jmerrill@jarthur.Claremont.EDU (Confusion Reigns) (03/19/90)
From 4DOS 3.0's "UPDATE30.DOC" file: "SETDOS /W sets the DOS and 4DOS switch character. This new switch is described in README.DOC, but is not included in the manual. Be sure to read the cautionary note in README.DOC before using this switch!" There is not a cautionary note in README.DOC. There is not a description in README.DOC. The manual corrections only go through IF. Are there pages missing from README.DOC? Would someone explain the /W option? -- Jason Merrill jmerrill@jarthur.claremont.edu DISCLAIMER: No, you're wrong.
richard@calvin.spp.cornell.edu (Richard Brittain) (03/19/90)
In article <5185@jarthur.Claremont.EDU> jmerrill@jarthur.Claremont.EDU (Confusion Reigns) writes: >From 4DOS 3.0's "UPDATE30.DOC" file: > >"SETDOS /W sets the DOS and 4DOS switch character. This new switch is >described in README.DOC, but is not included in the manual. Be sure to read >the cautionary note in README.DOC before using this switch!" > >There is not a cautionary note in README.DOC. There is not a description in >README.DOC. The manual corrections only go through IF. > >Are there pages missing from README.DOC? > >Would someone explain the /W option? > /Wc sets the switch character to 'c'. This is used by all 4dos commands for parsing options. You can use '/' for directory separators if you set switch to something else (usually '-' of course) It also sets the DOS switch character (it isn't local to 4dos). I think it should have been local to 4dos personally. Since the switchar is global, it is inherited by child shells, which is different from all other setdos variables. In fact, it makes it tricky to set future values. If the 4start.bat file contains SETDOS /W- to set the switch to a '-', then when a child shell starts up, the same line will be an error, since switch is no longer '/' Also, in my playing around with this, it seems that the switches use in the 4DSHELL variable are hardwired to '/' - they don't work if it is changed to anything else. Otherwise the use of the switchar seems very consistent. Apart from this and a few minor problems, 4DOS v 3.0 seems to be a really good package. My only real quibble with it is that it doesn't seem possible to spawn a child shell without spitting out a message to the screen, which messes up screen menus ! The new batch file features are very extensive, and seem to be geared towards making robust and flashy installation scripts and menus. You can also redirect output from batch files, and pipe out of batch files (but only if there are no pipes in the batch file itself). Internal commands can be up to 255 characters long, so you can set ludicrous PATH statements if you like (to cover yet another of the popular themes in this newsgroup) I wish JP software had not decided to perpetuate the mystique of the switch character by sliding this feature in "under the table". They could have kept this local to 4dos, and remained completely free of the msdos switchar debate. Anyway, its a great program. Everyone should try it. Richard Brittain, School of Elect. Eng., Upson Hall Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 ARPA: richard@calvin.spp.cornell.edu UUCP: {uunet,uw-beaver,rochester,cmcl2}!cornell!calvin!richard