home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
PC Media 4
/
PC MEDIA CD04.iso
/
share
/
udos
/
zdir20
/
zdir.doc
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1992-03-03
|
76KB
|
1,981 lines
ZANYSOFT DIR
Version 2.0
March 4, 1992
Christopher Kirmse
ZanySoft
9303 Arabian Ave.
Vienna, Virginia 22182
_______
____|__ | (R)
--| | |-------------------
| ____|__ | Association of
| | |_| Shareware
|__| o | Professionals
-----| | |---------------------
|___|___| MEMBER
Copyright (C) 1990, 1992 Christopher Kirmse
All rights reserved
Table of Contents
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Terms in this manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2. Using shareware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.1 Disclaimer - agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.2 Contacting the author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3. Quick-start . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
4. Running ZDir . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.1 The file listing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.2 Path specification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4.2.1 Displaying path specs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.3 Volume information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
5. ZDir options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.1 Information options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.2 Command options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.2.1 Write to file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.2.2 File find . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
5.2.3 Tree display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
5.2.4 User extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
5.2.5 Attribute changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.3 File listing options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
6. Configuration: ZDircfg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6.1 Using ZDircfg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6.2 ZDircfg menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
6.2.1 Load ZDir configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
6.2.2 Save ZDir configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
6.2.3 Extension editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
6.2.4 Color editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
6.2.5 Default editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
6.2.5.1 Search options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
6.2.5.2 File list choices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
6.2.5.3 Output format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
7. Registration form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
i
1. Introduction
ZanySoft Dir (ZDir) is an easy to use and very powerful directory lister.
The main purpose of ZDir is to replace the generic DIR command with a
fast, easily readable display with more functionality. It can organize
the file listing with many sorting options, color files based upon their
extension, choose how many columns to use in the display, find files, draw
a tree of the directory structure, use full-scale wildcards, and much
more. Besides being powerful and easy to use, ZDir is also easy to
configure with the included configuration program ZDircfg. It is very
easy for a novice computer user to learn how to use ZDir, but has many
features that expand upon the basic directory listing capability.
Everything about ZDir is explained in this manual. Even if you are not
interested in reading it all now, at least look at section 3, the quick-
start. It is a general overview of how to use ZDir and what it does, and
only takes a couple minutes to read.
1.1 Features
The following list shows some of the many features of ZDir:
o It is extremely fast.
o It is fully configurable--every color, extension, and default is set
by the user.
o It colors each filename based upon its attribute and extension.
o It sorts the listing by filename, extension, size, date, and time,
ascending or descending.
o It can group directory entries at the beginning or end of the
display.
o It can search for files anywhere on a disk.
o Wildcards may be placed anywhere in the filespec and are correctly
interpreted.
o It gives totals for all found files at the end of the display.
o It can color all information about each file the same color.
o It can write a plain-text version of the listing to a file or to the
printer.
o It prints out the current date and time at the top of the display.
o It shows the volume label and serial number, if they exist.
1
o It fully supports any size text screen that your video card supports,
including 43/50 line mode on EGA/VGA systems.
o It is extremely small--even with all these features, it is less than
13k in size.
1.2 Terms in this manual
Several conventions are used in this manual, and they are described as
follows:
o The Enter or Return key on the keyboard is referred to as <Enter>.
o All text that is meant to be typed by the user is in bold type.
o Text printed on the screen by the computer is in courier type.
o The terms "window", "box", and "menu" are used somewhat
interchangeably in this manual, but the actual meaning should be
clear from the context.
o Menu sequences in ZDircfg are in italics and referred to by name,
with -> separating each menu level, such as Default edit->Search
options->Put * before filespec, where Default edit is the first menu
choice, Search options is the second menu choice, and Put * before
filespec is the third menu choice.
o Some of these conventions are not detectable in the online version of
the manual.
2
2. Using shareware
Shareware distribution gives users a chance to try software before buying
it. If you try a Shareware program and continue using it, you are expected
to register. Individual programs differ on details--some request
registration while others require it, some specify a maximum trial period.
With registration, you get anything from the simple right to continue
using the software to an updated program with printed manual.
Copyright laws apply to both Shareware and commercial software, and the
copyright holder retains all rights, with a few specific exceptions as
stated below. Shareware authors are accomplished programmers, just like
commercial authors, and the programs are of comparable quality. (In both
cases, there are good programs and bad ones!) The main difference is in
the method of distribution. The author specifically grants the right to
copy and distribute the software, either to all and sundry or to a
specific group. For example, some authors require written permission
before a commercial disk vendor may copy their Shareware.
Shareware is a distribution method, not a type of software. You should
find software that suits your needs and pocketbook, whether it's
commercial or Shareware. The Shareware system makes fitting your needs
easier, because you can try before you buy. And because the overhead is
low, prices are low also. Shareware has the ultimate money-back
guarantee--if you don't use the product, you don't pay for it.
2.1 Disclaimer - agreement
Users of ZDir must accept this disclaimer of warranty: "ZDir is supplied
as is. The author disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied,
including, without limitation, the warranties of merchantability and of
fitness for any purpose. The author assumes no liability for damages,
direct or consequential, which may result from the use of ZDir."
ZDir is a "shareware program" and is provided at no charge to the user for
evaluation. Feel free to share it with your friends, but please do not
give it away altered or as part of another system. The essence of
"user-supported" software is to provide personal computer users with
quality software without high prices, and yet to provide incentive for
programmers to continue to develop new products.
If you find this program useful and find that you are using ZDir and
continue to use ZDir after a reasonable trial period, you must make a
registration payment of $10 to Christopher Kirmse. The $10 registration
fee will license one copy for use on any one computer at any one time.
You are then authorized to use your copy forever; it is as if you had
bought it at a store. Anyone else may use your copy of ZDir, but only on
a trial basis. Also, your registration name and number sent to you when
you register is for you only, and only you may use it. To register ZDir,
just fill out the registration form in section 7 at the end of this
3
document, and send it in. Every registered user of ZDir will receive a
minimum of three months of support through the mail.
