Big Blue Disk 54/bbd54.zip/BBFF.TXT

Text File | 1991-02-20 | 16KB | 364 lines

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|5║ |EHelpware|5 ║                 ^1 Big Blue File Finder |5                 ║ |EHelpware|5 ║
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^Cby
^CJames Derr

    Do you tire of searching partition after partition and directory after
 directory for those elusive files?  Would you like to search through
 compressed files without unpacking them?  Would you be interested in
 discarding all the backup files cluttering your hard disk with just a
 few keystrokes?

    If you answered YES to any of these questions, then Big Blue File Finder
 (BBFF) is here to solve your problems.  BBFF is a handy program that makes
 searching for files a snap.

    BBFF finds the files you requested and presents them in a list.  You'll be
 amazed at the number of things BBFF lets you do with this list of files.  You
 can highlight a file and go right to the directory in which it is found.  You
 can edit or list a highlighted file.  You can tag a set of files then delete
 them all or copy them to a new location.  The list goes on.

 ^1RECOMMENDATION
    While BBFF can be used to find files on floppy disk drives, it is no doubt
 a more useful tool for a hard disk.  Therefore, we recommend that you use the
 ^1Copy It^0 option to put BBFF on your hard disk.


^C^1┌───────────────────┐
^C^1│ THE SEARCH SCREEN │
^C^1└───────────────────┘

    The first screen that appears when you run BBFF is the Search Screen.
 Using the fields on this screen you may tailor your search to be as broad or
 as narrow as you like.

 ^1ACTIVE KEYS
    F1  - receive help on setting your search parameters
    F10 - begin to search for files matching the specified parameters
    ESC - cancel the search request and exit BBFF

    Up  / Down Arrows - move from field to field
    Tab / Back Tab    - move from field to field
    Enter Key         - move from field to field

 ^1DRIVE SPECIFICATION
    The first line reports the names of the drives found on your hard disk.  On
 the next line type in the letter of the drive(s) you would like to be searched
 or leave it blank and ALL the drives will be searched.

 ^1FILE SPECIFICATION
    Next specify the particular files you are looking for.  Wildcards are
 accepted.  Use *.* for all files, *.EXE for your executable files, etc.
 A specific path name, such as C:\BBD\ISSUE53\*.TXT may also be entered.

 ^1SEARCH OPTIONS
    There are seven search options that you can toggle ON or OFF.  Tab or mouse
 over to the appropriate field and press the space bar to select the option.
 A check mark in the field indicates that the option is ON.  A blank space
 indicates that the option is OFF.

    ^11. Only Search Current Drive
    BBFF will only search the currently active drive.
    If you invoked BBFF from the D: drive, then only D: will be searched.

    ^12. Extended Directory Search
    Normally BBFF searches only those directories without file extensions.
    This option tells BBFF to search the directories that do have extensions.

    For example, if you had some directories with names such as UTILITIES.PAS
    or UTILITIES.BAS, then their files would normally be ignored by BBFF.  By
    turning this option ON, you force BBFF to look into these directories
    during the search.

    ^13. ALSO Look Inside Compressed Files
    BBFF will ^1also^0 search for your files inside ZIP, ARC, ZOO, PAK, and LZH
    compressed files.  These compressed files will NOT be unpacked.

    ^14. ONLY Look Inside Compressed Files
    BBFF will ^1only^0 search for your files inside ZIP, ARC, ZOO, PAK, and LZH
    compressed files.  These compressed files will NOT be unpacked.

    ^15. Look for Duplicate Names Only
    BBFF will look for files with duplicate file names.  You may have several
    files called README.DOC or README.TXT scattered through different
    directories.  This option gives you a way to review all of them.

    ^16. Look for Duplicate Names and Size
    BBFF will look for files with duplicate file names and duplicate sizes.
    Perhaps you've inadvertantly copied a useful program to more than one
    place.  Does it exist in the TOOLS directory, the UTIL directory, or both?
    You could use this option to locate such duplicates.  Then you could use
    BBFF to delete the extras.

    ^17. Only Search Specified Directory
    The directory specified in the file specification field will be the only
    directory searched.  BBFF will NOT search in the sub-directories.

    For example, suppose you had a directory called PROJECTX which contained
    10 files and 2 sub-directories called XDOCS and XDATA.  If PROJECTX is the
    specified directory and this option is turned ON, then only the the 10
    files of PROJECTX will be searched.  The files in sub-directories XDOCS and
    XDATA will be ignored by BBFF.

 ^1DATE SEARCH OPTION
    You can narrow the search by asking for files dated AFTER a particular date
 or BEFORE a certain date.  Enter both dates and the files in between will be
 found.

 ^1ATTRIBUTE SEARCH OPTION
    There are four different attributes that may be associated with a file:
 R = Read Only, H = Hidden, S = System, A = Archive.  Normally BBFF ignores
 these attributes.  It will search for files with or without attributes.
 You can force BBFF to search for files with one or more attributes by typing
 the corresponding letters.


