title: Why does `ping` not timeout in Linux?
body: <p>I just figured out, that <code>ping</code> on a Linux platform (Ubuntu 13.10) does not timeout as described. I tried </p>
  
  <pre><code>ping -w 2 unreachable.com
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>and </p>
  
  <pre><code>ping -W 2 unreachable.com
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>but in neither case there was a timeout after 2 seconds. How can I use <code>ping</code> with a definite timeout? Is that possible at all? I want the command to stop after 2 seconds, regardless of any connection status. </p>