If your version of ZDir did not come with the following files, then it is
not the official version of ZDir: ZDir.com, ZDir.doc, ZDircfg.exe, and
Readme.doc. If your version of ZDir is not complete, please contact
whoever you received it from to remove it from their system. To guarantee
that you have the latest and complete version of ZDir, either send a
note and $5 (see section 7--you don't need to register to get a disk), or
preferably, call up CompuServe or The Palace BBS and download ZDirxy.zip,
where x.y would be the version number. See section 2.2 for details.
Commercial users of ZDir must register and pay for their copies of ZDir
within 30 days of first use or their license is withdrawn. Site-license
arrangements may be made by contacting Christopher Kirmse. The standard
site-license is $10 for each of the first ten copies of ZDir, and $5 for
every additional copy at the same site.
You are encouraged to pass a copy of ZDir along to your friends for
evaluation. Please encourage them to register their copy if they find
that they can use it.
Christopher Kirmse is a member of the Association of Shareware
Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle
works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware-related problem
with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to
help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an
ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products.
Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442
or send a CompuServe message via CompuServe Mail to ASP Ombudsman
70007,3536.
All trademarks referenced in this document are the property of their
respective owners.
2.2 Contacting the author
There are several ways to contact Christopher Kirmse, the author of ZDir.
The easiest way is through the US postal service--write to the address on
the first page of this document. He can also be contacted through
Internet, at the address ckirmse@thor.tjhsst.edu. The newest version of
ZDir will always be on CompuServe and on The Palace BBS, phone number
(703) 866-4452.
4
3. Quick-start
To get a feel for how to use ZDir, just type ZDir at the DOS prompt
(typically C> or C:\>). It will instantly display a listing of the files
in the current directory. Assuming that the copy of ZDir used has the
initial defaults, the display will look something like the following:
1:52:04pm ZDir v2.0, by ZanySoft January 21, 1991
Path: C:\*.* Volume - HOME 1
═══════════════════╤═══════════════════╤═══════════════════╤═══════════════════
123R3 <Dir>│GAMES <Dir>│V3 <Dir>│COMMAND PIF 545
BAT <Dir>│JUNK <Dir>│WINAPP <Dir>│CONFIG BAK 1480
BCPP <Dir>│LABEL <Dir>│WINDOWS <Dir>│CONFIG SYS 1697
BOB <Dir>│LASM <Dir>│WP <Dir>│HIMEM SYS 11304
C600 <Dir>│NEWSTER <Dir>│ZD86 <Dir>│IBMBIO COM 17867
CASTLE <Dir>│PBRUSH <Dir>│ZDIR <Dir>│IBMDOS COM 40082
CHRIS <Dir>│Q <Dir>│386SPART PAR 5.1M│HOME 1 <Vol>
CTR <Dir>│SA <Dir>│AUTOEXEC BAK 297│
DOWNLOAD <Dir>│TAXI <Dir>│AUTOEXEC BAT 285│
DRDOS <Dir>│UTILS <Dir>│COMMAND COM 32816│
═══════════════════╧═══════════════════╧═══════════════════╧═══════════════════
10 files totalling 5,226,373 bytes using 5,236,736 bytes of disk space.
17,555,456 bytes available out of 88,842,240 total bytes on drive C:
The first line contains the current time, a message telling the current
ZDir version, and the current date. The second line shows the path
specification of the files listed (described in detail in section 4.2).
On the right side of the second line the volume label and serial number
are displayed, it they exist. In this case, there is a volume label, but
no serial number.
The main area of the display is surrounded by graphic lines. It contains
the list of the files which matched the file specification, in this case
*.*. As a default, all the directories are listed first, sorted by the
directory name, followed by the files, sorted by name. In the default
setting ZDir adjusts the number of columns in the display based upon the
number of directories and files in the directory, and in this case ZDir
decided to display the listing in four columns. Your display may be
different if you have more or less files in the listed directory. In four
column listings, only the filename and file size are listed. Notice the
size of the file 386SPART.PAR file--5.1M. This means 5.1 Megabytes, or
5,100,000 bytes. This is truncated at the tenth's place. When not
displaying the listing in one column, all file sizes larger than 1 million
bytes are printed in this manner.
The final two lines of the display give totals information. The first
summary line tells how many files were listed (optionally including
directories), the sum of all the file sizes, and how much disk space the
files actually consume on the disk. The second line (which can be
optionally not printed) shows how much free space is left on the disk and
the total storage amount of the disk that the files were listed from.
ZDir can be used as a straight replacement of the DOS DIR command, but to
5
take full advantage of its power you need to learn how to use its many
features. Advanced users can probably learn how to use ZDir by trial and
error and by referring to the help screen (type ZDir /? to display the
help screen). This manual describes how to use all the features of ZDir,
including configuring ZDir with ZDircfg, and is useful for anyone learning
about ZDir.
6
4. Running ZDir
The technical description for running ZDir is
ZDir [options] [path spec] [options]
The items in brackets are optional. This means that the simplest way to
run ZDir is just to type ZDir from the command line:
C:\>ZDir<Enter>
(<Enter> means to hit the Enter or Return key on the keyboard.)
Options are single letters preceded by a forward slash (/), such as /T or
/U. The path spec and options can be typed in upper or lower case; ZDir
is not case sensitive. Options are described in section 5. The entire
string of text following the word ZDir is called the command line. In the
following example, the command line is /u *.exe /1 /x:
C:\>ZDir /u *.exe /1 /x<Enter>
Usually it is easier to put the options all together, either before or
after the path spec, but they can be split up and put in both places.
ZDir displays a file listing with header information and total lines
unless there is the option /? or /H on the command line. The display
works in any text mode, including Super VGA text modes such as 132x60. If
the screen is in a standard graphics mode, then ZDir resets the screen to
25 rows by 80 columns. Super VGA graphic modes are not standard and
cannot be detected, so ZDir will not print a correct display if the screen
is in a Super VGA graphics mode. ZDir will work with any display,
including monochrome, CGA, EGA, VGA, Super VGA, and XGA.
4.1 The file listing
The main area of the display is a listing of filenames, directory names,
and if it exists, the volume label. For the rest of this section, the
terms file and filename are used in a generic sense, meaning every
directory entry, including not only names of files but directories and
volume labels as well. The most trivial display is when there are no
files, in which case ZDir prints No files found in the main area of the
display. In every other case, the display is separated into either 1, 2,
3, 4, or 6 columns. The number of columns is determined by the
configuration setting Default edit->File list choices->Number of columns,
discussed in section 6.2.5.2, and the command line, discussed in section
5.3.
