# $? is always new?

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728>\
**Category:** Ruby\
**Created:** [June 25, 2010, 11:21pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728 "2010-06-25T23:21:30Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/rogerdpack)\
**Post date:** [June 25, 2010, 11:21pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728/1 "2010-06-25T23:21:30Z")

</div>

Is the following expected?

$ irb

> > $?  
> > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 20110 exit 0\>
> 
> > $?  
> > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 20122 exit 0\>
> 
> > $?  
> > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 20134 exit 0\>

What are those phantom processes?  
-r

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/rogerdpack)\
**Post date:** [June 25, 2010, 11:48pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728/2 "2010-06-25T23:48:50Z")

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Roger P. wrote:

> Is the following expected?
> 
> $ irb
> 
> > > $?  
> > > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 20110 exit 0\>
> > 
> > > $?  
> > > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 20122 exit 0\>
> > 
> > > $?  
> > > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 20134 exit 0\>
> 
> What are those phantom processes?  
> -r

What platform are you on? What ruby version? For me, with ruby  
1.8.7.249-2 standard package from Ubuntu Lucid amd64:

$ irb  
irb(main):001:0\> $?  
=\> nil  
irb(main):002:0\> $?  
=\> nil  
irb(main):003:0\> $?  
=\> nil  
irb(main):004:0\> RUBY\_VERSION  
=\> “1.8.7”

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/rogerdpack)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2010, 12:00am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728/3 "2010-06-26T00:00:40Z")

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> > > > $?  
> > > > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 20122 exit 0\>
> > > 
> > > > $?  
> > > > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 20134 exit 0\>
> > 
> > What are those phantom processes?  
> > -r
> 
> What platform are you on? What ruby version? For me, with ruby  
> 1.8.7.249-2 standard package from Ubuntu Lucid amd64:
> 
> $ irb  
> irb(main):001:0\> $?  
> =\> nil

On windows it appears to behave as expected.

On linux (Ubuntu, I believe latest revision).

All built from source:

[25:1557][rdp@ilab1:~]$ ruby -v  
ruby 1.9.1p243 (2009-07-16 revision 24175) [i686-linux]  
[25:1557][rdp@ilab1:~]$ export RUBYOPT=  
[25:1558][rdp@ilab1:~]$ irb  
irb(main):001:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid 21719 exit 0\>  
irb(main):002:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid 21731 exit 0\>  
irb(main):003:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid 21743 exit 0\>  
irb(main):004:0\> exit  
[25:1558][rdp@ilab1:~]$ ~/installs/ruby-1.8.7-p174\_installed/bin/irb  
irb(main):001:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid=21771,exited(0)\>  
irb(main):002:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid=21778,exited(0)\>  
irb(main):003:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid=21785,exited(0)\>

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/rogerdpack)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2010, 1:30am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728/4 "2010-06-26T01:30:38Z")

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Roger P. wrote:

> [25:1558][rdp@ilab1:~]$ irb  
> irb(main):001:0\> $?  
> =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 21719 exit 0\>  
> irb(main):002:0\> $?  
> =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 21731 exit 0\>

Is there something in your .irbrc that is firing off processes?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/rogerdpack)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2010, 5:15am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728/5 "2010-06-26T05:15:23Z")

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On Jun 25, 8:33 pm, Luis L. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote:

> > On windows it appears to behave as expected.  
> > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid 21719 exit 0\>  
> > irb(main):003:0\> $?  
> > =\> #\<Process::Status: pid=21785,exited(0)\>
> 
> Linux or Windows, all the versions return nil when asked.
> 
> Seems there is a thread you’re running with your irb session that  
> might be spawning a lot.

It could be associated with rb-readline, but under my system it  
doesn’t spawn more than once:

:\Users\Luis\>irb  
irb(main):001:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid=3464,exited(0)\>  
irb(main):002:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid=3464,exited(0)\>  
irb(main):003:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid=3464,exited(0)\>  
irb(main):004:0\> $?  
=\> #\<Process::Status: pid=3464,exited(0)\>

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/rogerdpack)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2010, 2:36am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728/6 "2010-06-26T02:36:12Z")

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On Jun 25, 6:00 pm, Roger P. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote:

> [25:1557][rdp@ilab1:~]$ ruby -v  
> [25:1558][rdp@ilab1:~]$ ~/installs/ruby-1.8.7-p174\_installed/bin/irb  
> irb(main):001:0\> $?  
> =\> #\<Process::Status: pid=21771,exited(0)\>  
> irb(main):002:0\> $?  
> =\> #\<Process::Status: pid=21778,exited(0)\>  
> irb(main):003:0\> $?  
> =\> #\<Process::Status: pid=21785,exited(0)\>

Linux or Windows, all the versions return nil when asked.

Seems there is a thread you’re running with your irb session that  
might be spawning a lot.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rogerdpack](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/rogerdpack)\
**Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 4:13pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/is-always-new/190728/7 "2010-06-29T16:13:49Z")

</div>

> > Seems there is a thread you’re running with your irb session that  
> > might be spawning a lot.
> 
> It could be associated with rb-readline, but under my system it  
> doesn’t spawn more than once:

Interesting. I think that’s it…

possibly from this line:

#0:/home/rdp/installs/ruby-1.9.1-p243\_gc/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.9.1/rbreadline.rb:6834:Kernel:\>:

@readline\_echoing\_p = (`stty -a`.scan(/-\*echo\b/).first == ‘echo’)

Thanks for the tip!  
-r