# *******************************************************

# This function is like the php function trim,

# witch removes all spaces in front & back of a string.

#

# @param <STDIN>|$1 - The string as param or pipe stream

# @return string

#

function trim () {

if [ -n "$1" ]; then

    echo $1 | perl -p -e 's/^\s+|\s+$//g'

else

    cat - | perl -p -e 's/^\s+|\s+$//g'

fi

}