The number of columns that are used to display the file listing determines
what information is given about each file. Obviously, as the number of
columns across the screen increases, the amount of information about each
7
file decreases. In one column mode, everything about the file is shown,
with plenty of room for large file sizes with commas, and the time in 12-
hour format with seconds. In six column mode, there is nothing except the
filename. The following chart shows what is included depending upon the
number of columns used in the display:
╔═══════════════════════════════════════════╗
╔══════════════════╣ Number of columns ║
║ File information ║ 1 2 3 4 6 ║
╟──────────────────┼──────┬────────┬─────────┬─────────┬───────╢
║ Name │ Yes │ Yes │ Yes │ Yes │ Yes ║
╟──────────────────┼──────┼────────┼─────────┼─────────┼───────╢
║ Size │ Yes │ Yes │ Yes │ Yes │ No ║
╟──────────────────┼──────┼────────┼─────────┼─────────┼───────╢
║ Attribute │ Yes │ Yes │ Yes │ No │ No ║
╟──────────────────┼──────┼────────┼─────────┼─────────┼───────╢
║ Date and time │ Yes │ Yes │ No │ No │ No ║
╟──────────────────┼──────┼────────┼─────────┼─────────┼───────╢
║ Disk space │ Yes │ No │ No │ No │ No ║
║ used │ │ │ │ │ ║
║──────────────────┼──────┼────────┼─────────┼─────────┼───────╢
║ Commas in │ Yes │ No │ No │ No │ No ║
║ file sizes │ │ │ │ │ ║
║ 100,000 bytes │ │ │ │ │ ║
╚══════════════════╧══════╧════════╧═════════╧═════════╧═══════╝
For commas to be printed in file sizes 100,000 bytes, the option Default
edit->Output format->Use commas in file size must be set to yes.
The filename is printed in two parts: the normal part of the filename
which can be up to eight characters in length, left justified in a field
of eight spaces, followed by a space or a period (depending on the setting
of Default edit->Output format->Print a . before extensions), followed by
the up to three character extension. The color of the filename is based
upon whether the file is a hidden file and whether the extension matches
any of the fifty set extensions (see section 6.2.3).
ZDir stores a table of fifty extensions and associated colors that it
matches against each file. If a file's extension matches one of the
extensions in the table, then the file is displayed in the color
associated with the extension. Wildcards are allowed in the stored
extensions, which are configured using ZDircfg. If the file is actually a
directory or if it is hidden, then the directory color or hidden color
overrides the extension color and the file is not displayed in the
extension color. Depending on the setting of Default edit->File list
choices->Entire entry in file color the rest of the directory entry is
automatically displayed in the same color as the filename or in the color
selected for each part of the directory entry.
File sizes are printed in every column mode except in six column mode.
They are displayed in either the same color as the file or in the color
set in Color edit->File entry area->Size of file, depending on whether the
entire file entry is the color of the file (set in Default edit->File list
8
choices->Entire entry in file color). If commas are set to be printed in
file sizes, then if the file size is five or fewer digits (i.e., less than
100,000 bytes), then a comma separates the thousands from the hundreds
place. In one column mode, no matter what the file size, if commas are
set to be added to file sizes, then commas separate every three digits of
file sizes. In any other column mode, file sizes 1,000,000 bytes and
larger are displayed in terms of megabytes (one million bytes), such as
1.2M or 84.5M.
The attributes of each file are displayed in one, two, and three column
mode. The five attributes are described in section 5.2.5, but in short
are archive, hidden, read-only, system, and network. They are abbreviated
in the display with the first letter--A, H, R, S, and N. They are
displayed in either the same color of the file or in the color set in
Color edit->File entry area->Attributes. (In two column mode, the network
attribute touches the date if the month is two digits long (October,
November, and December), because of lack of space.)
Every time that a file is written to, the date and time are saved with the
file by DOS. ZDir displays the most recent access date and time in one
and two column modes. The colors are determined by the setting in Color
edit->File entry area->Date and Time, and whether or not the entire file
entry is in the filename's color. In one column mode, the time is
displayed in 12 hour mode with an "a" or a "p" after the seconds
signifying AM or PM. In two column mode, the time is in 24 hour mode, and
the seconds are not printed. The dates are the same in either number of
columns.
In one column mode, the actual space on disk used by each file is placed
after the file size, in the color specified by Color edit->File entry
area->Used disk space of file, or the color of the filename if the entire
entry is in the filename's color. To understand the difference between
this number and the file size, the method of storing files on disk has to
be explained.
Files are stored on disk as a chain of clusters, each of which contains
part of the file. The disk has a table which keeps track of which
clusters belong to which files, and in what order. Clusters are of fixed
length on each disk, as small as 512 bytes and as large as 8192 bytes.
Because of the fact that clusters can belong to only one file, every file
contains an integral number of clusters. This means that most files, not
being a multiple in size of the cluster size, use up more disk space than
their actual size. This accounts for the difference in the file size and
the disk space used by a file. The total lines at the bottom show both
the file sizes and the file disk space used.
4.2 Path specification
The path specification determines how ZDir searches the disk to determine
which files to include in the file listing. It contains three parts: the
9
disk drive, the path, and the file specification, called the filespec.
The path specification can be no longer than 63 characters, the maximum
that DOS allows.
The disk drive is a letter followed by a colon--A:, C:, H:, etc. A: and
B: are usually floppy disk drives, C: is usually the first hard disk,
while higher letters can be anything from a RAM disk to a CD-ROM to a
network drive. If the disk drive is typed as part of the path
specification, then it is used in the search. If it is omitted from the
path specification, then the current disk drive is used.
The path is a string of directories and subdirectories, separated by
backslashes (\). If the path starts with a backslash, then the rest of
the string is relative to the root, or top-level, directory on the drive.
If it does not start with a backslash, then the rest of the string is
relative to the current directory on the disk drive. If no path is
specified in the path specification at all, then the current directory is
used.
Like filenames, the filespec consists of two parts, the "normal" filename,
which is one to eight characters long, and the extension, which is zero to
three characters in length. Letters of the alphabet and some symbols
(such as !, $, and greek letters) are valid characters in the filespec.
