g.filename <main>     GRASS Reference Manual	<main> g.filename



NAME
     g.filename	 - Prints GRASS data base file names.
     (GRASS File Management Program)

SYNOPSIS
     g.filename
     g.filename help
     g.filename element=name mapset=name file=name

DESCRIPTION
     g.filename is designed for Bourne shell scripts that need to
     know the full UNIX file name for raster map layers, vector
     files, site list files, geographic region definition
     (windows) files, imagery group files, etc., in the GRASS
     data base.	 If the user runs g.filename without command line
     arguments (i.e., simply types g.filename), this program will
     prompt the user for input using the standard parser
     interface described in the manual entry for parser.

     Parameters:

     element=name      The name of a GRASS data base element
		       (i.e., directory within the GRASS mapset
		       location).

     mapset=name       The name of a GRASS data base mapset.  As
		       a convenience, a single dot (.) can be
		       used to designate the current mapset.

     file=name	       The name of a GRASS data base file.

OUTPUT
     g.filename writes one line to standard output:

	  file='full_file_pathname'

     The output is a /bin/sh command to set the variable
     specified by the file name to the full UNIX path name for
     the data base file.  This variable may be set in the /bin/sh
     as follows:

	  eval `g.filename element=name mapset=name file=name`

NOTES
     This routine generates the filename, but does not care if
     the file (or mapset or element) exists or not.  This feature
     allows shell scripts to create new data base files as well
     as use existing ones.

     If the mapset is the current mapset, g.filename
     automatically creates the element specified if it doesn't
     already exist.  This makes it easy to add new files to the



GRASS 5.0beta6	      GRASS Development Team			1






g.filename <main>     GRASS Reference Manual	<main> g.filename



     data base without having to worry about the existence of the
     required data base directories.  (This program will not
     create a new mapset, however, if that specified does not
     currently exist.)

     The program exits with a 0 if everything is ok;  it exits
     with a non-zero value if there is an error, in which case
     file='full_file_pathname' is not output.

SEE ALSO
     g.ask, g.findfile, g.gisenv, and parser

AUTHOR
     Michael Shapiro, U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research
     Laboratory








































2		      GRASS Development Team	   GRASS 5.0beta6