So I guess this is why I'm tearing my hair out. I WOULD use Perl, but 
my script works fine except for this one 'if' statement (The BASH code 
gave me a syntax error - so I guess I'm using something else) and I 
don't want, right now, to start learning a new approach (fiscal 
year-end is right around the corner).

Shouldn't someone be able to say - "OK, because you don't specify 
otherwise in your script, you are using this scripting language version 
x.xxxx and you can get up-to-date documentation at this web site?"

AllIwanando is write a working "if" statement.

Sorry, if this sounds a little rantish.

cdt

Quoting Wesley Alan Wright <[log in to unmask]>:

> On Jun 28, 2006, at 10:53 AM, Mike Austin wrote:
>
>> Curt Duncan Taylor wrote:
>>> Here I am pulling my hair out because I can't find the proper  
>>> suntax to write an 'if' statement that says "if the file ~HOME 
>>> \test.lis exist, then delete it."
>>> Where do I find documentation for the proper version of Unix  
>>> scripting that is being used on Girrafe at UVM?
>>
>> There are several shell options available on giraffe.  What shell  
>> were you trying to use?
>>
>> If you use bash, syntax like:
>>
>>
>> #!/bin/bash
>
> and if you use #!/bin/tcsh or #!/bin/csh or if you use #!/bin/sh , it 
>  all might be different.
>
> So, you read the documentation, which amounts to typing
>
> 	man bash
>
> which displays the bash manual pages. Try finding conditional syntax  
> there -- ouch
>
> My advice: shell scripts are whack. Use perl. Find local  
> documentation (dated, but still usable) at http://www.uvm.edu/perl5 .
>
> Now we have
>
> #!/usr/bin/perl
>
> $TESTFILE=$ENV{'HOME'}."/test.lis/";
>
> if (-e $TESTFILE) {
>         unlink $TESTFILE;
> } else {
>         print "$TESTFILE does not exist\n"
> }
>
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