^C^1┌──────────────────────┐
^C^1│ THE FILE LIST SCREEN │
^C^1└──────────────────────┘

    After you have specified what to search for, press F10 to begin the search.
 A list of the file names found will then be displayed on the File List Screen.
 The first file in the list will be highlighted.  Use the up and down arrows to
 move the highlight bar.

    Many functions can be performed on individual files or on groups of tagged
 files as described below.

 ^1ACTIVE KEYS
    F1         - receive help on processing files
    ESC        - exit BBFF

    Up Arrow   - move highlight bar up
    Down Arrow - move highlight bar down

    Page Up    - display previous page of file names
    Page Down  - display next page of file names

    Home Key   - move highlight bar to entry at top of screen
    End  Key   - move highlight bar to entry at bottom of screen

    Ctrl-Home  - move highlight bar to first entry in list
    Ctrl-End   - move highlight bar to last entry in list

 ^1SPECIAL FUNCTIONS
    G - Go to the directory where the highlighted file is found, exiting BBFF.
        Pressing the ENTER key will also accomplish this.

    R - Execute the highlighted file if it has .COM, .EXE, or .BAT for its
        extension.  You may enter any parameters needed by the executable file
        in the pop-up box that appears.

        If the highlighted file is not executable, then you may enter the name
        of a program you wish to RUN against the file that is highlighted. For
        example, if you highlighted a .TXT file and you have a spelling
        checker program, then you could enter this program's name in the box,
        and the spelling checker program would be RUN on the selected file.

        You will return to BBFF when the RUN command is finished.

    T - Tag the highlighted file.  This key acts as a toggle so that you can
        turn a tag on or off.

    U - Untag all tagged entries.

    You may also activate the above functions by clicking your mouse on the
    corresponding button that appears at the bottom of the screen.

 ^1SPECIAL Alt-Key FUNCTIONS
    ALT-D = Delete the highlighted file.  You will be prompted to make sure
            that you did mean to delete the file.

    ALT-E = Edit the highlighted file using the editor specified in your
            BBFF configuration file.  ^1(See config info below.)

    ALT-L = List the highlighted file using the listing program specified in
            your BBFF configuration file.  ^1(See config info below.)

    ALT-O = Copy the highlighted file.
            You will be prompted to supply a destination.

    ALT-S = Shell out of BBFF to DOS.  Type "exit" to return to BBFF.

 ^1SPECIAL Ctrl-Key FUNCTIONS
    CTRL-D = Delete all tagged files.  You will be prompted to make sure that
             you did mean to delete all tagged files.

    CTRL-O = Copy all tagged entries to a destination.  You will be prompted
             to supply a destination.

    CTRL-R = Run a program against all tagged entries.  You will be prompted
             to supply the name of the program to be run.


^C^1┌───────────────────────────┐
^C^1│ CONFIGURATION INFORMATION │
^C^1└───────────────────────────┘

    In order to use the two commands, ALT-E (Edit the highlighted file) and
 ALT-L (List the highlighted file), you must first configure BBFF so that it
 knows what editor and what listing program you would like to use.

    To do this, make sure that you have the BBFF.EXE and the BBFFCFG.EXE
 programs on your hard disk.  Then run the BBFF Configuration program by
 typing BBFFCFG at your DOS prompt and pressing ENTER.

    The config program first asks you where the BBFF.EXE program is.  You must
 enter the full path and file name, ^1C:\UTILS\BBFF.EXE^0, for example.

 ^1The EDITOR and the LISTER
    When prompted, enter the name of the editor and the listing program you
 would like to use.  If these programs are already on your path, you need only
 enter their file names.  Otherwise, enter a full path name.

    On this issue we are including a copy of the Speed View program to serve as
 the default listing program.  When you run the config program, SV.EXE will
 appear in the box for the listing program.  Feel free to use Speed View or
 replace it with a new lister.  A default EDITOR is NOT provided.

 ^1CONFIGURATION OPTIONS
    Finally you will be asked about three configuration options.
 Reply Y (yes) or N (no) to each option.

 1. Asks you what drives BBFF should search by default.

    Initially this is set to all drives.  You could change it to search
    only the current drive.

 2. Asks if you want to use the memory swapping feature.

    When you try to RUN a big program from BBFF (a graphics mode game,
    for example), you may not have enough memory to do so.

    To solve this problem, run BBFFCFG and say YES I do want to use the memory
    swapping feature.  Then when you run your game the copy of BBFF running
    in memory will be swapped out to free  up enough memory for your game to
    run.  When you finish the game BBFF will be swapped back into memory.

 3. Asks if you want to pause before returning to BBFF.

    If you say YES to this option, then when you finish RUNNING a program,
    you will get a prompt that says:  [Press any key to return to BBFF.]


