Re: Feature request: rm should implement option -p, --parents

[Guido Flohr]

Jim Meyering wrote:
> Guido Flohr wrote:
> > Sure.  But compare that to:
> >
> >     rm -p $file
> >
> > Clearer and more efficient to boot.
>
> It is hard to justify adding an option to GNU rm when you can get
> the desired functionality via a tiny shell script:
>
> #!/bin/bash
> fail=0
> for f in "$@"; do
>   unlink "$f" || { fail=1; continue; }
>   parent=$(dirname "$f")
>   rmdir -p "$parent" || fail=1
> done
> exit $fail

Or even simpler because "rmdir -p" never has a zero exit-status.

But if I compare that to "ls -B" which is ridiculously easy to replace, 
the option "-p" for rm is a lot more useful.  Besides, you could also 
get the functionality of "rmdir -p" with a tiny shell script.

Utilities are meant to make life easier, and I think that the option -p 
is just as useful for rm as it is for rmdir.

Cheers,
Guido
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