I have the following in my .zshenv:

export loc=$HOME/local
export bin=$loc/bin
export wrk=$loc/work
....

(The ... stands for similar assignments of directory names to shell
variables.)

All these assignments, with the exception of the one for bin,
produce the desired results when I use the corresponding "~xyz"
construct. I.e. "~xyz" gets expanded to the directory named in
the shell variable $xyz:

% echo $loc
/home/jones/local
% cd ~loc
% pwd
/home/jones/local
% echo $wrk
/home/jones/local/work
% cd ~wrk
% pwd
/home/jones/local/work

But not so for $bin/~bin:

% echo $bin
/home/jones/local/bin
% cd ~bin
% pwd
/bin

Does anyone understand why "cd ~bin" takes me to /bin and not to
/home/jones/local/bin (i.e. the directory named in $bin)?

TIA!

kj
--
NOTE: In my address everything before the first period is backwards;
and the last period, and everything after it, should be discarded.

2007-07-27, 17:47(+00), kj:
[...]
> I have the following in my .zshenv:
>
> export loc=$HOME/local
> export bin=$loc/bin
[...]
> % cd ~bin
> % pwd
> /bin
>
> Does anyone understand why "cd ~bin" takes me to /bin and not to
> /home/jones/local/bin (i.e. the directory named in $bin)?
[...]

Many systems have a user called "bin".
cd ~bin
takes you to that user's home directory.

--
Stéphane

In <slrnfake4c.c6l.stephane.chazelas@spam.is.invali d> Stephane CHAZELAS <this.address@is.invalid> writes:

>2007-07-27, 17:47(+00), kj:
>[...]
>> I have the following in my .zshenv:
>>
>> export loc=$HOME/local
>> export bin=$loc/bin
>[...]
>> % cd ~bin
>> % pwd
>> /bin
>>
>> Does anyone understand why "cd ~bin" takes me to /bin and not to
>> /home/jones/local/bin (i.e. the directory named in $bin)?
>[...]

>Many systems have a user called "bin".
>cd ~bin
>takes you to that user's home directory.

Thanks. That's exactly the case here. I should have guessed that!

kj

--
NOTE: In my address everything before the first period is backwards;
and the last period, and everything after it, should be discarded.