distrib/share/tcl/help/tcl/control/source

   1 NAME
   2        source - Evaluate a file or resource as a Tcl script
   3
   4 SYNOPSIS
   5        source fileName
   6
   7        source -rsrc resourceName ?fileName?
   8
   9        source -rsrcid resourceId ?fileName?
  10
  11
  12 DESCRIPTION
  13        This  command  takes the contents of the specified file or resource and
  14        passes it to the Tcl interpreter as a text script.   The  return  value
  15        from  source  is  the  return value of the last command executed in the
  16        script.  If an error occurs in evaluating the contents  of  the  script
  17        then the source command will return that error.  If a return command is
  18        invoked from within the script then the remainder of the file  will  be
  19        skipped  and  the  source  command will return normally with the result
  20        from the return command.
  21
  22        The end-of-file character for files is '\32' (^Z)  for  all  platforms.
  23        The source command will read files up to this character.  This restric-
  24        tion does not exist for the read or gets commands, allowing  for  files
  25        containing code and data segments (scripted documents).  If you require
  26        a ``^Z'' in code  for  string  comparison,  you  can  use  ``\032''  or
  27        ``\u001a'',  which  will  be  safely substituted by the Tcl interpreter
  28        into ``^Z''.
  29
  30        The -rsrc and -rsrcid forms of this command are only available on  Mac-
  31        intosh  computers.  These versions of the command allow you to source a
  32        script from a TEXT resource.  You may specify  what  TEXT  resource  to
  33        source by either name or id.  By default Tcl searches all open resource
  34        files, which include the current application and any  loaded  C  exten-
  35        sions.   Alternatively,  you  may  specify  the fileName where the TEXT
  36        resource can be found.
  37
  38 EXAMPLE
  39        Run the script in the file foo.tcl and then  the  script  in  the  file
  40        bar.tcl:
  41               source foo.tcl
  42               source bar.tcl
  43        Alternatively:
  44               foreach scriptFile {foo.tcl bar.tcl} {
  45                  source $scriptFile
  46               }
  47
  48
  49 SEE ALSO
  50        file(n), cd(n), info(n)
  51
  52
  53 KEYWORDS