Thanks mark

I though that was one of the reasons but are there any other benefits.Also would it be quicker to copy my files across and reinstall Mint or could I clone my set up as whole and put it on new drive?

Which distro/version/architecture (eg. Ubuntu 18.04 64bit)

And which application are you using to scan ?

Mark, you've done it again! Thank you.

VB is back up and running nicely.

I had to install the extension pack before it would work - something to do with the version of USB 2 I'd set up in the VMs. Having done that, it's fine.

Thanks again.

Mike

Hi Wilton.

Sorry for the delay in replying - I didn't receive the usual auto-email until today !
Beginning with the book was very helpful and I soon got the hang of the basics.  As for intuitive: like most things it becomes intuitive with practice! 

The best way to get the hang of scripting is to have a definite task to perform and accept that one needs to refer to the book a lot at first.  I needed to do some really weird things and found many solutions on the web - in fact I that is my major source of solutions now.  This Forum is also a good source of info as there are so many knowledgeable people here willing to help.  As Mark once told me: "There are no daft questions". 
There are also the "man" pages - the scripting manual built into Linux.  I find it hard going but it's always worth trying first. 

Good luck with your scripting.
   Keith