Cron - The GUI way

In my last blog post I showed how to write a simple script to record your external IP address. Then, using cron, how to schedule that script to run on a regular basis. The hardest part of the whole exercise was editing the crontab file using the VI editor. How about I show you an easier way to edit the crontab file using CronniX.

CronniX is a great GUI (graphical User Interface) front end to the cron function. When you open CronniX you will see a list of your current crontab file.

If you click the "New" button in the upper left you can enter in a new command.

You are greeted with a non-functional example screen but choosing either the Simple or Expert tab to enter your interval and command is a much easier way rather than using weird UNIX keystrokes on the command line. 

If you want to make sure the end result will run when you want it to check out this web page. Enter in when you want things to happen and it will output the correct crontab entry so you can see what it should look like.  It's a great web tool to check your crontab file and ensure it's doing what you want. There are other GUI cron editors out there so if CronniX isn't for you feel free to check out Crontooie, or Lingon.

Give Cronnix a try the next time you want to schedule a recurring or one time job to run while you are away from your computer.