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CD ROM Paradise Collection 4 1995 Nov.iso
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NOW&THEN.DOC
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1995-01-11
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Now & Then
Version 1.0
──────────────────────────────────────
Copyright 1995 by Computer Solutions
All Rights Reserved
P R O G R A M D O C U M E N T A T I O N
(For a quick summary of options, type NOW&THEN at the dos prompt.)
┌───────────────────╖
──┤ About The Program ╟───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘═══════════════════╝
"Now & Then" is a small program which will execute a DOS command or program
one time during a user defined period of time, which is measured in days.
This program was created because of my own desire for perfection (not that
this program claims to be perfect). The commercial utility I was using for
this purpose lacked the flexibility I needed. This sent me on a search of a
similar utility on the net and on local bulletin boards. I found half-a-dozen
possibilities, but none of those were flexible enough either. So I finally
conceded and decided to write my own.
While writing this utility, I tried to keep other people in mind as well.
Program functionality and flexibility was the most important aspect, second
only to ease of use. This documentation alone proves that I kept the rest
of the world in mind. I can not believe that no one else needed the same
functionality I need.
┌─────────────────────╖
──┤ Command Line Syntax ╟─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘═════════════════════╝
Syntax:
NOW&THEN [options] interval-in-days command
[options]
Options allow you to customize various settings.
interval-in-days
This specifies the frequency which the command should be executed.
command
This specifies the command which to execute. You may pass as many
parameters to the command as you like. However, if parameters
beginning with "-" or "/" are passed to the command, you need to
enclose the entire command in quotations. This is required because
of the way Now & Then parses its own parameters. Without the
quotations, Now & Then thinks the parameters were meant for it, not
for the command.
January, 1995 Now & Then Page 1
┌──────────────────────╖
──┤ Command Line Options ╟────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘══════════════════════╝
∙ may be specified in any order
∙ may be upper or lower case
∙ must be preceded by a slash (/) or a minus (-)
∙ must be separated by a space ( )
/? (Help)
Displays a usage screen.
/q (Quite Mode)
Normally the program displays informational output telling the user
if the command was executed or not. This option suppresses that
informational output. Combined with the >NUL redirection (see below),
this will completely disable output from most programs.
/n (Nothing)
Don't perform the task or update the data file. This option is mainly
used for testing purposes, to determine if the command is scheduled to
run or not. Idea taken from 4DOS, and has since been very useful.
/u (Update)
Don't update the data file. If the command is scheduled to execute,
the data file is normally updated so the command will not run until it
is scheduled to run again. This option prevents the data file from
being updated.
/f=file.ext (Data file name)
Specify the name of the date file to use. You can specify the entire
path of the file and the extension. If you don't specify a path, the
current directory is used. If you don't specify an extension, .DAY
is used. If you don't use this option, a data file will be created
in the same directory as the Now & Then executable.
>NUL (Output Redirection)
This is actually part of DOS, but it is quite handy when used in
conjunction with Now & Then. DOS will suppress program output when
you place >NUL at the end of your command. When used in conjunction
with the /q option above, this will usually suppress the output of
your command. Note that some programs write directly to video,
bypassing the BIOS. >NUL does not suppress the output of such
programs.
January, 1995 Now & Then Page 2
┌──────────────────╖
──┤ How It Works ╟────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘══════════════════╝
The data file keeps up with each task and last run date. The entire
command line is kept for each task, including all options. This allows
you to execute the same program with different options on different days.
By allowing the user to specify the data file to use, the program is able to
keep track of the same set of commands for different purposes. For example,
my office has five networked computers. This program resides on our server
and is used to perform daily maintenance for each machine. The same set of
programs runs on each machine, therefore the need for each machine to have
its own data file.
Many of the programs I found have various limitations with the data file.
Some required the data file to reside in the root directory. Others required
the data file to reside in the same directory as the program itself.
Some programs required that the commands to execute were contained in a
specific BAT file that was in a specific location. Some programs limited the
number of options you could pass the command. Some programs had a slew of
required command line parameters. Other programs only allowed one command
executed per day.
