  File Handler Help Contents

Introducing File Handler

Overview

Terminology used in this Help

Using File Handler

How to run File Handler

Command Line Parameters

Dialog Boxes of File Handler

Copy

Move

Rename

Stamp

Options


File Handler Help Overview
  File Handler Overview

File Handler is a component of StepUp’96 which provides you with an alternative way to manipulate your files, similar to that employed by File Manager. It allows you to copy, move, rename, and change time stamps of files and folders. The operations can be performed on file objects selected in an Explorer window, or on a group of files specified by a mask containing wildcards. During copying or moving the files you can simultaneously rename them. File Handler provides you also with more control on how the operations to be performed: you can prevent Windows from asking you to confirm the operation, to rename files on collision, to preserve the “undo” information, etc.

File Handler is designed not to replace the existing methods of file managing provided by Explorer, but to complement them. File Handler comes especially handy in situations when you need to perform operations on a large number of files. For example, let’s suppose you have a folder containing a large number of files of different types: TXT, EXE, DOC, etc. Now, if you are to copy only TXT files into a different folder, you would need to manually browse the contents of the folder, selecting every single file of type TXT (making sure no one is skipped!), then copy them on the clipboard, open a window for the destination folder, and finally paste them in there (or drag and drop the files onto the destination folder). With File Handler, on the other hand, you can specify the files you want to copy with the mask *.TXT, browse for the destination folder from the same dialog box, and File Handler will copy all the TXT files in it for you. Of course, you can use File Handler to copy even a single file, although in such case you may find that the traditional methods provided by Explorer are faster.

File Handler saves your time by maintaining the history lists for most fields of its dialog boxes. You can use them, for example, if you often copy files from one folder into another with File Handler: you don’t have to open the destination folder or browse for it every time you want to copy the files, simply choose the destination folder from the history list in the ‘Copy’ dialog box.

The functioning of File Handler is controlled by its command line arguments. By specifying appropriate command line arguments passed to File Handler, you can customize its behavior to suit your needs. Several such commands are included in StepUp Menu, which allow you to manipulate files and folders by choosing commands from the context menu. If you run File Handler with empty command line, it prompt you for a command to perform.

Related topics:

File Handler Help Contents


 Terminology used in this Help

File Handler

a component of StepUp’96 which you can use to copy, move, rename, or stamp file objects.

File object

A file or a file system folder (not a virtual folder).

Current folder

A folder which is used by File Handler to locate the source files if they are not specified with fully qualified paths.


Command Line Parameters
  File Handler: Command Line Parameters

You can use the command line parameters for File Handler in StepUp Menu command items or shortcut links, to specify the file operation to perform, and the arguments for the operation.

The values specified in the command line are then passed to the appropriate dialog box of File Handler, so that you can modify them before performing the operation.

There may be no parameters passed to File Handler, in this case File Handler prompts you for the command to perform. If several parameters are specified, they should be separated with commas.

Syntax

FHandler [ /Cmd [ , Arg1 [ , Arg2 [ , Arg3 ] ] ] ]

where

/Cmd

the command switch. Must be the first of the parameters in the command line. Possible values are:

/Copy

displays the Copy dialog box, which can be used to copy files and/or folders to a different location.

/Move

displays the Move dialog box, which can be used to move files and/or folders to a different location.

/Rename

displays the Rename dialog box, which can be used to rename files and/or folders.

/Stamp

displays the Stamp dialog box, which can be used to modify the time stamp of files and/or folders.

/Options

displays the Options dialog box, allowing you to change the options for File Handler.

Note You don’t have to specify the full name of the command switch. The underlined characters in the names above show the acceptable short forms of the command switches. For example, /C is equivalent to /Copy. The names of the switches are NOT case sensitive: for example, /C, /c, /COPY, and /copy are all treated the same.

Arg1, Arg2, Arg3

the command arguments. Their interpretation depends on the command switch specified:

FHandler [ /Copy [ , objects [ , to-folder [ , rename-to ] ] ] ]

FHandler [ /Move [ , objects [ , to-folder [ , rename-to ] ] ] ]

FHandler [ /Rename [ , objects [ , to-folder [ , rename-to ] ] ] ]

FHandler [ /Stamp [ , objects [ , new-date [ , new-time ] ] ] ]

FHandler [ /Options ]

where:

objects

Specifies the location and name of a file object or a set of file objects for which you want to perform the operation. Can be one of the following:

•	A path to the source file or folder. May contain the wildcards specifying a set of file objects. If the path is fully qualified, it is passed to the “From Folder” field of the corresponding dialog box, and the filename is passed to the “Objects” field. If the path is not fully qualified, it is treated as a path relative to the current folder.

