopt globdots
% ls -d *x*
.exrc         .pnewsexpert  .xserverrc
.mushexpert   .xinitrc      Mailboxes


HISTIGNOREDUPS prevents the current line from being saved in
the  history  if it is the same as the previous one; HISTIG-
NORESPACE prevents the current line from being saved  if  it
begins with a space.

% PROMPT='%h> '
39> setopt histignoredups
40> echo foo
foo
41> echo foo
foo
41> echo foo
foo
41> echo bar
bar
42> setopt histignorespace
43>  echo foo
foo
43>  echo fubar
fubar
43>  echo fubar
fubar


IGNOREBRACES turns off csh-style brace expansion.

% echo x{y{z,a},{b,c}d}e
xyze xyae xbde xcde
% setopt ignorebraces
% echo x{y{z,a},{b,c}d}e
x{y{z,a},{b,c}d}e


IGNOREEOF forces the user to type exit or logout, instead of
just pressing ^D.

% setopt ignoreeof
% ^D
zsh: use 'exit' to exit.


INTERACTIVECOMMENTS turns on interactive comments;  comments





                           - 42 -
begin with a #.

% setopt interactivecomments
% date # this is a comment
Fri May 24 06:54:14 EDT 1991


NOCLOBBER prevents  you  from  accidentally  overwriting  an
existing file.

% setopt noclobber
% cat /dev/null >~/.zshrc
zsh: file exists: /u/pfalstad/.zshrc


If you really do want to clobber a file, you can use the  >!
operator.   To  make  things  easier  in this case, the > is
stored in the history list as a >!:

% cat /dev/null >! ~/.zshrc
% cat /etc/motd > ~/.zshrc
zsh: file exists: /u/pfalstad/.zshrc
% !!
cat /etc/motd >! ~/.zshrc
% ...


RCQUOTES lets you use a more elegant  method  for  including
single quotes in a singly quoted string:

% echo '"don'\''t do that."'
"don't do that."
% echo '"don''t do that."'
"dont do that."
% setopt rcquotes
% echo '"don''t do that."'
"don't do that."


Finally, SUNKEYBOARDHACK wins the award  for  the  strangest
option.   If a line ends with `, and there are an odd number
of them on the line, the shell will ignore the  trailing  `.
This  is  provided  for  keyboards  whose  RETURN key is too
small, and too close to the ` key.

% setopt sunkeyboardhack
% date`
Fri May 24 06:55:38 EDT 1991



Closing Comments

I would be happy to receive mail if anyone has any tricks or
ideas  to  add to this document, or if there are some points
that could be  made  clearer  or  covered  more  thoroughly.
Please notify me of any errors in this document.