The POSIX operating system is, figuratively, an API for itself. If you can figure out how to complete a task in a POSIX shell, then you can automate that task. That’s programming, and the main vehicle for this everyday POSIX programming method is the shell script.
True to its name, the shell script is a line-by-line recipe for what you want your computer to do, just as you would have done it manually.
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