"If you're familiar with UNIX, the pipeline, or pipe, is an integral part of everyday processing. Originally developed by Malcolm McIlroy, the pipeline allows you to redirect the standard output (stdout) of one command to become the standard input (stdin) of the following command in a single chained execution. Using the pipeline isn't limited to one instance per execution. Quite often, the stdout of one command is used as stdin of the following command, and the subsequent stdout is redirected yet again as stdin to another command and so on."
