cut(1) MPE/iX Shell and Utilities cut(1)
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NAME
cut -- selectively display fields or characters from input lines
SYNOPSIS
cut -b list [-n] [file...]
cut -c list [file...]
cut -f list [-d char] [-s] [file...]
DESCRIPTION
cut reads input from files and selectively copies sections of the
input lines to the standard output. If you do not specify any
files, or you specify a file named -, cut reads from the standard
input.
Options
cut accepts the following options:
-b list
invokes byte position mode. After this comes a list of the
byte positions you want to display. This list may contain
multiple byte positions, separated by commas (,) or blanks
or ranges of positions separated by dashes (-); since the
list must be one argument, shell quoting is necessary if
blanks are used. You may combine these to allow selection of
any byte positions of the input.
-c list
invokes character position mode. After this comes a list of
character positions to retain in the output. This list may
contain multiple character positions, separated by commas
(,) or blanks or ranges of positions separated by a dash (-
-); since the list must be one argument, shell quoting is
necessary if blanks are used. You may combine these to allow
selection of any character positions of the input.
-d char
specifies char as the character that separates fields in the
input data; by default, this is the horizontal tab.
-f list
invokes field delimiter mode. After this comes a list of
the fields you want to display. You specify ranges of
fields and multiple field numbers in the same way you spec-
ify ranges of character positions and multiple character
positions in -c mode.
-n does not split characters. If the low byte in a selected
range is not the first byte of a character, cut extends the
range downward to include the entire character; if the high
byte in a selected range is not the last byte of a charac-
ter, cut limits the range to include only the last entire
character before the high byte selected. If -n is selected,
cut does not list ranges that do not encompass an entire
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cut(1) MPE/iX Shell and Utilities cut(1)
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character and these ranges do not cause an error.
-s does not display lines that do not contain a field separator
character. Normally, cut displays lines that do not contain
a field separator character in their entirety.
EXAMPLES
cut -f 2,2 -d " " /etc/profile
displays the second space-delineated field in the system profile.
DIAGNOSTICS
Possible exit status values are:
0 Successful completion.
1 An error occurred.
Messages
Message: bad list for -f, -b, or -c option [list]
Cause: You specified a list for the -f, -b, or -c option that
contained non-numeric entries.
Action: Specify a list that contains only numeric entries.
Message: badly formed range in list [list]
Cause: You specified a list that contained a range that was
not in the form:
num1-num2
Action: Re-enter the command line using the proper syntax for a
range.
Message: Bad range "num1-num2" in list
Cause: You specified a list containing the range num1-num2
where num2 was less than num1. Ranges must be speci-
fied with the lower value first.
Action: Re-enter the command line, making sure to list the
lower value first when specifying the range.
Message: Field delimiter specified by -d must be one character
Cause: You specified a field delimiter (as an argument to the
-d option) that was more than one character long.
Action: Specify a single character field delimiter.
Message: file "filename": system error
Cause: See syserror(3).
Action: See syserror(3).
Message: input file "filename": system error
Cause: See syserror(3).
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cut(1) MPE/iX Shell and Utilities cut(1)
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Action: See syserror(3).
Message: Missing character after -d
Cause: You specified the -d option, but did not provide a
field separator character as its argument.
Action: Provide the missing field separator character.
Message: Must specify "-f", "-b" or "-c" option
Cause: You did not specify any of the -f, -b, or -c options.
Action: Specify one of the three options.
Message: no fields specified in list [list]
Cause: cut did not recognize anything in list as indicating a
field.
Action: Check the syntax of the list and re-enter the command.
Message: Option -option argument missing
Cause: You did not provide an argument for -option.
Action: Provide the missing argument.
Message: Out of memory
Cause: cut was unable to allocate the required system
resources for internal buffers.
Action: Free up more system resources and try again.
Message: Unknown option "-option"
Cause: You specified an option that is not valid for cut.
Action: Check the DESCRIPTION section of this man page for a
list of valid cut options.
Message: write error on standard output: system error
Cause: See syserror(3).
Action: See syserror(3).
PORTABILITY
POSIX.2. x/OPEN Portability Guide 4.0. UNIX System V.
MPE/iX NOTES
For information on how the current MPE/iX implementation may
affect the operation of this utility, see Appendix A, MPE/iX
Implementation Considerations.
SEE ALSO
paste(1), uname(1)
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