I'm working on a bash script and want it to respond immediately when the user presses 'x' without needing to hit Enter afterward. Currently, my approach looks something like this:
```bash
cat <<EOF
Press x
EOF
read response
if [[ $response == 'x' ]]; then
printf "you did it!"
else
printf "dummy"
fi
```
The issue is that it requires the user to press x and then Enter. Is there a way to get it to listen for the key press and respond right away?
2 Answers
To read just a single character without requiring Enter, you can use `read -rn1 response`. This will let your script respond right after the user presses 'x'.
Using a HEREDOC for a single line seems a bit overkill, you might want to simplify. But if it makes your actual script clearer, that's fine! Just keep in mind that simpler is often better unless you have a specific need for that complexity.
This was just an example, in the real script it's a little longer. Is there a technical disadvantage to using a HEREDOC?
Awesome, thanks!