Filespecs, and in fact all DOS filenames, are not case sensitive. If only
these alphabetic and symbol characters are part of the filespec, then ZDir
will either match one file or not match any files, because either a file
by that name exists or it does not. To make a listing include more than
one file the filespec must contain special characters called wildcards.
The wildcards characters are the asterisk, *, and the question mark, ?.
They can be placed in the "normal" part of the filespec, in the extension,
or both. The question mark matches all files that have any single
character in the place of the question mark, or none at all. The asterisk
tells ZDir to match all files that have any string of characters in place
of the asterisk. This is just how DOS does file matching. However, DOS
has a fatal flaw when matching filespecs to filenames: all characters
following an asterisk in either part of the filename are ignored! This
means that perfectly valid filespecs, such as *Z*.*, which should find
all files containing a Z in the main part of the filename, actually find
every file in the directory, as if the filespec were *.*! For example,
suppose the current directory contained the files BOOKS.TXT, BDN.EXE, and
HERES.DOC. Using the filespec *s.* with ZDir would include the files
BOOKS.TXT and HERES.DOC, but the DOS DIR command would incorrectly
translate the filespec to *.* and include all three files, even BDN.EXE!
ZDir's expanded wildcard capability corrects this mistake and uses the
correct interpretation of the wildcard characters.
If no filespec was typed on the command line then ZDir uses *.* (all
files) as the file spec. If the filespec contains an extension, such as
NONAME.WK1 or S*.H, then it uses the filespec exactly as specified on the
command line. If the filespec ends in a period, then it matches all files
that match the "normal" part of the filename and have no extension. If no
10
extension or period are typed then ZDir adds wildcards depending upon how
it is configured. If the option Default edit->Search options->Put *
before filespec is set to yes (expanded capability), then ZDir puts a *
before the filespec, and a *.* afterwards (e.g, Z becomes *Z*.*). If it
is set to no (DOS compatibility), then only the trailing *.* is added
(e.g., Z becomes Z*.*).
The chart below contains examples that illustrate many different scenarios
that commonly occur using ZDir. Assume that the directory tree of drive
C: is as follows:
C:\
└───────┬─BIN
├─BATCH
│ └───────TEMP
└─TEMP
╔══════════════════════╦══════════╤════════════════════════╗
║ Current directory: ║ │ ║
║ C:\batch ║ │ ║
╠══════════════════════╣ Setting │ ║
║ │ of Put * │ ║
║ Text on command line │ before │ Path spec used by ZDir ║
║ │ filespec │ ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir │ Yes, No │ C:\batch\*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir C:\ │ Yes, No │ C:\*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir \ │ Yes, No │ C:\*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir D:\*.bat │ Yes, No │ D:\*.bat ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir temp\all │ Yes │ C:\batch\temp\*all*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir temp\all │ No │ C:\batch\temp\all*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir C:wp.bat │ Yes, No │ C:\batch\wp.bat ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir C:\batch\wp.bat │ Yes, No │ C:\batch\wp.bat ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir C:\bin\.exe │ Yes, No │ C:\bin\*.exe ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir \temp\fdr │ Yes │ C:\temp\*fdr*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir \temp\fdr │ No │ C:\temp\fdr*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir \temp\fdr.001 │ Yes, No │ C:\temp\fdr.001 ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir \bin\tempfile │ Yes, No │ C:\bin\tempfile.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir \bin\tempfile. │ Yes, No │ C:\bin\tempfile ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir . │ Yes, No │ C:\batch\*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir .. │ Yes, No │ C:\*.* ║
╟──────────────────────┼──────────┼────────────────────────╢
║ ZDir ..\*.com │ Yes, No │ C:\temp\*.com ║
╚══════════════════════╧══════════╧════════════════════════╝
11
4.2.1 Displaying path specs
If there is a volume label and serial number on the disk of the directory
listing, there may not be room on the screen for the complete path spec on
the left side of the second line of the display. In these cases, the
first few directories of the path are replaced by a single \...\, such as
F:\USR\GROUP1\MICHAEL\WORK\DATA\123FILES\*.WK? being shortened to
F:\...\DATA\123FILES\*.WK?, where the \...\ replaced
\USR\GROUP1\MICHAEL\WORK.
4.3 Volume information
Every disk can have a volume label and a volume serial number. The volume
label is a zero length file in the root directory on the disk that has the
volume label attribute set. Unlike all other files, it is case sensitive,
and is just treated as an eleven character title. To set the volume
label, type label from the DOS prompt. To make a volume label with upper
and lowercase letters, a sector editor or a special volume label program
is needed.
The serial number is a random eight digit hex number that is placed on the
disk when formatted by DOS version 4.0 or greater. It helps DOS to
determine when one disk is removed from a floppy disk drive and another
one inserted. It can also help people by being a unique identification
number.
If either a volume label or a serial number is present on the disk ZDir
displays the information on the right side of the second line of the
display.
12
5. ZDir options
Placing options on the command line alters the function of ZDir. Many of
the options tell ZDir to perform a different operation than the usual
directory listing, including information options and the command options.
These either have ZDir do something totally different than normal, such as
display a help screen, or just add to the normal function, such as
changing attributes. There are also options to change features of the
display, such as the sort type and number of columns, which are called
display options. All options are typed on the command line, starting with
a slash (/) and then the letter or characters describing the option.
5.1 Information options
The first class of options are those that tell ZDir to pop up information
screens instead of performing a directory listing. These are /H, /?, and
/R. The first of these options found on the command line is used, and all
other information on the command line is ignored.
Two of these options, /H and /?, display the help screen for ZDir. This
is a short page of information about how to run ZDir and a description of
every option. Hitting Shift-Print Screen (or just Print Screen on 101/102
key keyboards) prints out the help screen on the printer. Hitting any
other key quits the help screen and returns to DOS.
The other information command option is /R. This command displays an
order form for ZDir on the screen, which can be printed with Shift-Print
Screen (or Print Screen). The form is identical to the one at the end of
this manual. For more information on registering ZDir, see section 2
about Shareware, and section 7 for a registration form similar to the one
displayed with ZDir /R.
5.2 Command options
Command options that add on to the basic ZDir functionality are /L, /F,
/T, /U, and the attribute changing options, /+x or /-x, where x is one of
A, H, R, or S. Each of these commands and associated options are
described below.
