Shell Programming and Scripting

could anyone tell me why when i execute the following script, echo returns blank

set k = 1
echo $k

Without knowing what Shell you have, this is difficult!

In "csh" your statement works. Therefore we assume it is not "csh".

In Bourne-type shells (sh, ksh, bash etc.) it should be a syntax error. The "set" command is for setting shell parameters. The "typeset" command may be what you meant but for this simple example we just assign the variable. Note that there are no spaces either side of the equals sign.

Code:

#!/bin/sh
k=1
echo $k

1

Code:

#!/bin/sh
typeset k=1
echo $k

1

Code:

#!/bin/sh
k=1
echo $k

1

Code:

#!/bin/sh
typeset k=1
echo $k

I tried them but I receive error:
split.sh: line 4: typeset: `=': not a valid identifier
split.sh: line 4: typeset: `1': not a valid identifier

1

[/QUOTE]
my shell is

Code:

/bin/bash

If you have bash, then the shebang line will probably be:

Code:

#!/bin/bash

Apart from that, there is much variation in Shell syntax. How you set a variable will depend on how you want to use it. If you need to declare a variable with a non-default use, see the "typeset" section in your "bash" manual. Most of the time it is not necessary to use "typeset".

I found the problem, I was giving some space here:

Code:

typeset k = 1

which is illegal, now that i correct it, it works fine.

Code:

typeset k=1

---------- Post updated at 09:45 PM ---------- Previous update was at 09:44 PM ----------

I found the problem, I was giving some space here:

Code:

typeset k = 1

which is illegal, now that i correct it, it works fine.

Code:

typeset k=1

Spaces are indeed very important in "bash" Shell syntax.

There's plenty of "magic" spaces in most any shell, really.