•	A special character @, which directs File Handler to get the source file object(s) from the clipboard. You can pass the objects through the clipboard by selecting them in an Explorer window and copying them on the clipboard before running File Handler. Or, if you are accessing File Handler via a command of StepUp Menu, you can set the Copy selection to clipboard option for the command to make StepUp Menu copy the selected objects on the clipboard for your before invoking File Handler.

to-folder

Specifies the folder in which you want to copy or move the file object(s). It is passed to the “To Folder” field of the corresponding dialog box.

rename-to

Specifies the new name or mask to rename the file objects during the operation. It is passed to the “Rename To” field of the corresponding dialog box.

new-date

Specifies the new date to assign to the file object(s) during the Stamp operation. It is passed to the “New Date” field of the Stamp dialog box.

new-time

Specifies the new time to assign to the file object(s) during the Stamp operation. It is passed to the “New Time” field of the Stamp dialog box.

Note Remember that after you have passed the command line arguments to File Handler, it displays a dialog box, so that you will have an opportunity to modify the actual parameters of the operation before its execution begins.

Note You may pass empty arguments in the command line, if you want File Handler to use the default values for them. However, since the meaning of a parameter depends on its position among other parameters, the delimiting commas must be specified even if the parameter itself is empty, unless it is the last parameter in the command line.

For example, to copy all *.TXT files into a folder simultaneously renaming them into *.BAK, you could use the following command line:

FHandler /copy,*.TXT,,*.BAK

The first parameter, /copy, specifies the command you wish to perform. The second parameters specifies the mask *.TXT, defining the set of source files for the operation. The third parameter is empty, that is no destination folder is passed to File Handler in the command line (you will be able to choose that folder when the Copy dialog box is displayed, though). The fourth parameter specifies the mask *.BAK to be passed to the “Rename To” field of the dialog box.


  How to run File Handler

File Handler can be run by choosing a command from StepUp Menu. StepUp’96 comes with a menu file containing several preset commands which open File Handler when you choose them from StepUp Menu. These commands supply different command line parameters to File Handler, customizing it to perform specific file operations. You can view or modify these menu items using Menu Designer.

Alternatively, you can run File Handler by running file FHandler.exe from the folder in which you have installed StepUp’96. When you run it in this way, File Handler prompts you for the command to perform.


  File Handler: Copy Dialog Box

The Copy dialog box is displayed by File Handler if you specify /Copy as its first command line argument. You can use this dialog box to copy file(s) or folder(s) to another folder, simultaneously renaming them, if needed.

The Copy dialog box contains the following areas:

From Folder

The folder in which the source file objects are located. Ignored if the fully qualified paths are specified in the “Object” area.

Objects

The file objects for which you want to perform the operation. If the objects were passed through the clipboard (using the special character @ in the command line), the box contains the list of objects passed and you cannot modify the contents of this field. Otherwise you can edit this field and access its history list.

To Folder

The target folder in which you want to copy the source file object(s).

Rename To

New name or mask to rename the files during the operation. The mask can be specified in one of the following ways:

*.ext

changes the extensions of the source files to ext, leaving their names unchanged

name.*

changes the names of the source files to name, leaving their extensions unchanged

*.*

leaves both the names and extensions of the source files unchanged (does not rename the files).

If no mask is specified, the *.* mask is assumed (that is no renaming occurs during the operation).

No Confirmation

Directs File Handler to automatically reply “Yes to All” to all requests for confirmation during the operation.

Silent

Directs File Handler to hide the progress dialog box during the operation.

Allow Undo

Directs File Handler to preserve, if possible, the information necessary to undo the operation.

Rename On Collision

Directs File Handler to automatically rename the file being operated on (giving a name such as “Copy #1 of...”) if a file of the target name already exists.

Move

Directs File Handler to move the file objects during the operation, rather than copy them.

Tip If you drag a file or a folder from an Explorer window to any of the fields From Folder, Objects, To Folder, or Rename To, the information about the object being dragged is inserted in the field for you by File Handler.


  File Handler: Move Dialog Box

The Move dialog box is displayed by File Handler if you specify /Move as its first command line argument. You can use this dialog box to move file(s) or folder(s) to another folder, simultaneously renaming them, if needed.

The Move dialog box contains the following areas:

From Folder

The folder in which the source file objects are located. Ignored if the fully qualified paths are specified in the “Object” area.

Objects

The file objects for which you want to perform the operation. If the objects were passed through the clipboard (using the special character @ in the command line), the box contains the list of objects passed and you cannot modify the contents of this field. Otherwise you can edit this field and access its history list.

To Folder

The target folder in which you want to move the source file object(s).

