Re: [ferret_users] spawn command gawk string arrays

[Ansley Manke <ansley.b.manke@xxxxxxxx>]

Hi -
I guess that like Ned, I'd use Ferret's string handling functions to 
process the string, rather than a call to awk.

  let instring = {spawn:"echo Hello ferreters"}
  let ns = STRINDEX (instring, " ")
  let a = SUBSTRING(instring, `ns+1`, `strlen(instring)`)

The string functions are listed here,
http://ferret.pmel.noaa.gov/Ferret/documentation/users-guide/handing-string-data-symbols/STRING-FUNCTIONS

Ansley

Brockmann Patrick wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> Is there a simple way to use gawk through the spawn command and get 
> the result in string array ?
>
> Example:
>
> in shell
> $ echo Hello ferreters |  awk '{print $2}'
>
> in ferret
> yes? spawn echo Hello ferreters | awk '{print $2}'
>
> But how to get the result in a string array like
>
> yes? LET a = {spawn:"ls *.nc"}
> yes? LIST a
>
> yes? let A = {spawn:"echo Hello ferreters | awk '{print $2}'"}
> **ERROR: command syntax: {spawn:"echo Hello ferreters | awk '{print 
> $2}'"}
>          unclosed quotation, parenthesis, or bracket
>
> Up to now, I have used a trick by passing by an external shell script 
> like:
> let A = {spawn:"echo Hello ferreters | awk -f get_2nd.awk"}
>
> but that is not as easy as it could be.
> Could the syntax parsing of the spawn command be changed ?
>
> Patrick