Try this:
IFS='' longstring="${startstring} ${longstring}"
You can read about IFS in the bash manual:
https://www.gnu.org/software/bash/manual/bash.html
On Wed, Jul 2, 2025 at 11:36 AM home user via users
<users@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> f42 workstation.
>
> I'm trying to prepend a string and multiple spaces to another string. I
> can't get it to work. How do I do it? See 3 attempts below. I really
> do want multiple spaces between the startstring and the longstring.
>
> -----
>
> me@road-runner:~$ cat spaces1.bash
> #!/bin/bash
>
> #==============================================================================
>
> echo Enter start string:
> read startstring
> echo startstring = \"${startstring}\".
> echo
>
> longstring="This is a long test string"
> echo longstring = \"${longstring}\".
>
> $longstring="${startstring} ${longstring}"
> echo longstring = \"${longstring}\".
> me@road-runner:~$ ./spaces1.bash
> Enter start string:
> 11
> startstring = "11".
>
> longstring = "This is a long test string".
> ./spaces1.bash: line 13: This: command not found
> longstring = "This is a long test string".
> me@road-runner:~$
>
> ------
>
> me@road-runner:~$ cat spaces2.bash
> #!/bin/bash
>
> #==============================================================================
>
> echo Enter start string:
> read startstring
> echo startstring = \"${startstring}\".
> echo
>
> longstring="This is a long test string"
> echo longstring = \"${longstring}\".
>
> spaces3=" "
> $longstring="${startstring}${spaces3}${longstring}"
> echo longstring = \"${longstring}\".
> me@road-runner:~$ ./spaces2.bash
> Enter start string:
> 22
> startstring = "22".
>
> longstring = "This is a long test string".
> ./spaces2.bash: line 14: This: command not found
> longstring = "This is a long test string".
> me@road-runner:~$
>
> ------
>
> me@road-runner:~$ cat spaces3.bash
> #!/bin/bash
>
> #==============================================================================
>
> echo Enter start string:
> read startstring
> echo startstring = \"${startstring}\".
> echo
>
> longstring="This is a long test string"
> echo longstring = \"${longstring}\".
>
> $longstring=${startstring} ${longstring}
> echo longstring = \"${longstring}\".
> me@road-runner:~$ ./spaces3.bash
> Enter start string:
> 333
> startstring = "333".
>
> longstring = "This is a long test string".
> ./spaces3.bash: line 13: This: command not found
> longstring = "This is a long test string".
> me@road-runner:~$
>
> ------
>
>
> --
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--
Jerry James
http://www.jamezone.org/
--
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