1 files changed, 3 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/Lib/pipes.py b/Lib/pipes.py
index 6a473ae..deab815 100644
--- a/Lib/pipes.py
+++ b/Lib/pipes.py
@@ -253,10 +253,13 @@ _safechars = string.ascii_letters + string.digits + '!@%_-+=:,./' # Safe unquote
 _funnychars = '"`$\\'                           # Unsafe inside "double quotes"
 
 def quote(file):
+    ''' return a shell-escaped version of the file string '''
     for c in file:
         if c not in _safechars:
             break
     else:
+        if not file:
+            return "''"
         return file
     if '\'' not in file:
         return '\'' + file + '\''