ln -s -> "file exists" ?!?

ln -s /otherpartition/Ω backup/mail
/startupdisk/user/me/library/

Any hints?

Your path has two spaces in it as typed here. Are they in what you are really using?

Will it work right without the Ω?

You also need to include the appropriate starting point to the other partition; namely,

/Volumes/otherpartition/<rest of path>

The easiest way to get paths correctly is to select the destination folder in the Finder and click & drag it into the Terminal window. The OS will properly escape and spaces or oddball characters.

Additionally, the source path is malformed. It should be:

/Users/<username>/Library/

You don't need the boot drive's name, / suffices, and path's are case-sensitive.

The syntax should be:

ln -s /Users/username/Library/Mail /Volumes/backup/backupfolder/Mail
in other words:
ln -s $SOURCE $DESTINATION

Thanks for the feedback. Good computing and good luck against the Italians.

my experience with the command line is limited at best, but i'm trying to create a sym link (ln -s) to create a folder, either named the same or named different. and for the life of me i can't get it to work, it either tells me:

"ln: user/directory/: No such file or directory"

or

it puts a dead alias with the name in the directory, but when you try to open it it asks me to delete fix or cancel.

i have done this before, but can't remember how i did it, i'm missing some / at the beginning or end or both i think. anybody have any thoughts?

thanks

You need a complete path. It should lbe /user/directory/ vice user/directory/.