JOT(1)                  System General Commands Manual                  JOT(1)

NAME
     jot - print sequential or random data

SYNOPSIS
     jot [-rcn] [-b word] [-w word] [-s string] [-p precision] [reps [begin
         [end [s]]]]

DESCRIPTION
     The jot utility is used to print out increasing, decreasing, random, or
     redundant data (usually numbers) one per line.

     The following options are available:

     -r      Generate random data instead of sequential data, the default.

     -b word
             Just print word repetitively.

     -w word
             Print word with the generated data appended to it.  Octal, hex-
             adecimal, exponential, ASCII, zero padded, and right-adjusted
             representations are possible by using the appropriate printf(3)
             conversion specification inside word, in which case the data are
             inserted rather than appended.

     -c      This is an abbreviation for -w %c.

     -s string
             Print data separated by string.  Normally, newlines separate
             data.

     -n      Do not print the final newline normally appended to the output.

     -p precision
             Print only as many digits or characters of the data as indicated
             by the integer precision.  In the absence of -p, the precision is
             the greater of the precisions of begin and end.  The -p option is
             overridden by whatever appears in a printf(3) conversion follow-
             ing -w.

     The last four arguments indicate, respectively, the number of data, the
     lower bound, the upper bound, and the step size or, for random data, the
     seed.  While at least one of them must appear, any of the other three may
     be omitted, and will be considered as such if given as ``-''.  Any three
     of these arguments determines the fourth.  If four are specified and the
     given and computed values of reps conflict, the lower value is used.  If
     fewer than three are specified, defaults are assigned left to right,
     except for s, which assumes its default unless both begin and end are
     given.

     Defaults for the four arguments are, respectively, 100, 1, 100, and 1,
     except that when random data are requested, s defaults to a seed depend-
     ing upon the time of day.  reps is expected to be an unsigned integer,
     and if given as zero is taken to be infinite.  begin and end may be given
     as real numbers or as characters representing the corresponding value in
     ASCII.  The last argument must be a real number.

     Random numbers are obtained through random(3).  The name jot derives in
     part from iota, a function in APL.

EXAMPLES
     The command:
           jot 21 -1 1.00
     prints 21 evenly spaced numbers increasing from -1 to 1.

     The command:
           jot -c 128 0
     prints the ASCII character set.

     The command:
           jot -w xa%c 26 a
     prints the strings ``xaa'' through ``xaz''.

     The command:
           jot -r -c 160 a z | rs -g 0 8
     prints 20 random 8-letter strings.

     The command:
           jot -b y 0
     is equivalent to yes(1).

     The command:
           jot -w %ds/old/new/ 30 2 - 5
     prints thirty ed(1) substitution commands applying to lines 2, 7, 12,
     etc.

     The command:
           jot 0 9 - -.5
     prints the stuttering sequence 9, 9, 8, 8, 7, etc.

     The command:
           jot -b x 512 > block
     creates a file containing exactly 1024 bytes.

     The command:
           expand -`jot -s, - 10 132 4`
     sets tabs four spaces apart starting from column 10 and ending in column
     132.

     The command:
           grep `jot -s "" -b . 80`
     prints all lines 80 characters or longer.

SEE ALSO
     ed(1), expand(1), rs(1), yes(1), printf(3), random(3)

BSD                            November 1, 1997                            BSD