ANSI Escape Sequences
ANSI escape sequences are a standard for controlling text formatting and colors in terminal environments. They consist of special character sequences preceded by the escape character (\e or \033). Here’s how you can use ANSI escape sequences to print colored text:
echo -e "\e[31mThis text is red\e[0m"
changing text to red
In this example:
- \e[31m sets the text color to red.
- \e[0m resets the text formatting to the default.
You can replace 31 with other ANSI color codes for different colors:
- 31: Red
- 32: Green
- 33: Yellow
- 34: Blue
- 35: Magenta
- 36: Cyan
How to Print Colored Text to the Linux Terminal
Printing colored text to the Linux terminal can greatly enhance the visual appeal and readability of your command-line applications or scripts. While the terminal traditionally displays text in monochrome, incorporating colors can provide crucial context, highlight important information, or simply add a touch of aesthetic appeal. In this comprehensive guide, we will explore various methods to print colored text to the Linux terminal, covering everything from basic ANSI escape sequences to more advanced techniques using libraries like tput and terminfo.
Print Colored Text to the Linux Terminal
- ANSI Escape Sequences:
- Using tput:
- Terminfo Database:
- Using Shell Functions: