command line options

[Paul Lalonde]

In article <18500 at watmath.waterloo.edu> rbutterworth at watmath.waterloo.edu (Ray Butterworth) writes:
>In article <7680 at brl-smoke.ARPA>, gwyn at brl-smoke.ARPA (Doug Gwyn ) writes:
>>     usage: ls -RadCxmnlogrtucpFbqisfL [files]
>Maybe I've been spoiled by growing up on non-unix-syntax machines,
>but "-RadCxmnlogrtucpFbqisfL" doesn't help me one bit.
>
>Options with real names are so much nicer.  e.g.
>======% imagen -help
>IMAGEN  [file]*  [Offset=0]  [Lines=66]  [Tabstops=4]  [+Headings] 
>        [+Outline]  [Columns=1]  [+Reverse]  [+Rule]  [-Compress] 
>        [+Landscape]  [-TitlePage]  [Banner=]  [Printer=imagen300] 
>        [-Submit]
>Submits text files to imagen dumb printer.
More examples of imagen +help deleted

Most UNIX systems have such a feature: its called 'man'.  If the
	usage: ls -RadCxmnlogrtucpFbqisfL [files]
does nothing for you, do a  
	man ls	(or on some systems  help ls)
Big usage pages in your programs do little more than use disk and core space
when a decent help system exists.

		Paul Lalonde

			BITNET: PLALONDE at DALAC
			UUCP: ...{uunet|watmath|utai}!dalcs!dalcsug!lalonde

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