Re: colon not placed in NAME when required argument is not found

[Chet Ramey]

>  > If a required argument is not found, and `getopts' is not silent,
>       a question mark (`?') is placed in NAME, `OPTARG' is unset, and a
>       diagnostic message is printed.  If `getopts' is silent, then a
>       colon (`:') is placed in NAME and `OPTARG' is set to the option
>       character found.
> 
> This does not appear to be true in GNU bash, version 2.05b.0(1)-release.

It is, in fact, what happens.

>                  ? )
>                          echo "illegal option=$OPTARG";;

You have to remember that these are shell patterns.  The `?' matches any
single character, including the `:'.

If you use `\?' instead, things work as you expect.

Chet

-- 
``The lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne.'' - Chaucer
( ``Discere est Dolere'' -- chet )

Chet Ramey, ITS, CWRU    chet@po.CWRU.Edu    http://cnswww.cns.cwru.edu/~chet/