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🌀 Link Bin

An annex exposes a binary program without modifying $PATH – z-a-linkbin and automatically creates a hard or soft link to the binary at $ZPFX/bin exposing the program to the command line as if it were being placed in $PATH.

The command can then be accessed normally – not only in the live Zsh session but also from any Zsh script. The ice-modifier lbin'' provided by the annex creates links for binaries and scripts.

It creates the link that calls the actual binary. The link is created always under the same, standard and single $PATH entry: $ZPFX/bin

note

The optional preceding ! flag means creating a soft link instead of a hard link.

Example:

zi ice from'gh-r' as'program' \
  lbin'!fzf'
zi load junegunn/fzf

Check the output:

ls -l $ZPFX/bin/ | awk '{print $(NF-2),$(NF-1),$NF}'
fzf --version
note

The ice-modifier can contain globs as it will expand these when searching for the binary.

Example:

zi ice from'gh-r' as'program' \
  lbin'**fzf -> myfzf'
zi load junegunn/fzf

Check the output:

ls -l $ZPFX/bin/ | awk '{print $(NF-2),$(NF-1),$NF}'
myfzf --version

If ice-modifier id-as is empty, then will try to create the link with a nickname as follows:

  1. Trailing component of the id-as ice-modifier, e.g.: id-as'exts/git-my' → it will check if a file git-my exists and if yes, create the link git-my.
  2. The plugin name, e.g.: for paulirish/git-open it'll check if a file git-open exists and if yes, create the link git-open.
  3. Trailing component of the snippet URL.
  4. For any alphabetically first executable file.

The above also applies if just ! were passed.

Install linkbin​

Source

Add the following snippet in the .zshrc file:

zi light z-shell/z-a-linkbin

This will register the lbin'â€Ļ' ice-modifier.