I have been guilty of doing this myself.
Instead of doing cat file1 file2 | grep -i searchTerm, it is better to use grep
directly. The result is not only more efficient, but it’s more informative aswell.
Here is why
I came across a video by [[Luke Smith]], where he explains why you should avoid using cat into grep. This video made me reflect on my own usage of cat , and what it’s really meant for, which is concatenate and write files.
Look at the following output of running cat file1 file2 | grep -i fox:
cat file1 file2 | grep -i fox
The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
foxes are beautiful animals
Now take a look at the output, using only grep;
grep -i fox file1 file2
file1:The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
file2:foxes are beautiful animals
Do you notice the difference?
Not only do we save memory by eliminating the use of another program (cat), but we also get information about which files the search string appears in.
It’s a good practice to always be thinking about how you can strip down redundant programs and lines of code, so that you are left with only the bare minimum.
Changing a bad habit that is engrained in your mind can be tough, but mindful reflection will help you to adopt new ways of thinking.
Links :
202407101228
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82NBMvx6vFY
https://www.gnu.org/software/coreutils/manual/html_node/cat-invocation.html#cat-invocation