^C^1┌──────────────────────────┐
^C^1│ COMMAND LINE INFORMATION │
^C^1└──────────────────────────┘

    You may use BBFF from the command line if you prefer.  All command line
 parameters MUST be separated by blanks and all options MUST begin with a
 forward slash ^1/^0.  The options may appear anywhere on the command line.
 The format of the command line options is:

       ^1BBFF [options]  [ [drives:] [filespec] ]  [options]

    If the drives parameter is omitted, then BBFF will search all hard drives
 that can be identified.  If the drives parameter is included, then only the
 drives specified will be searched. (PLEASE NOTE: THE COLON MUST BE ENTERED
 AFTER THE DRIVE LETTERS).

    If the colon is entered without any drive letter preceding it, then BBFF
 will only search for files on the current default drive.  For example,
 ^1BBFF : *.BAT^0 will search for all files on the current default drive
 that have a file extension of BAT.

    Multiple filespecs may be entered along with multiple drives.
 For example:

    ^1BBFF *.BAK CD: \UTILITY\*.COM  DE: \TEMP\*.*  C:\JIM\*.*

    This example will:

         1)   Find all files that have a file extension of BAK that
              reside on any identifiable hard drive.

         2)   Find all files that have a file extension of COM in the
              UTILITY directory or any sub-directory of the UTILITY
              directory ONLY ON HARD DRIVES C AND D.

         3)   Find all files that reside in the TEMP directory or any sub-
              directory of the TEMP directory ONLY ON HARD DRIVES D AND E.

         4)   Find all files that reside in the JIM directory or any sub-
              directory of the JIM directory ONLY ON THE C DRIVE.

    The following command line options are available:

          ^1 ?^0   Displays summary information about the BBFF command line
               parameters.  Enter ^1BBFF ?^0 and the help info is displayed.

          ^1/E^0   BBFF normally only looks for directories that do not contain
               a file extension.  Using this option forces BBFF to also look
               for directories that contain directory names with extensions.

          ^1/G^0   This option allows you to limit the file search to files
               that have a file date Greater than or Equal to the date
               specified.  The format is ^1/Gmm-dd-yy^0.  For example,
               ^1/G01-01-91^0 or ^1/G1-1-91^0 will list files that have a
               file date GREATER THAN OR EQUAL TO January 1st, 1991.

               ** NOTE:  this option may be combined with the /L option
                         to specify a date range

          ^1/L^0   This option allows  you to limit the file search to files
               that have a file date Less than or Equal to the date
               specified.  The format is ^1/Lmm-dd-yy^0.  For example,
               ^1/L01-01-91^0 or ^1/L1-1-91^0 will list files that have a
               file date LESS THAN OR EQUAL TO January 1st, 1991.

               ** NOTE:  this option  may be  combined with  the /G  option
                         to specify a date range

          ^1/I^0   This option tells BBFF to ALSO look Inside any archived
               (compressed) files for the indicated files.  The compressed
               files supported are ZIP, ARC, ZOO, PAK and LZH files.
               For example, ^1BBFF /I *.TXT^0 will find all .TXT files on
               all drives including the .TXT files inside compressed files.

          ^1/A^0   This option tells BBFF to ONLY look inside Archived
               (compressed) files for the indicated files.  The compressed
               files supported are ZIP, ARC, ZOO, PAK and LZH files.
               For example, ^1BBFF /A *.EXE^0 will find only those .EXE files
               that exist inside of compressed files.

          ^1/d^0   This option tells BBFF to look for files with duplicate
               file names.

          ^1/D^0   This option tells BBFF to look for files with duplicate
               file names AND duplicate file sizes.

          ^1/SD^0  This option informs BBFF to only search the directory specified
               on the command line and not to search any directories existing
               under the specified directory.
               For example, ^1BBFF C:\PROJECTX\*.TXT /SD^0 would only search
               for .TXT files in the PROJECTX directory.  Any sub-directories
               of PROJECTX are ignored.

          ^1/Z[RHSA]

               This option allows you to limit the file search to files that
               have specific attributes.  The following attributes may be
               specified: R = Read Only, H = Hidden, S = System, A = Archive.

               For example, specifying ^1/ZA^0 will list files with the Archive
               attribute.  ^1/ZRH^0 will list files that have the Read-Only
               attribute OR the Hidden attribute set.

               ** NOTE: If you specify the /A or /I options,
                        then THIS OPTION IS IGNORED!


^C^1┌────────────────┐
^C^1│ OUTSIDE OF BBD │
^C^1└────────────────┘

    To run this program outside the ^1 Big Blue Disk^0 menu, type: ^1BBFF^0.

^C^1DISK FILES THIS PROGRAM USES

^FBBFF.EXE
^FBBFFCFG.EXE
^FSV.EXE