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|
+++
date = 2022-07-31
title = "Upgrade Bash with Bash-It & Ble.sh"
description = "In this post, I walk through the Bash-It and Ble.sh projects, their features, and how they help users power-up their bash shell."
+++
## Bash
For those who are not familiar,
[Bash](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bash_(Unix_shell)) is a Unix shell that is
used as the default login shell for most Linux distributions. This shell and
command processor should be familiar if you've used Linux (or older version of
macOS) before.
However, bash is not the only option.
There are numerous other shells that exist.
Here are some popular examples:
- [zsh](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z_shell)
- [fish](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_(Unix_shell))
- [oksh](https://github.com/ibara/oksh)
- [mksh](https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Mksh)
- [dash](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debian_Almquist_shell)
While each shell has its differences, bash is POSIX compliant and the default
for many Linux users. Because of this, I am going to explore a program called
`bash-it` below that helps bash users increase the utility of their shell
without installing a completely new shell.
### Installation
First, if bash is not already installed on your system, you can [download bash
from GNU](https://www.gnu.org/software/bash/) or use your package manager to
install it.
For example, this is how you can install bash on Fedora Linux:
```sh
sudo dnf install bash
```
If you are not using bash as your default shell, use the `chsh` command to
change your shell:
```sh
chsh
```
You should see a prompt like the one below. If the brackets (`[]`) contain
`bash` already, you're done, and you can simply continue by hitting the Enter
key.
If the brackets contain another shell path (e.g. `/usr/bin/zsh`), enter the path
to the bash program on your system (it's most likely located at
`/usr/bin/bash`).
```sh
Changing shell for <user>.
New shell [/usr/bin/bash]:
```
You must log out or restart the machine in order for the login shell to be
refreshed. You can do it now or wait until you're finished customizing the
shell.
```sh
sudo reboot now
```
## Bash-it
As noted on the [Bash-it](https://github.com/Bash-it/bash-it) repository:
> Bash-it is a collection of community Bash commands and scripts for Bash 3.2+.
> (And a shameless ripoff of oh-my-zsh 😃)
Bash-it makes it easy to install plugins, set up aliases for common commands,
and easily change the visual theme of your shell.
### Installation
To install the framework, simply copy the repository files and use the
`install.sh` script provided. If you want, you can (and should!) inspect the
contents of the installation script before you run it.
```sh
git clone --depth=1 https://github.com/Bash-it/bash-it.git ~/.bash_it
~/.bash_it/install.sh
```
If you didn't restart your session after making bash the default, and are
currently working within another shell, be sure to enter a bash session before
using `bash-it`:
```sh
bash
```
### Aliases
Bash-it contains a number of aliases for common commands to help improve
efficiency in the terminal. To list all available options, use the following
command:
```sh
bash-it show aliases
```
This will provide you a list that looks like the following text block.
Within this screen, you will be able to see all available options and which
ones are currently enabled.
```txt
Alias Enabled? Description
ag [ ] the silver searcher (ag) aliases
ansible [ ] ansible abbreviations
apt [ ] Apt and dpkg aliases for Ubuntu and Debian distros.
atom [ ] Atom.io editor abbreviations
bash-it [ ] Aliases for the bash-it command (these aliases are automatically included with the "general" aliases)
bolt [ ] puppet bolt aliases
bundler [ ] ruby bundler
clipboard [ ] xclip shortcuts
composer [ ] common composer abbreviations
curl [x] Curl aliases for convenience.
...
```
To enable an alias, do:
```sh
bash-it enable alias <alias name> [alias name]... -or- $ bash-it enable alias all
```
To disable an alias, do:
```sh
bash-it disable alias <alias name> [alias name]... -or- $ bash-it disable alias all
```
### Plugins
Similar to aliases, plugins are available with bash-it. You can find a complete
list of plugins in the same way as aliases. Simply execute the following:
```sh
bash-it show plugins
```
You will see the following output showing enabled and disabled plugins:
```txt
Plugin Enabled? Description
alias-completion [ ]
autojump [ ] Autojump configuration, see https://github.com/wting/autojump for more details
aws [ ] AWS helper functions
base [x] miscellaneous tools
basher [ ] initializes basher, the shell package manager
battery [x] display info about your battery charge level
blesh [ ] load ble.sh, the Bash line editor!
boot2docker [ ] Helpers to get Docker setup correctly for boot2docker
browser [ ] render commandline output in your browser
```
To enable a plugin, do:
```sh
bash-it enable plugin <plugin name> [plugin name]... -or- $ bash-it enable plugin all
```
To disable a plugin, do:
```sh
bash-it disable plugin <plugin name> [plugin name]... -or- $ bash-it disable plugin all
```
### Themes
There are quite a few pre-defined
[themes](https://bash-it.readthedocs.io/en/latest/themes-list/#list-of-themes)
available with bash-it.
To list all themes:
```sh
ls ~/.bash_it/themes/
```
To use a new theme, you'll need to edit `.bashrc` and alter the `BASH_IT_THEME`
variable to your desired theme. For example, I am using the `zork` theme.
```sh
nano ~/.bashrc
```
```sh
export BASH_IT_THEME='zork'
```
Once you save your changes, you just need to exit your terminal and create a new
one in order to see your changes to the `.bashrc` file. You can also `source`
the file to see changes, but I recommend starting a completely new shell
instead.
## ble.sh
One big feature I was missing in Bash that both `zsh` and `fish` have is an
autosuggestion feature. To explain: as you type, an autosuggestion feature in
the shell will offer suggestions in a lighter font color beyond the characters
already typed. Once you see the command you want, you can click the right arrow
and have the shell auto-complete that line for you.
Luckily, the [Bash Line Editor](https://github.com/akinomyoga/ble.sh) (ble.sh)
exists! This program provides a wonderful autosuggestions feature perfectly,
among other features that I haven't tested yet.
In order to install ble.sh, execute the following:
```sh
git clone --recursive https://github.com/akinomyoga/ble.sh.git
make -C ble.sh install PREFIX=~/.local
echo 'source ~/.local/share/blesh/ble.sh' >> ~/.bashrc
```
Again, exit the terminal and open a new one in order to see the newly-configured
shell.
## Restart the Session
Finally, as mentioned above, you'll need to restart the session to ensure that
your user is using bash by default.
You will also need to exit and re-open a shell (e.g., terminal or terminal tab)
any time you make changes to the `.bashrc` file.
```sh
sudo reboot now
```
|
