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LA
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LA023.ZIP
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HELP!.ZIP
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HELP.DOC
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1989-11-16
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73 lines
HELP.BAT
Smoosh your doc files into an archive and extract them as needed
Another bizarre Dave Williams batch file
I was browsing through the file directory of a local BBS today when I saw
a listing for a program that would keep all my doc files in one archive, and
extract them on demand to be viewed with a file viewer. The default programs
were PKXARC and LIST.
It sounded neat. I downloaded it. There was a long raving shareware notice,
some freaked-out documentation, and half the time the program's docs referred
to &PRODUCT& instead of the program's name. Aw, c'mon now! Gimme a break!
I was looking at the part when the author was explaining about setting
environment variables for "&PRODUCT&" when it occurred to me - duh... all this
could be done with a simple batch file. In fact, I already had all my doc
files trimmed down into .HLP files in a special \HELP directory, and used a
batch file with replaceable parameters to call LIST.COM. Duh...
Gee, I could really get with saving some disk space. I used PKARC over LHarc
or PKZIP since PKARC is the speed champion on ASCII files, and I wanted quick
help. So... two or three minutes, and my little batch file was beating
&PRODUCT& hands-down.
It's just a batch file, nothing complicated. It has some bells and whistles
since DOS will use a minimum of 2k of disk space even for a 1 byte file. I
named the file HELPFILE.ARC and put it in the \UT (utilities) directory, and
used PKXARC and LIST. My docfiles are edited to reduce their size and renamed
.HLP instead of .DOC (do you want to read through all the junk every time you
need to find a command parameter?). I chose to unARC into the root directory
and clean the mess up when I was done. The batch file even checks to see if
there's already a file with the same name in the root.
Everything is completely changeable, so you can fit it to YOUR arc program,
file viewer, and subdirectory structure.
Typing HELP will get you a brief description of the program.
Type HELP ? and it will list all the help files in the archive.
***************************************************************************
now that you've suffered through this file, a couple of short ads:
***************************************************************************
Visit Twit's End BBS, the gigabyte board! (501) 771-0114. Home of the
Programmer's Technical Reference. No fees, no postcards, no begging, over
20,000 files online (and growing by leaps and bounds!).
While you're on the End, you might download a copy of the shareware version
of the Programmer's Technical Reference. (DOSREFxx.ZIP). The Reference
contains just about everything you'd care to know about DOS, the BIOS, device
drivers, and general programming information for the IBM. If you choose to
register your copy, your $25 check gets you the very latest Registered User
version, which is over 3 megs, crammed onto three disks with LHarc. Shove all
those crummy reference books onto the floor! Why flip pages when it's all
online? Registered users also get special access and support via Twit's End
BBS. Such a deal! You can also order at the address below:
brought to you by:
Dave Williams, PO Box 181, Jacksonville AR 72076-0181 USA
11/16/89