read command in Bash Scripting - Mini Project: Build & Apply

Using the read Command in Bash

📖 Scenario: You want to create a simple script that asks a user for their name and age, then uses that information to display a greeting message.

🎯 Goal: Build a Bash script that uses the read command to get user input and then prints a message using that input.

📋 What You'll Learn

Use the read command to get user input

Store the input in variables named name and age

Print a greeting message using the input values

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

Scripts often need to ask users for information like names, passwords, or choices. The <code>read</code> command is the basic way to get this input in Bash.

💼 Career

Knowing how to get user input in scripts is essential for system administrators, DevOps engineers, and anyone automating tasks with Bash.

1

Create variables to hold user input

Write a Bash script that uses the read command to get the user's name and store it in a variable called name.

Bash Scripting

# Use read to get the user's name and store it in the variable name
# Your code here

Need a hint?

Use read -p "Enter your name: " name to prompt and store input.

2

Add input for user's age

Add a read command to get the user's age and store it in a variable called age.

Bash Scripting

read -p "Enter your name: " name
# Use read to get the user's age and store it in the variable age
# Your code here

Need a hint?

Use read -p "Enter your age: " age to prompt and store input.

3

Create a greeting message using the input

Write a echo command that prints: Hello, [name]! You are [age] years old. using the variables name and age.

Bash Scripting

read -p "Enter your name: " name
read -p "Enter your age: " age
# Print the greeting message using echo
# Your code here

Need a hint?

Use echo "Hello, $name! You are $age years old." to print the message.

4

Run the script and display the output

Run the script and show the output after entering John as the name and 30 as the age. The output should be: Hello, John! You are 30 years old.

Bash Scripting

read -p "Enter your name: " name
read -p "Enter your age: " age
echo "Hello, $name! You are $age years old."
# Run the script and show the output

Need a hint?

Type John when prompted for name and 30 when prompted for age.