I wanted a program with no limitations, and Now & Then is the result.
Unfortunately, there is a minor limitation. The command that is executed has
its own program environment, which is deleted when the command is completed.
Therefore, if your command alters the environment (such as a SET or PATH
command), it will not alter the master environment. A command such as
NOW&THEN 1 SET FIRSTBOOT=TRUE would not have an effect, and FIRSTBOOT
would not be set. This is DOS's behavior and is beyond my control.
┌──────────────────╖
──┤ Future Additions ╟────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘══════════════════╝
Although this program does everything I need it to do, there are a couple of
features that I am thinking about adding. If you would like to see any of
these features added, or if you have another feature you need, please contact
me. None of these features are terribly complicated or should take too long.
Nonetheless, it currently does what I need and I'm ready to continue on with
another project for now.
Command line examples provided in this documentation.
Enhanced ERRORLEVEL support. Currently, ERRORLEVEL is used to indicate
there was an error during Now & Then's execution. I would like to add
support to indicate if the program was scheduled to run. Then, with
the addition of another switch, a batch file could easily determine if
a command was scheduled to run. This could solve the problem with the
NOW&THEN 1 SET FIRSTBOOT=TRUE example above.
The ability to specify once a month, week, or year, followed by a day
of week or date specification. These features are in the Once-A utility
written by William Waldrop.
January, 1995 Now & Then Page 3
┌──────────────────╖
──┤ Thank You List ╟────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘══════════════════╝
All of the following shareware authors deserve much thanks for their work. I
have taken ideas from their programs and documentation for use in Now & Then.
Program Ideas
Gene Allison, author of ONCEADAY
Samuel Kaplin, author of Interval
Stephen Baines, author of Once Only
Joseph Sheppard, author of DayBat
William Waldrop, author of Once-A
Documentation Ideas
Andy Hakim, author of NoHiss
Tom Rathborne, author of Totally Unlimited's ModUtils
Chris S. Craig, author of ScopeTrax
Nicola Ferioli, author of VocPack
I would also like to thank the following people for reviewing this
documentation before its release:
Aimee Richards, the love of my life and co-owner of Computer Solutions.
Gary Fambrough, Charlie Rowland, and Alyce Hardee, my co-workers at
High Q Incorporated.
┌──────────────────╖
──┤ Revision History ╟────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘══════════════════╝
1.0 01/11/95 First release.
┌──────────────────╖
──┤ About The Author ╟────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘══════════════════╝
Computer Solutions is a small, computer consulting firm which Aimee & I
started in the Summer of 1994. Feel free to contact us with any ideas,
comments, suggestions, or questions you may have.
US Mail │ Computer Solutions
│ 12111 West Markham Suite 14-121
│ Little Rock, AR 72211
│
Telephone │ (501) 660-9787
│
Electronic Mail │ jon.robertson@grapevine.lrk.ar.us
│
Bulletin Board │ Ferret Face
│ (501) 791-0124
│ 2400/14400/28800 baud, HST/v.32/v.FC
│ Username: Jon Robertson
January, 1995 Now & Then Page 4
┌──────────────────╖
──┤ Legal Talk ╟────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
╘══════════════════╝
This program is FreeWare. Individuals are granted the right to freely use
Now & Then without any concern for registration. Corporate users must contact
me for a site license agreement.
While this program works great with the six machines I've used, I can not
guarantee that it will work on every system. Therefore, this program carries
no warranties, expressed or implied. If you have a problem, please contact me.
You may freely distribute Now & Then to others as long as:
∙ Only the original files are distributed
∙ No changes are made to any of the files
∙ No money is charged for the program
Now & Then may be freely included on any form of compilation disk or
shareware library, except disks or libraries that charge *per program*,
rather than per disk of programs.
This program is not crippled in any way and does not contain any 'nag'
messages. In fact, if the right options are specified, nothing is ever
displayed on the screen.
Now & Then and this documentation are Copyright 1995 by Computer Solutions,
All Rights Reserved. The author of this program is not liable for any damage
caused by its use. By using this program, you agree to the above conditions.
January, 1995 Now & Then Page 5