catclose - Linux

Overview

catclose is a powerful Linux command that makes batch file management and manipulation tasks incredibly efficient. It enables users to concatenate and close multiple files with just a single command, saving time and effort.

Syntax

catclose [options] <file1> <file2> ... <fileN>

Options/Flags

• -o, –output : Outputs the concatenated files to the specified file instead of standard output.
• -n, –number: Prepend line numbers to the output.
• -s, –squeeze-blank: Suppress consecutive blank lines in the output.
• -e, –end-marker : Append the specified marker to the end of the output.
• -h, –help: Display help information and exit.
• -v, –version: Display version information and exit.

Examples

Concatenate multiple files and print to standard output:

catclose file1.txt file2.txt file3.txt

Concatenate files and save to a new file:

catclose -o output.txt file1.txt file2.txt file3.txt

Append line numbers to the output:

catclose -n file1.txt file2.txt

Close files with consecutive blank lines suppressed:

catclose -s file1.txt file2.txt

Add an end-of-file marker:

catclose -e "EOF" file1.txt file2.txt

Common Issues

• Error opening files: Ensure that the specified files exist and you have read permissions.
• Concatenation order not as expected: Files are concatenated in the order they are provided. Use pipes or temporary files to control the order.

Integration

Combine with grep:

catclose file1.txt file2.txt | grep "pattern"

Create a script for file concatenation:

#!/bin/bash

FILES=$(echo "$@" | tr " " "\n")
OUTPUT_FILE="output.txt"

catclose -o $OUTPUT_FILE $FILES

Related Commands

• cat: Concatenates multiple files.
• tac: Concatenates and reverses multiple files.
• nl: Adds line numbers to a file.
• string: Manipulates and searches for strings in files.