Write those useless cats

Let's all get UUOC awards

Consider

al < bob | carol | dave edgar > frank

vs

cat bob | al  | carol | dave edgar > frank

In the first, the data starts with bob, flows to the left into al, then back over bob and to the right via carol.

In the second, data flows left to right from bob to al to carol. Data flowing in one direction, left to right is easier to reason about than spiraling around, it’s easier to read (and much easier to skim!), which improves readability.

If you’re old, you’ll remember UUOC awards because “cat costs you a process so don’t use it”. Nonsense, that “useless cat” buys you

• readability

• which lets you code faster

• which matters more than machine efficiency

• which is unix approved