For registration please send a brief email to info[at]hgs-hire.de as soon as possible.
June 22-26, 2026
Bash – From zero to working knowledge
Alessandro Sciarra (U Frankfurt)
Gerhard Burau (HGS-HIRe)
This five-days training event aims to bring the participants from-zero to a good understanding of Bash and tools nearby,
as well as to teach how to be more effective in daily tasks (without forgetting good clean-code practices). Although few
technical aspects are left out, this power week is very complete and rich in examples and any attendee will be able to fill
any possible leftover gap afterwards. While most scientists today naturally adopt Python for almost any scripting task – often
for very good reasons – a solid command of a shell language unlocks a different and complementary level of efficiency.
Bash does not compete with Python; it completes it. A more detailed motivation and description of the aim is provided in the
pdf file
linked here.
The training is tailored to PhD students doing computational science who have to deal with software and data on a regular or even daily basis. The main focus is Bash scripting language. The core of the language will be introduced in the very beginning of the course and both language features as well as Unix surrounding tools will be explored more and more throughout the week, enriching the participants section after section.
It will be assumed that you have been (or in the best case will be) working with software and data processing for a while. Basically, the only prerequisite is knowing the basics of using a shell on a Unix system (or WSL on Windows). Knowing some other scripting language to deal with data files, like Python, will enrich your experience, but it is not required. Any previous knowledge of Bash is welcome and this course will refresh, polish and complete it. You will reflect on your knowledge during the course, while discovering and learning Bash.
Every participant is assumed to fulfil the following requirements
pdf file
linked here. If you choose to install a newer version, prefer the latest stable release available through your package manager. If you do not manage
to get a recent Bash version working on your machine, please contact the trainer well in advance before the course. Note that it is perfectly fine
to work over SSH, e.g., on your university machine.
The preliminary agenda and schedule is provided in the pdf file
linked here. However, do not take the separation between blue and green boxes as final! Actually the plan is to intertwine those as much as possible having more smaller
lecture-like and hands-on sessions. If time allows it, further discussion will be included in the daily program. If you need further information, please contact the coordinator.
can be found here.
Important note: Your transport costs will be reimbursed by HGS-HIRe independent of your individual HGS-HIRe travel budget. Hence there is no need to send us a travel reimbursement request via the HGS-HIRe Self-Service Center in advance. Instead, please send us a completed expense coverage request form (will be distributed during the event) soon after your course participation.
Although the transport costs will be reimbursed by HGS-HIRe, please keep your travel expenses as low as possible to help us use the Graduate School's financial resources responsibly. Whenever possible, use your semester ticket and/or your BahnCard in combination with Deutsche Bahn's discounted fares (second-class only). First-class tickets are generally non-refundable.
You can reach the venue by public transport, e.g., by train to Grünberg (Oberhessen) and from there by bus to the
hotel Waldhaus in Laubach (Hessen), more details here.
Otherwise please try to travel by car pool. If somebody want to offer a lift, he/she should send an e-mail to info[at]hgs-hire.de so that we can forward
the information to the other participants of the power week.