5.2.1 Write to file
ZDir always displays information on the screen, but using /L followed
directly by a filename tells ZDir to write another copy of its output to a
file. Normally, ZDir will display the message Writing to file filename,
and write out a text version of its output to the file. To send the
output to the standard printer, use PRN as the filename. ZDir will either
13
send an exact copy of the output to the indicated file or substitute
pluses and dashes for the graphics characters depending on the setting of
the option Default edit->Output format->Graphics in alt. output. This
option should be set to Standard ASCII when using printers that cannot
print IBM extended graphics characters.
The option /A, when put on the command line, writes out ANSI color codes
to the file specified with /L. This is useful when writing listings over
the modem (/LAUX or /LCOM1).
Several errors can occur when writing to files using /L. If ZDir cannot
write to the indicated file, then the message Error! NOT writing to file
filename is printed. This can occur for several reasons:
o The file already exists.
o The file is a read-only device, such as the keyboard.
o There is a data error on the disk.
o The disk drive or directory does not exist.
When an error occurs, just correct the problem and rerun ZDir.
Several example runs are shown below:
C:\>ZDir /Llist.txt *.*<Enter>
This would write a copy of the file listing of all files in the current
directory to the file LIST.TXT.
C:\>ZDir *.exe /A /Lcom1<Enter>
This would write a copy of the file listing of all files having the
extension EXE to the first communications port including ANSI color codes.
C:\>ZDir *.exe /Lprn<Enter>
This would write a copy of the file listing of all files having the
extension EXE to the standard printer.
5.2.2 File find
ZDir performs file finds quickly and easily using the option /F. It
displays a listing of the directory in the path specification and then
goes to every directory below the specified directory and performs a
listing, not printing anything if no files are found in a directory. By
specifying the root directory, ZDir will search an entire disk for files.
Example runs should clarify how to use file finding:
C:\WORK>ZDir *.bat /F<Enter>
This command tells ZDir to first display all files with the extension BAT
14
in the directory C:\WORK. Next, ZDir goes to all the subdirectories of
C:\WORK, and displays a listing of all files with the extension BAT in
each directory under C:\WORK.
C:\WORK>ZDir \*.bat /F<Enter>
This command is the same as the previous one, but starts at the root
directory, C:\, and displays a listing. Then ZDir searches every
directory on the disk for files with the extension BAT, and displays a
file listing in each directory that has a file with the extension BAT.
C:\WORK>ZDir /F /Lprn D:\<Enter>
This command combines file finding with writing a listing to a file (see
section 5.2.1). ZDir will list every file on the D drive, displaying it
on the screen and printing it on the printer.
5.2.3 Tree display
Directory trees give an overall view of all or part of a disk in a compact
format. With ZDir, directory trees are printed where the file list is
normally displayed. Using the tree display option is similar to using the
file find option, in that the path of the path spec is used as the first
directory (top level of the tree), and then all the subdirectories are
printed after it. The tree does not have to start at the root directory;
any directory can be selected to be the top level of the tree display.
The number of files that match the path spec and the sum of the file sizes
of each directory (in kilobytes) are printed on the left. Only files
matching the filespec are included in the number of files count and total
number of bytes count of each directory. Up to five levels of directories
below the top level are displayed.
Unlike file finding, directories with no matching files are included, but
a zero is listed under files and bytes. The command to display a tree is
/T. Below is a sample run:
C:\WORK>ZDir /T \WORK<Enter>
15
8:15:50pm ZDir v2.0, by ZanySoft March 2, 1992
Path: C:\WORK\*.* Volume - WORK 2
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Files Bytes Path
15 160k WORK
22 45k └──────┬─WINPROG
45 429k ├─BACKUP
4 94k │ └──────WKS
22 190k └─WP
8 129k └──────┬─REPORT
25 228k └─PERSONAL
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
File listing of C:\WORK\
and the 6 directories under it, of files of the form *.*
Totals --
141 files totalling 1,319,529 bytes using 1,351,680 bytes of disk space.
(Notice that there are no disk totals on this display, only the totals for
the files. This is not due to the tree, but due to the fact that the copy
of ZDir that made the above display was configured to not print disk
totals, using the Default edit->Output format->Disk totals option in
ZDircfg.
5.2.4 User extensions
ZDir stores fifty extensions that it checks against each file, and colors
the filename in the display the color associated with its extension.
Also, every extension is classified as either a user extension or not a
user extension. See section 6.2.3 for how to configure the extensions.
User extensions allow you to designate up to fifty extensions that can be
quickly displayed to the exclusion of other extensions. When the command
option /U is specified on the command line, only the files with extensions
that are classified as a user extension are listed--all other files are
ignored. (ZDir's factory default for the user extensions are EXE, COM,
and BAT, so typing ZDir /U from the command line is a handy way to list
all executable files in the current directory.) An additional line is
added after the file listing that tells you the current user extensions.
Any number of extensions can be made user extensions and are used to match
against the files in the directory, and the first ten are displayed on the
line following the file list area.
16
5.2.5 Attribute changing
Every file has five attributes that tell DOS about the file. Each of the
five attributes are either on or off for every file. ZDir can change all
of the attributes except for the network attribute.
The archive attribute is used with the DOS programs backup and restore, to
determine which files have been newly modified since the last time backup
was run. The /+A command turns this attribute on for all files in the
directory listing; the /-A command turns this attribute off for all files
in the directory listing.
The hidden attribute tells DOS to not list the file in DIR listings (ZDir
can list all files, including hidden files--see section 6.2.5.1). The /+H
command turns this attribute on for all files in the directory listing;
the /-H command turns this attribute off for all files in the directory
listing.
The system attribute is supposed to mean that the file is necessary to
boot the computer, but all it really does is prevent the file from being
run from the DOS prompt. The /+S command turns this attribute on for all
files in the directory listing; the /-S command turns this attribute off
for all files in the directory listing.
Files possessing the read-only attribute can not be written to or changed
by DOS. Making files read-only is a good way to prevent accidental
deletions of important files. The /+R command turns this attribute on for
all files in the directory listing; the /-R command turns this attribute
off for all files in the directory listing.
The network attribute is used to identify whether a given file is
shareable over a network. It cannot be changed using ZDir.
5.3 File listing options
Although everything about ZDir can be configured using ZDircfg, there are
times when you want to override the defaults for just one run of ZDir.
