What are alternatives to sort command?

The `sort` command is a powerful utility in Unix/Linux for sorting lines of text files. However, there are several alternatives that can be used depending on your specific needs. Below are some alternatives to the `sort` command:

  • awk: A versatile programming language that can also perform sorting using specific fields.
  • perl: Can be used for sorting with its built-in functions.
  • python: Using the `sort()` method can facilitate sorting operations.
  • uniq: Often used in conjunction with sort, it removes duplicate lines, but can also be used for sorting.
  • sed: While not a sorting tool by design, it can manipulate text in a way that facilitates sorting.

Below is an example of using `awk` to sort numbers in a file:

awk '{print $1}' numbers.txt | sort -n

sort alternatives to sort command awk perl python text file sorting Linux utilities