fortune

Print a random, hopefully interesting, adage

Contributed by

Mike Hopkirk (hops)

Obtained from

Net - NET2 distribution

Author(s)

Derived from code contrib to Berkeley by Ken Arnold.

Restrictions

Berkeley - See Copyright file here

Description

• -a - Choose from all lists of maxims, both offensive and not.
• -e - Consider all fortune files to be of equal size (see discussion below on multiple files).
• -f - Print out the list of files which would be searched, but don't print a fortune.
• -l - Long dictums only.
• -m pattern - Print out all fortunes which match the regular expression pattern
• -o - Choose only from potentially offensive aphorisms.

  Please, please, please request a potentially offensive fortune if and only if you believe, deep down in your heart, that you are willing to be offended. (And that if you are, you'll just quit using -o rather than give us grief about it, okay?)

  ... let us keep in mind the basic governing philosophy of The Brotherhood, as handsomely summarized in these words: we believe in healthy, hearty laughter -- at the expense of the whole human race, if needs be. Needs be.
  -- H. Allen Smith, "Rude Jokes"

• -s - Short apothegms only.
• -i - Ignore case for patterns.
• -w - Wait before termination for an amount of time calculated from the number of characters in the message. This is useful if it is executed as part of the logout procedure to guarantee that the message can be read before the screen is cleared.

Productivity

Dependant on your appreciation of the relationship between amusement and productivity...

Safety

Examined code and run it occasionally

Work Planned

None

Documentation

Man Page

Verification

SKUNK_LIB=. ./fortune/fortune or

fortune