Fwd: Re: extend rm docs (was: slight 'rm --help' confusion)

[Steven Schubiger]

------ Forwarded message ------
    From: Geoffrey Odhner <address@hidden>
 Subject: Re: extend rm docs (was: slight 'rm --help' confusion)
    Date: Fri,  8 Apr 2005 21:23:53 -0400
      To: address@hidden

On Thu, 7 Apr 2005 20:01:24 +0200 (CEST) Steven Schubiger wrote:

>  On  7 Apr, G. Vamsee Krishna wrote:
>  
>  : Would be nice though if it says that `rm' does the same thing
>  : to directories too. I still remember using `rmdir' on an empty
>  : directory about 2 years ago when I started using GNU/Linux.
>  
>  Could we have some more opiniated input on this issue by others?
>  If the suggestion gets accepted, I'll poke around a patch.

In age-old Unix terminology directories are files of a specialized kind.
Because Linux is meant to be more friendly to people who are not steeped
in such esoterica it is entirely reasonable that the documentation
should be revised to be more explicit about the inclusion of directories
when removing with rm -f, and of the containing directories with rm -rf.
I, as a long-time Unix user wholeheartedly support clearer, more
explicit help messages wherever they can relatively succinctly clarify
the usage of commands.

Geoff Odhner


>  
>  : Vamsee
>  
>  Steven