Hi Mark -- You said: > Very strange. Here is what I did on my system under bash: > > (mark, destiny)$ ls > Maelstrom gnuchessc maelstrom xonix > Maelstrom_sound gnuchessn mirrormagic xp-replay > acm gnuchessr nethack xpat2 > acms gnuchessx postprint xpilot > cmail gnugo pxboard xpilots > fortune gnushogi xasteroids xshogi > game gnushogir xbattle xsok > gnuan gnushogix xboard xtet42 > gnuchess kill-acms xinvaders xtron > (mark, destiny)$ dpkg -l *tex* > Desired=Unknown/Install/Remove/Purge > | Status=Not/Installed/Config-files/Unpacked/Failed-config/Half-installed > |/ Err?=(none)/Hold/Reinst-required/X=both-problems (Status,Err: uppercase=ba d) > ||/ Name Version Description > +++-===============-==============-========================================== == > un X11-text-viewer <none> (no description available) > pn amslatex <none> (no description available) > pn amstex <none> (no description available) > pn auctex <none> (no description available) > pn bibtex <none> (no description available) > pn gettext <none> (no description available) > pn hyperlatex <none> (no description available) > pn latex <none> (no description available) > pn latex2e-doc <none> (no description available) > pn latex2rtf <none> (no description available) > ii nb-tex 2.1-1 NTeX package > ii nb-texi 2.1-1 NTeX package > ii ntex 2.1-1 NTeX package > ii nx-etex 2.1-1 NTeX package > ii nx-mtex 2.1-1 NTeX package > un tex <none> (no description available) > pn texbin <none> (no description available) > pn texidoc <none> (no description available) > ii texinfo 3.7-1 The GNU Project's documentation formatting s > pn texlib <none> (no description available) > pn texpsfnt <none> (no description available) > pn textfm <none> (no description available) > ii textutils 1.19-1 The GNU text file processsing utilities. > ii untex 9210-4 Remove LaTeX commands from input. > > > (Which incidently is the same as what I get when I use the quotes) >
What you got was correct. Your directory listing shows no files which match *tex*. Therefore, the shell couldn't expand *tex* to anything in your directory, and therefore passed the string *tex* to dpkg, which expanded it on its own. If: -- you have a file whose name matches *tex* in the current working directory, AND if the name of that file _is not_ the name of a Debian package, then dpkg wouldn't be able to infer its status. You'd get a message "No packages found matching <whatever file you had that matched *tex*>." -- you have a file whose name matches *tex* in the current working directory, AND if the name of the file _is_ the name of a Debian package, then dpkg -l would be able to look up its status and report it. -- you do not have a file whose name matches *tex* in the current working directory, then the shell passes *tex* to dpkg, which expands the regexp in its administrative directories. HTH, Susan
