NAME

       xtail - Watch the growth of files.

SYNTAX

       xtail entry ...

DESCRIPTION

       Xtail  monitors  one  or more files, and displays all data written to a file since command
       invocation.  It is very useful for monitoring multiple logfiles simultaneously.

       If an entry given on the command line is a directory, all files in that directory will  be
       monitored,  including  those created after the xtail invocation.  If an entry given on the
       command line doesn't exist, xtail will watch for it and monitor  it  once  created.   When
       switching files in the display, a banner showing the pathname of the file is printed.

       An  interrupt  character  (usually CTRL/C or DEL) will display a list of the most recently
       modified files being watched.  Send a quit signal (usually CTRL/backslash) to stop xtail.

SEE ALSO

       tail(1)

NOTES

       Xtail may be easily confused.  For example, if you ask  it  to  monitor  a  file  multiple
       times, it probably will.  If you misspell a filename, xtail will treat it as a nonexistent
       entry and happily wait for its creation.

       My favorite use is "xtail /usr/spool/uucp/.Log/*".

AUTHOR

       Chip Rosenthal <chip@unicom.com>

                                                                                         XTAIL(1)