Why is it always false?

Shell Programming and Scripting
1

Hi,
I'm new to UNIX and am trying to learn shell scripting in order to work on an interface that I inherited when a co-worker left. I need to be able to check to see whether a file exists to determine whether the FTP has taken place, but in testing, the if statement always evaluates as false, whether the file is there or not. Could someone tell me what I'm doing wrong?

Thanks.

filechk="/home/inform/LeanLogistic/CX_ORDER_LOAD_SHIPMENTexport.csv"
if [ -e "$filechk" ]
do some stuff
else
do something else
fi

2 
filechk="/home/inform/LeanLogistic/CX_ORDER_LOAD_SHIPMENTexport.csv"

if [ -e "$filechk" ]; then 
   do some stuff
else
   do something else
fi
3

I had the 'then', just forgot to put it in the pseudo-code, but the semi-colon was the key. Thanks so much! I've wrestled with this for days.

Is the semi-colon always needed in an if statement? I've been reading O'Reilly's Classic Shell Scripting and it doesn't mention the semi-colon at all. What gives?

4

either one of these is valid - it's a matter of the coding style:

if [ -e "$filechk" ]; then

OR

if [ -e "$filechk" ]
then