diff --git a/common/mkiconlinks.sh b/common/mkiconlinks.sh
index b157378..257a1bf 100755
--- a/common/mkiconlinks.sh
+++ b/common/mkiconlinks.sh
@@ -16,7 +16,8 @@ read NEXTLINE
 while [ ! -z "$NEXTLINE" ] ; do
 
 	# Skip lines beginning with '#'
-	if [ ! "${NEXTLINE:0:1}" == '#' ]; then
+	FIRST=$(echo ${NEXTLINE} | cut -c1)
+	if [ ! ${FIRST} == '#' ]; then
 		#Extract first field, minus its trailing colon
 		ORIG_FILE=`echo $NEXTLINE | awk '/:/{print $1}' | sed -e 's/://'`