HELP PATHNAMES 84/12/20
USING PATHNAMES
A pathname describes the path the operating system takes to get from a
starting point to a destination object. A pathname begins with the network's
top directory (called "//") and includes every directory name between the
starting point and the destination object. Slashes separate the names within
a pathname. A pathname may not exceed 256 characters, including the slashes.
Names between the slashes (called "leaves") may not exceed 32 characters.
This is an example of a pathname:
//dickens/barb/ref_man/ch4
The double slashes (//) at the beginning of the pathname refer to the
network's top directory, called the root directory. The root directory
contains the name of each network node's top directory. The system begins its
search in the network root directory. Next, the system finds the node whose
topmost directory (the "entry directory") is called "dickens". There are many
subdirectories in each node's entry directory. The system searches for the
subdirectory "barb". Next, it looks for "ref_man", a subdirectory in "barb".
Finally, the system locates the file "ch4".
Pathnames may contain any alphanumeric characters (upper/lower case is
insignificant), plus a variety of special operators called "wildcards." (For
more information on these, type "HELP WILDCARDS".) In addition to wildcard
characters, three other characters have special functions in pathnames:
\ The backslash refers to directories ABOVE the current working
directory. If your working directory is set to "//joe/help"
and you want the file "//joe/down/dirty", you can type
"\down/dirty".
. (period) The period is shorthand for the current working directory.
~ (tilde) The tilde is shorthand for the naming directory (see HELP ND).