There are options that can be put on the command line to set the number of
columns of the output, the sort type, and whether ZDir waits for a
keypress between each screen of information.
The options to set the number of columns on the command line are /1, /2,
/3, /4, /6, and /W. The number is the number of columns ZDir uses to
display the directory listing, with /W the same as /6. Section 4.1
describes what the display looks like for each number of columns.
The available sort options are /N, /X, /Z, /D, and /S. They stand for
sort by name, extension, size, date and time, and no sort, respectively.
When there is no sort, the files are listed in the same order as the DOS
DIR command. When there is no sort, the setting of Default edit->File
17
list choices->Directory placement is ignored and directories are placed
together with files. This makes the list of filenames and directories
appear in the exact same order as the DOS DIR command.
The /K option toggles the default of waiting for a key between each screen
of data. For example, if the default is to wait for a key each screen,
then typing /K on the command line will make ZDir not wait for a key each
screen. This is useful when writing a listing to a file or to the printer
because ZDir will not pause during the entire run. Regardless of the
setting of this option, the Press any key to continue message does not
appear in the file output.
18
6. Configuration: ZDircfg
The most exciting part of ZDir is that every color, extension, and option
is configurable with an easy to use companion program, ZDircfg. ZDircfg
is a menu driven program that presents configuration information in the
menus. It loads and saves the configuration info in the executable
program ZDir.com itself. When ZDircfg is run, it starts with "factory
settings" for every option which are identical to the configuration in
ZDir.com when you received it. If at some future date you wish to restore
the "factory settings" to a copy of ZDir, just run ZDircfg and immediately
save to a copy of ZDir.com. ZDircfg also allows registered users to
incorporate settings they have established in previous versions of ZDir
into the latest version by loading in the settings from the old version
and saving to the new version.
6.1 Using ZDircfg
ZDircfg is easy to use because it is menu driven. The initial layout of
ZDircfg has a title line at the top of the screen, the top level menu in
the upper left of the screen, and the help line on the bottom. The help
line shows several of the most important keys for the current situation,
but due to space limitations it does not have all of them.
In every menu, the current menu item is in a different background color,
which is called the cursor. To move the cursor up or down one choice, hit
the up or down arrow keys. To go to the first menu choice, hit page-up.
To go to the last menu choice, hit page-down. To select the current menu
item, hit <Enter> or the space bar. To select a menu item other than the
current item, hit the fast key, usually the first letter of the item.
This letter, called the fast key, is in a different color than the rest of
the text. To abort the current choice or to go back up a menu, hit the
escape key. From the top level menu, this will quit ZDircfg if no changes
have been made, or, if changes were made, ask you if you want to quit and
lose the changes.
There are several different types of menu entries, including submenus,
color choices, pick from a list, and other functions. Submenus are
indicated by a character on the right of the entry. These contain an
additional menu, which are of a similar function. Color choices have the
word Sample on the right of the entry, in the current color of the option.
Pick from a list menu items have a short description of the current choice
on the right of the entry, which can be changed with the left and right
arrow keys, as well as <Enter> and the space bar (which are the same as
right arrow). Many of the pick from a list menu items are yes or no
questions. Other menu items perform various functions: these include
quitting ZDircfg, popping up a window to load or save configuration
information, editing the extensions, and setting the column auto-detection
amounts. These menu choices are indicated by three periods(...) after the
choice.
19
6.2 ZDircfg menus
The main menu of ZDircfg looks like the following:
┌──────────────────────────────┐
│ Load ZDir configuration... │
│ Save ZDir configuration... │
│ Extension edit... │
│ Color edit │
│ Default edit │
│ Registration form... │
│ Quit │
└──────────────────────────────┘
The first two selections load and save configuration information to and
from one or more copies of ZDir. Extension edit pops up a window that
allows setting of the fifty extensions and corresponding colors with which
to display files matching these extensions, and setting whether each is a
user extension or not. Color edit and Default edit are submenus
containing the settings of every color and default of ZDir. The selection
Registration form displays the same registration form as when ZDir /R is
run. The last menu selection, Quit, exits ZDircfg, but if any changes
have been made and were not saved, it asks if you are sure.
6.2.1 Load ZDir configuration
Loading in configuration information from a copy of ZDir on disk is the
first step in configuring ZDir. If the copy of ZDir you are loading from
is prior to version 2.0, then ZDircfg pops up a window asking for your
registration name and number, because upgrading config info from an old
version to the current version 2.0 is only available to registered users.
When the main menu option Load ZDir configuration is selected, ZDircfg
draws a small text input window on the screen with the prompt Enter ZDir
filename. You must type in the path to the copy of ZDir for ZDircfg to
load. If the copy of ZDir to load is in the current directory, then only
the filename is required. Note that ZDir does not have to be called
ZDir.com. Many users shorten it (using the DOS REN command) to ZD.com or
Z.com for ease of typing. ZDircfg automatically adds .COM to the end of
the filename if you do not type the extension.
Several keys have special functions when typing filenames in ZDircfg. The
left and right arrow keys move the cursor left and right in the filename.
Delete deletes the character at the cursor (or does nothing if the cursor
is at the end of the filename). Backspace deletes the character to the
left of the cursor. Home and end move the cursor to the beginning and end
of the filename, respectively. To toggle between inserting characters and
overwriting text, hit the insert key. The status of insert mode is
indicated by the cursor. It is a full block in overwrite mode, and an
20
underline in insert mode.
The maximum length of the path and filename to ZDir is 60 characters.
Once the entire filename is typed in, hit <Enter>. If ZDircfg
successfully loads in configuration information from ZDir, it pops up a
window that says Loaded ZDir version x.y, where x.y is the version of ZDir
it loaded from. If there was a problem loading ZDir, ZDircfg displays an
error window that describes the problem and then returns to the main menu.
If the version of ZDir you are trying to load is less than 2.0, then you
are trying to upgrade information from one version to another, and ZDircfg
displays a window asking you for your registration name and number. Type
your registration name and number exactly as printed on the letter you
received as acknowledgement of your registration. The case of letters is
significant, and should all be uppercase. Also, if there are any extra
spaces ZDircfg will not load the old configuration information, so be sure
to type the registration name and number carefully.
