UNIX for Dummies Questions & Answers

can someone please explain the sed command and its purpose and an example of its use. Also can you explain the registry thing with an example also. thanks

see the sed man page. what "registry thing" are you talking about?

i tried man sed, but i work better with visual examples, and the registry i'm guessing well here's an example:

sed '1,$s/\(.*\)\t\(.*\)/\2 \1/' file
_________^______^
________reg 1____reg 2
____________________flip flop reg 1 & 2

that what i got for an example but I'm still not understanding the purpose of the registry.

those are called regular expressions aka regex not registry.

i understand you work well with visual examples but unfortunetly there are no visuals to give. you have an example in your post.

if you are haveing a problem w/ the material you are going over in class you should consult your teacher for referances to more material to help you understand what is going on.

us just giveing you an answer does not help you in anyway except get past the assignment.

2 books i would recommend are by oreilly named:
1) sed & awk
2) mastering regular expressions

the 2nd book is a great book and contains ALOT of examples and details on stuff you can use everyday in programming/scripting/administration