== $PATH in Solaris It's always the little things about new Unix systems that get to me. Take _$PATH_ on Solaris. On a modern Linux distribution with a stock install, a sysadmin's full $PATH needs only five directories: > _/bin /usr/bin /sbin /usr/sbin /usr/X11R6/bin_ (Sometimes _/usr/bin/X11_ is used instead of _/usr/X11R6/bin_.) On Solaris 9, my $PATH is (so far): > _/usr/bin /bin /usr/sbin /sbin /usr/ccs/bin /opt/sfw/bin > /usr/openwin/bin /usr/sfw/bin_ Why are all of these necessary? Well, * _/usr/ccs/bin_ is where Solaris hides _make_ (and _m4_). * _/usr/openwin/bin_ is where all the X programs live. * _/usr/sfw/bin_ has _wget_. * _/opt/sfw/bin_ has all the useful freeware programs, like _rsync_, _python_, _lynx_, and a diff that understands _-u_. If I want to do anything with Sun's [[dt*|]] tools, I need to add _/usr/dt/bin_. If I fiddled much with Java, I'd want to add _/usr/java/bin_. Personally, I think that this is the sign of immature package management tools in Solaris 9. Not needing a pile of entries in $PATH is much easier for users, and decent package management tools make it no more difficult for the system administrator to manage.