Filenames entered to attempt to load ZDir, whether successful or not, are
saved (in the current session of ZDircfg) for the next time you try to
load ZDir from disk. When you enter Load ZDir configuration again, the
text is displayed in a different color. To use the text, hit any of the
special keys (left and right arrow, home and end, backspace, and enter),
or hit any other key to restart with a new filename. This can save a lot
of typing if you are getting errors trying to load in ZDir.
6.2.2 Save ZDir configuration
Saving the current configuration information to a copy of ZDir 2.0 looks a
lot like loading info from ZDir, and is in fact very similar. When you
pick this menu selection from the main menu, a small text window is popped
up and you are asked to enter the filename of the copy of ZDir where you
want to save the configuration info. The editing keys are the same as
with loading ZDir. Unlike loading from ZDir, however, configuration info
can only be saved to ZDir version 2.0, and ZDircfg will give an error if
you try to save to a different version of ZDir.
6.2.3 Extension editing
Selecting the extension edit choice on the main menu opens a window that
shows all fifty extensions, each in its extension color, and indicates
which ones are designated user extensions. When ZDir is run, each
filename is checked against the extensions, and if the filename's
extension matches one of the fifty extensions, then it is displayed in the
designated color for that extension. Wildcards are allowed anywhere in
the extensions, making grouping of files by color very easy.
Editing the extensions themselves is a simple matter. The horizontal
arrow keys move one letter at a time through the extension, and the
21
vertical arrow keys move between extensions. Tab and shift-tab move
forward or backward one extension. Home and end move to the beginning and
end of the row; page-up and page-down move to the top and bottom of the
column. To change the character at the cursor, simply type a valid
filename character (any letter, number, or certain special characters).
The new character overwrites the old. There is no insert mode. For
extensions less than three characters long, delete and backspace remove
characters. The space bar does not put a space in the extension, because
it is used with setting user extensions.
When ZDir is run with the /U option, the only files included are those
that match extensions designated "user extensions". These are shown in
the extension edit window by a check mark to the right of the extension
name. The space bar toggles whether the extension at the cursor is a user
extension or not.
To edit the color of the extension at the cursor, hit the <Enter> key.
This causes a color selection box to be displayed to the right of the
extension, with the white line cursor surrounding the current color of the
extension. The vertical arrow keys change the foreground color and the
horizontal arrow keys change the background color. Home and end move the
cursor to the left and right of the color selection box. Page up and page
down move the cursor to the top and bottom of the box. To set the
extension to the color at the cursor, hit <Enter>. To abort the color
entry and retain the previous color, hit escape.
When you are done editing the extension information, hit the escape key to
return to the main menu. Any changes you made will be retained in memory,
for further editing later or saving to a copy of ZDir.
6.2.4 Color editing
The color edit menu contains several submenus that contain the colors for
the display of everything other than the filename that can be configured.
The menu looks as follows:
┌──────────────────────┐
│ Header lines │
│ File entry area │
│ Summary lines │
│ Tree display │
│ Miscellaneous │
└──────────────────────┘
Each of the submenus contains the colors that may be configured for a
particular part of ZDir's display. The header lines colors are the colors
of the current time and date, the text indicating the path and volume
label, and the ZanySoft message. The ZanySoft message is ZDir v2.0 by
ZanySoft. For the two colors of the ZanySoft message only, the foreground
is not allowed to be the same as the background.
22
The file entry area is everything that ZDir displays within the graphic
lines (except for trees). This includes the time and date of each file,
file sizes and used disk space, file attributes, directories, volume
labels, hidden files, and the graphic lines themselves. The color of
files that match no extension is also in the file entry area menu.
The summary lines give the totals for the ZDir run and are displayed in up
to three different colors. The first summary color is the color of the
message displayed directly after the file area when the /U option is used
which says Files matching extensions followed by the extensions in their
own colors. The other two colors are for the text of the summary lines,
and the numbers and the path spec in the summary lines.
The miscellaneous color menu has the colors that do not fit into any other
category. The most important of these is the empty space color, which is
the color of most of the spaces in the ZDir listing. Since only spaces
are printed in this color, the foreground part of the empty space color
does not matter. Usually you will want this to be black, but if you set
your background color in DOS to another color (using ANSI escape
sequences, for example), then you can set ZDir to match it. The other
miscellaneous colors are the two colors for the press any key to continue
message in between each screen of data, the no files found message color,
and the color of the message giving the status of writing to a file (when
/L is on the command line).
6.2.5 Default editing
The default edit menu opens up a submenu that categorizes the configurable
defaults into three groups:
┌────────────────────────┐
│ Search options │
│ File list choices │
│ Output format │
└────────────────────────┘
Each of these submenus contains several options, and is discussed
separately.
6.2.5.1 Search options
The search options all deal with how ZDir chooses which files to list.
Depending on how they are set, ZDir can include many more files than the
standard DOS DIR command, or show the same files as the DOS DIR command
would. The search options menu appears on the screen as follows:
23
┌───────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Put * before filespec Yes │
│ Add directory entries in totals No │
│ Show . and .. files Yes │
│ Include: Hidden files Yes │
│ Read only files Yes │
│ System files Yes │
│ Volume labels Yes │
└───────────────────────────────────────┘
In every run ZDir adds *.* to the end of the filespec if there is no
extension specified, but the Put * before filespec selection determines
whether ZDir also adds a * to the beginning of the filespec as well. For
example, with this option set to no, then the command
C:\>ZDir abc<Enter>
tells ZDir to use abc*.* as the filespec. If it is set to yes, ZDir will
use *abc*.* as the filespec. See section 4.2 for more about filespecs.
The next two search options are related: add directory entries in totals
and show . and .. files. If ZDir does not add directories to totals, then
the total lines give a count of actual files and their total space. If
ZDir does add directories in the totals, then the total number of files
includes directory entries, and the total space accurately shows how much
disk space is used by every listed directory entry. Every directory on a
disk except for the root directory contains two directory entries, called
. and .., which help DOS keep track of the directory. ZDir will not show
these two directory entries if Show . and .. files is set to no.
The last four search options tell ZDir what attributes a file may have and
still be listed by ZDir. Normally, all four are set to yes so that ZDir
shows every file in the directory. The DOS DIR program does not include
files with any of the four attributes, which are hidden, read-only,
system, and volume label. Running ZDir under the DR DOS operating system
restricts the options slightly, in that DR DOS ignores files with the
volume label attribute, so the setting of the volume label option does not
matter because files with the volume label attribute can never be listed.
