DOSTOOLS
A Collection of DOS Tools for Script Programmers

CREATE.EXE

Create an empty, zero length, file.

Although this is a very ancient MS-DOS program that does not support long file names, I still use it. Because, if installed into a directory that is on the path, it can be run from anywhere.

I use this program to create files similar to the MSCREATE.DIR files created by many Microsoft installations. After the file is created, I use the ATTRIB shell command to mark the file Read Only and Hidden.

You might want to do this for the same reason that the Microsoft installers do, which is to ensure that the directory is created and remains, whether or not it contains other files. This is a good way, for example, to ensure that a data directory remains, even when it is unused.

NOTHING.BAT

This ancient batch file does nothing useful, but it enables me to write clearer batch scripts.

The only thing it actually does is turn command echo off. I use it in the TRUE branch of IF blocks in my batch files. Sometimes, it's easier or clearer to write code that does nothing if a condition is true. This gives the TRUE branch something to do.

P6BEEP.COM

This program does exactly what its name suggests; it rings the bell.

Written in Intel Assembly language, this program provides a convenient, royalty free way to ring the bell in a batch file, then continue processing. It can be called two or more times in succession to signal completion of a process.

Like P6PAUSE.COM, it just does its duty, without displaying a copyright banner. I have thought about adding one, but that would require me to get my old assembler to work on Windows XP. So far, I have decided that it was not worth the effort.

P6PAUSE.COM

I never liked the built-in PAUSE command, because it responded to any key. This is a better pause program, because it responds to only two events:

• Pressing the ENTER, or RETURN, key.
• The CTRL-C key combination that terminates batch file execution.

I wrote it in 1990, in Intel x86 Assembly. It requires no support files, runs from any directory, and runs on every version of MS-DOS, and on every version of Windows, from Windows 3.0 through Windows XP.

Like P6BEEP.COM, it just does its duty, without displaying a copyright banner. I have thought about adding one, but that would require me to get my old assembler to work on Windows XP. So far, I have decided that it was not worth the effort.

PauseDemo.CMD

This script demonstrates how to call P6BEEP.COM and P6PAUSE.COM from a batch file.

PauseDemo.VBS

This script demonstrates a simple, effective method of pausing a Visual Basic script so that a user can read its output.

You can incorporate this method into your own scripts as follows.

• Add subroutine PauseMeVBS to your own script.
• When you want to pause the script, call PauseMeVBS, as shown at line 44. The text supplied in the argument is printed, followed by an instructional prompt. If the string is blank, a blank line is printed.

Although PauseMeVBS works in both CSCRIPT.EXE and WSCRIPT.EXE, it is intended for use in scripts that you intend to run in CSCRIPT.EXE.

RESPOND.NO

When fed to STDIN with a <, this file supplies a response of N to a prompt.

This was much more useful in older versions of MS-DOS, and I still have production batch files that use it, even though the commands in question have since been updated with switches that allow batch files to suppress the prompt.

RESPOND.YES

When fed to STDIN with a <, this file supplies a response of Y to a prompt.

This was much more useful in older versions of MS-DOS, and I still have production batch files that use it, even though the commands in question have since been updated with switches that allow batch files to suppress the prompt.