Rename To

New name or mask to rename the files during the operation. The mask can be specified in one of the following ways:

*.ext

changes the extensions of the source files to ext, leaving their names unchanged

name.*

changes the names of the source files to name, leaving their extensions unchanged

*.*

leaves both the names and extensions of the source files unchanged (does not rename the files).

If no mask is specified, the *.* mask is assumed (that is no renaming occurs during the operation).

No Confirmation

Directs File Handler to automatically reply “Yes to All” to all requests for confirmation during the operation.

Silent

Directs File Handler to hide the progress dialog box during the operation.

Allow Undo

Directs File Handler to preserve, if possible, the information necessary to undo the operation.

Rename On Collision

Directs File Handler to automatically rename the file being operated on (giving a name such as “Copy #1 of...”) if a file of the target name already exists.

Copy

Directs File Handler to copy the file objects during the operation, rather than move them.

Tip If you drag a file or a folder from an Explorer window to any of the fields From Folder, Objects, To Folder, or Rename To, the information about the object being dragged is inserted in the field for you by File Handler.


  File Handler: Rename Dialog Box

The Rename dialog box is displayed by File Handler if you specify /Rename as its first command line argument. You can use this dialog box to rename file(s) or folder(s).

The Rename dialog box contains the following areas:

From Folder

The folder in which the source file objects are located. Ignored if the fully qualified paths are specified in the “Object” area.

Objects

The file objects for which you want to perform the operation. If the objects were passed through the clipboard (using the special character @ in the command line), the box contains the list of objects passed and you cannot modify the contents of this field. Otherwise you can edit this field and access its history list.

To Folder

The contents of this field is ignored during the operation (unless you have selected the Move checkbox, see below).

Rename To

New name or mask to rename the file(s) during the operation. The mask can be specified in one of the following ways:

*.ext

changes the extensions of the source files to ext, leaving their names unchanged

name.*

changes the names of the source files to name, leaving their extensions unchanged

*.*

leaves both the names and extensions of the source files unchanged (does not rename the files).

If no mask is specified, the *.* mask is assumed (that is no renaming occurs during the operation).

No Confirmation

Directs File Handler to automatically reply “Yes to All” to all requests for confirmation during the operation.

Silent

Directs File Handler to hide the progress dialog box during the operation.

Allow Undo

Directs File Handler to preserve, if possible, the information necessary to undo the operation.

Rename On Collision

Directs File Handler to automatically rename the file being operated on (giving a name such as “Copy #1 of...”) if a file of the target name already exists.

Move

Directs File Handler to move the file objects during the operation into the folder specified in the “To Folder” field, rather than simply rename them.

Tip If you drag a file or a folder from an Explorer window to any of the fields From Folder, Objects, To Folder, or Rename To, the information about the object being dragged is inserted in the field for you by File Handler.


  File Handler: Stamp Dialog Box

The Stamp dialog box is displayed by File Handler if you specify /Stamp as its first command line argument. You can use this dialog box to change time stamp of file(s) or folder(s).

The Stamp dialog box contains the following areas:

From Folder

The folder in which the source file objects are located. Ignored if the fully qualified paths are specified in the “Object” area.

Objects

The file objects for which you want to perform the operation. If the objects were passed through the clipboard (using the special character @ in the command line), the box contains the list of objects passed and you cannot modify the contents of this field. Otherwise you can edit this field and access its history list.

New Date

The date to be assigned to the source file object(s). Must be specified using the format proposed. In the format, M stands for a month, d for a day, yy for the last two digits of the current year, and yyyy for a year represented by the full four digits. All components of the date must be specified with numbers, not words. If the new date is not specified, File Handler leaves the date(s) of the source file object(s) unchanged during the operation.

New Time

The time to be assigned to the source file object(s). Must be specified using the format proposed. In the format, h (or hh) stands for an hour, m (or mm) for a minute, s (or ss) for a second, and t (or tt) for a time marker (AM or PM). If the new time is not specified, File Handler leaves the time(s) of the source file object(s) unchanged during the operation.

Apply to the Attributes

The components of the time stamp to which the new date and/or time to be assigned. Note that not all file systems support all possible attributes. Not supported attributes are ignored during the operation.

Silent

Directs File Handler to hide the progress dialog box during the operation.

Note Contrary to Windows NT, Windows 95 does not currently allow to change time stamps of folders. Nevertheless, File Handler attempts to stamp folders, if you direct it to do so, and no error message is generated in such a case.


  File Handler: Options Dialog Box

The Options dialog box is displayed by File Handler if you specify /Options as its first command line argument. You can use this dialog box to change options for File Handler.

The Options dialog box contains the following areas:

Size of History Lists

The maximum number of lines stored in the history lists for various fields of the dialog boxes of File Handler.

Clear History lists

When checked, causes File Handler to clear history lists for all fields in its dialog boxes.