> Why are you doing all that piping and grepping? And the -F" " confuses > me...oh, I see. First, whitespace is the default field separator in awk. > Then, are you asking if there's a line with a "." in it, or just any > non-whitespace? If the latter... mmm, I see, you *really* don't understand > awk. Ok Mark very nice of you to help Craig. He does not claim to be an expert in "awk" or even competent ---> Which is obviously why he is asking for help in the first place. No need for the sarcasm and to belittle the poster. Remember lots of people looking for help will be directed to this answer and your help could be much appreciated.... Regards, Steve