How to use the command "xml-unescape" (with examples)
In this article, we will explore the xml unescape command, which is part of the XMLStarlet toolkit. This command allows us to unescape special XML characters within a string or from the standard input (stdin). We’ll cover three different use cases of the xml unescape command by providing the code, motivation, explanation for each argument, and example outputs.
Use Case 1: Unescaping special XML characters from a string
To unescape special XML characters from a string, we can use the following code:
xml unescape "<a1>"
Motivation: Escaping special XML characters is necessary when we want to include characters that have a special meaning in XML, such as < and >, without actually interpreting them as XML tags. By unescaping these characters, we can restore their original representation.
Explanation: The unescape subcommand is used to unescape special XML characters. In this case, we pass the string “<a1>” as an argument to be unescaped.
Example Output: The output of the above command will be <a1>, which is the unescaped representation of the input string.
Use Case 2: Unescaping special XML characters from stdin
To unescape special XML characters from the standard input (stdin), we can use the following code:
echo "<a1>" | xml unescape
Motivation: Sometimes, we may have a large amount of XML content that needs to be unescaped. Instead of passing the content as a command-line argument, we can make use of stdin to provide the XML content more conveniently.
Explanation: In this case, we use the echo command to write the string “<a1>” to stdout, which is then piped into the xml unescape command. The xml unescape command takes input from stdin and unescapes the special XML characters.
Example Output: The output of the above command will be <a1>, which is the unescaped representation of the input string.
Use Case 3: Displaying help for the unescape subcommand
To display help for the unescape subcommand, we can use the following code:
xml escape --help
Motivation: When working with a new command or tool, it is often helpful to refer to the documentation to understand its usage and available options. The --help option provides a quick way to access the command’s help page.
Explanation: In this case, we use the --help option when invoking the xml escape command. It displays the help page for the unescape subcommand, providing information on its usage, available options, and more.
Example Output: The output of the above command will be the help page for the unescape subcommand, which includes information on its usage, options, and more.
