Linux: Putting two or more files together using cat

Many people are familiar with the “cat” command.  Most of us use it when dealing with text and logging.
This command can also be use to put multiple video files together.

Example:
cat video1.mpg video2.mpg > finalvideo.mpg

This is best when using video without audio.
If putting two video files together that have audio you will need to sync the video and sound with a program like mencoder.

cat command options:

cat [OPTION] [FILE]…

Description

Concatenate FILE(s), or standard input, to standard output.

-A, –show-all

equivalent to -vET

-b, –number-nonblank

number nonblank output lines

-e

equivalent to -vE

-E, –show-ends

display $ at end of each line

-n, –number

number all output lines

-s, –squeeze-blank

never more than one single blank line

-t

equivalent to -vT

-T, –show-tabs

display TAB characters as ^I

-u

(ignored)

-v, –show-nonprinting

use ^ and M- notation, except for LFD and TAB

–help

display this help and exit

–version

output version information and exit

With no FILE, or when FILE is -, read standard input.

Examples

cat f – g

Output f’s contents, then standard input, then g’s contents.

cat

Copy standard input to standard output.