Re: Help: Command to search & replace word in file?

[Paul Seelig <pseelig@debian.org>]

On Thu, Oct 19, 2000 at 09:26:59AM +0200, Jonathan Gift wrote:

> Is there a way from the console to use a grep like command to search a file
> for, say the word "blue" and replace it with "red"? The key is console and
> not within Vim, etc. I'm trying to set up a way to automate changing
> .Xdefault setups with a simple Bash script.
> 
I use this here once in a while for such tasks:

---------- snip --------------
#!/bin/sh
# $Id: changer,v 1.1 1996/11/23 12:26:21 sami Exp sami $
# Sami Lempinen * ssl@sci.fi * http://www.uta.fi/~f1sale

PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/local/bin
PID=$$

if [ $# -lt 3 ]; then
  echo 1>&2 Usage: $0 old-string new-strings file [files]
  exit 127
fi

OLD=$1; shift;
NEW=$1; shift;

BASENAME=`basename $1`

while [ $# -gt 0 ]; do
  echo Changing $OLD to $NEW in $1...
  sed "s/$OLD/$NEW/g" $1 > /tmp/$BASENAME.$PID
  cp -f /tmp/$BASENAME.$PID $1
  rm -f /tmp/$BASENAME.$PID
  shift
done;   
---------- snip --------------

                      HTH, P. *8^)