piped functions cannot set variables

[Andrew Robb]

under sh and ksh the following code echos 1

fred() { A=1; } ; unset A ; echo hello | fred ; echo $A

this does not work in bash.

However, if I do not use a pipe, it echos 1, as does sh and ksh

fred() { A=1; } ; unset A ; fred ; echo $A

I wan't to use a shell function as a filter to read the output from
another program into arrays.
This works in ksh but not bash.

It looks like I could use a named pipe to make it work, but this is
clumsy.

fred() { A=1; } ; unset A ; rm -f fifo ; mkfifo fifo ; echo hello >
fifo & fred < fifo ; rm -f fifo ; echo A

(of course, this example generated a SIGPIPE in echo)

________________________________________________________________________
This e-mail has been scanned for all viruses by Star Internet. The
service is powered by MessageLabs. For more information on a proactive
anti-virus service working around the clock, around the globe, visit:
http://www.star.net.uk
________________________________________________________________________