6.2.5.2 File list choices
The file list choices affect the look of the center part of the actual
file listing. The main choices are the number of columns and the sort
used, but several other options affect the file list as well. The file
list choices menu is shown below:
24
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Number of columns Auto detect │
│ Auto detect settings... │
│ Sort ordering Top to bottom │
│ Directory placement Before all files │
│ Entire entry in file color No │
│ 1st sort factor Name │
│ 2nd sort factor Name │
│ 3rd sort factor Name │
│ 4th sort factor Name │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────┘
The number of columns that ZDir uses to display the listing is the choice
that affects the ZDir display the most. The choices are 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, or
auto detect. If it is set to auto detect mode, then ZDir uses the auto
detect settings to choose how many columns to use. For a description
about the benefits and drawbacks of each choice, see section 4.1.
The auto detect settings menu entry opens up into a window which shows the
range of the number of files for which ZDir will select 1, 2, 3, 4, or 6
column display mode. The cursor is on the righthand side of the window,
highlighting the upper limit of the range. The vertical arrow keys, page
up, and page down move the cursor up and down to the different columns'
ranges. The right and left arrow keys change the upper limit of the range
by one, and the plus and minus keys change the upper limit by ten. When
one range is changed, the others are adjusted to prevent overlapping
ranges. The maximum number of the lower part of the six column range is
255. If a change would push the six column range over 255 or the one
column range below zero, the change is ignored.
There are two ways to display a directory listing when there are multiple
columns: left to right or top to bottom. This is the choice of the sort
ordering option. If it is set to left to right, then the first filename
is printed in the top of the first column, the second is in the top of the
second column, etc. If it is set to top to bottom, then the first file is
still in the top of the first column, but the next file is just below it
in the first column. The DOS DIR command uses left to right ordering, but
most people find top to bottom ordering easier to read.
Although subdirectories are listed together with files in directory
listings, they are quite different from normal files and should be treated
differently. The directory placement option gives you the capability to
separate directories from normal files, by either placing the
subdirectories before or after the normal files. When files are displayed
in the DOS file order (no sort), then this option is ignored, because in
the DOS file order directories are always interspersed among the files.
Having each type of information about a file displayed in different colors
can be distracting to some people when looking at the directory listing
line by line, especially in one or two column mode. For easier
recognition of a file's information, the entire file entry can be
displayed in the filename's color (determined by its extension). Although
25
for certain applications this is helpful, for most of the time the Entire
entry in file color should be set to no.
The order in which files are listed is determined by the sort. The DOS
DIR command does not have any sort, and instead displays the files in the
order it gets the filenames from disk. This is one option for the sort in
ZDir, called the DOS file order. The other options are name, extension,
size, date, and time. All of the sort options, except the DOS file order,
can also be set to sort in reverse order. If files are tied after the
first sort (for example, if sorting by date, they have the same date),
then the secondary sort is used to break the tie. If they are still tied,
then the third sort is used, etc. Usually only the first two or three
factors are all that are important, however in some cases the fourth is
needed. Sorting by the DOS file order is only available as the first sort
factor, because it is only needed to show files in the same order as DOS,
and would be pointless as a tie breaker.
6.2.5.3 Output format
The options in the output format menu deal with how the output of ZDir is
presented. This menu looks as follows:
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Screen writes Fast │
│ Clear screen to start No │
│ Graphics in alt. output IBM extended │
│ Wait for keypress each screen Yes │
│ Use commas in file size No │
│ Print a . before extensions No │
│ Disk totals Always │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────┘
The screen writes option tells ZDir how to write to the screen. The
options are fast and BIOS. Except for users of old CGA cards, it should
normally be set to fast screen writes.
Clearing the screen to start the display makes ZDir run much faster,
because the slowest part of ZDir is scrolling the screen. If you want to
make ZDir as fast as possible, set Clear screen to start to yes, and the
display will start at the top of the screen.
The third option affects the output when writing to file (see section
5.2.1). If it is set to IBM extended, then an exact copy of the ZDir
output is written to the file specified with /L. If it is set to standard
ASCII, then characters such as -, |, and + are substituted for the graphic
lines characters.
ZDir will wait for a keypress in between each screen of information when
the wait for keypress each screen is set to yes. If it is set to no, then
ZDir will not wait for a key at any time, and complete its listing without
26
pausing. This option can be toggled for one run by placing /K on the
command line.
Although there is plenty of room in one column mode for commas in file
sizes, when multiple columns are displayed it is a bit of a stretch, as
there is not room for commas in six digit numbers. The commas in file
sizes option gives you the choice of using commas in file sizes, when
there is room. The numbers in the total lines at the end are always
displayed with commas for easier reading, and this option does not affect
them.
Filenames are displayed in two parts, the up-to-eight character normal
part of the name, padding spaces, and then the up-to-three character
extension. The Print a . before extensions option determines whether a
period character is printed instead of the last padding space before the
extension.
The last line in the ZDir display is the disk totals line, which shows how
many bytes are free on the listed disk drive, and the total amount of data
it can hold. Since this is useless to some people, the disk totals option
allows you to set ZDir to not display the disk totals, to only display the
disk totals when doing a listing from either A: or B:, or to always
display disk totals.
27
7. Registration form
Name _______________________________________________________________
Street Address _______________________________________________________________
City ______________________________________ State _____ Zip ________
Where did you get ZDir? ______________________________________________________
ZanySoft Dir, version 2.0
Remember, if you use ZDir, you are obligated to pay for it.
___ $10 I am registering ZDir for use on one computer. Please send me my
registration number so I can upgrade configuration colors and
defaults to all future versions of ZDir.
Registration name, no more than 25 characters: _________________________
The following three items do NOT include registration:
___ $5 I would like a 3.5" disk with the current version of ZDir.
___ $5 I would like a 5.25" disk with the current version of ZDir.
The following is for registered users ONLY:
___ $5 I would like the laser printed version of the manual.
_______ Total. Enclose cash or a check drawn on US currency made out to
Christopher Kirmse. Send this form and payment to:
ZanySoft
9303 Arabian Ave.
Vienna, VA 22182
Write any comments below
28