#!/usr/bin/env bash is necessary if you are using bash. But don't use bash.
Here are some useful references on sh. http://pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/9699919799/utilities/contents.html http://blackskyresearch.net/shelltables.txt http://blackskyresearch.net/try.sh.txt Adherence to standards and legibility can be problematic if you care about portability to sucky systems and shells. For example, `...` is more widely supported than $(...). But in the case of stali, I suggest that non-suck should take priority over portability. Many portability issues come about from slight differences in utilities on different operating systems. Here are some notes on utilities that I have had issues with. http://src.thomaslevine.com/urchin/info/023e8abd7758b6c1b92e5dcfbcf620a2e48b6989?txt=1&ln=532-600