msgcomm(1) on Solnix vs Linux and the BSDs
msgcomm is GNU gettext's tool for finding messages common to several PO files. It is not in the Solnix base system; install pkgs.solnix.gettext. The Solnix page documents gettext-tools 0.22.5, which matches Linux except for the version, while the NetBSD page documents the much older 0.16.1.
The manual pages
- Solnix: msgcomm(1) from
pkgs.solnix.gettext - Linux: msgcomm(1) gettext-1.0
- NetBSD: msgcomm(1) 11.0
What Solnix runs
Not installed by default: add pkgs.solnix.gettext. The package ships GNU gettext-tools 0.22.5 (February 2024 page). No other illumos variants are shipped. The bundle contains no illumos msgcomm page.
Differences
| Compared with | Topic | What differs |
|---|---|---|
| Linux | same program | Solnix (gettext-tools 0.22.5) and Linux (gettext-tools 1.0) document the same GNU msgcomm, with the same synopsis and the same options. The only visible difference is the gettext version. Source: Solnix msgcomm(1) footer (GNU gettext-tools 0.22.5); Linux msgcomm(1) footer (GNU gettext-tools 1.0); both OPTIONS sections |
| NetBSD | --color and --style missing | Solnix documents --color[=WHEN] (always, never, auto, html) and --style=STYLEFILE for coloured output. The NetBSD msgcomm page lists neither option.Source: Solnix msgcomm(1) Output details (--color, --style); NetBSD msgcomm(1) Output details |
| NetBSD | gettext version age | The NetBSD page documents GNU gettext-tools 0.16.1 (November 2006). Solnix documents 0.22.5. Options added between those releases may be missing on NetBSD, and the NetBSD page itself lists no --color or --style.Source: NetBSD msgcomm(1) footer (0.16.1, November 2006); Solnix msgcomm(1) footer (0.22.5, February 2024) |
| Linux, NetBSD | same selection options | --less-than (-<), --more-than (->) and -u/--unique are documented identically on Solnix, Linux and NetBSD. Defaults: --more-than is 1, --less-than is infinite. -u is shorthand for --less-than=2.Source: Solnix, Linux and NetBSD msgcomm(1) Message selection |
| Linux, NetBSD | input and output conventions | On all three systems, input file - means standard input, and output goes to standard output when -o is absent or is -. Translations and comments are kept only from the first PO file that defines them.Source: Solnix, Linux and NetBSD msgcomm(1) Input file location, Output file location, DESCRIPTION |
Standards
- POSIX: msgcomm is not a POSIX.1-2024 utility.
- Solnix: The page cites no standard. The Solnix page documents only the GNU Texinfo manual (info msgcomm).
Writing portable scripts
- Scripts that use only
-f,-D,-o,-u,--more-than,--less-thanand the PO output options run on Solnix, Linux and NetBSD. Avoid--colorand--style, which the NetBSD page does not document. - On Solnix, check that pkgs.solnix.gettext is installed before calling msgcomm, because it is not in the base system.
Every difference here is taken from the manual pages linked above: Solnix's published page, Linux (man-pages and the GNU and util-linux manuals), FreeBSD, OpenBSD and NetBSD. Each row names its source. Where a manual is silent, this page is too. Compiled 2026-10-26. Found a mistake? Mail hackers@lists.solnix.io.