PBATS (formerly HORST) — Batch utility collection.

* * * * *

[updated 2005-06-10]

Even my limited mind can recognize the diversity, quality, and usefulness of this compilation. From a reader..."All hand-crafted assembler, tiny and incredibly fast. More than a power-users batch toolkit. There is something here for everybody. How can anyone manage without it?" With excellent, separate documentation for each program.

Output Handling
COUNT		Count, add, subtract (variable), fixed length option
FPATH		locate path of program file, optional ChDir
LISTMOD		make list of commands from input list
LOGECHO		custom entries for logfiles, with enhanced date handling
NSET		pipe data from STDIN into an environmental variable
QECHO		"quote echo" with control codes, defaults without CR/LF
RANDOM		random number (given range) to STDOUT
Batch Control
CHOIX		CHOICE Clone with mouse support
DREADY		disk(ette) ready?, optional check ready to write?
ESPACE		environment variable space report/check with errorlevel
EVERY		run jobs once a day / on specified days of week
INPUT		string input, editing of existing variable..
ISDATE		compare date (also file date, today)
KPUSH		stuff keystrokes into keyboard buffer, code test mode
PCHECK		checks if (parallel) printer is ready, optional reset
TIMENOW		is current time within given period(s)?
WAIT		wait with prompt, key by errorlevel
WHAT		hour/minute/year/month/day/day of week by errorlevel
File Utilities
CRC32		report and check CRC32, optional list processing
CRLF		convert line terminators, CR+LF / CR / LF
DELAGE		delete/report files by age (days)
LINEX		extract [multiple] range of lines from ASCII file
LOGTRIM		trim logfiles (min/max KB)
Effects
BANNER		big font looping message
BIGFONT		display big characters (4 lines high), round pixels
CSOUND		sound output to PC speaker / resident beep replacement
WAIT4		wait for/until with large digital clock
Other
PACO		executable COM file archive (run with prefix)

Author: Horst Schaeffer, Germany (2002). Suggested by Robert Bull.

2002-08-25: v3.2.

Download pbats32.zip in English (60K), or/oder auf Deutsch (64K).

Go to Horst Schaeffer's Software Pages, in English — auf Deutsch, for more info and other software for DOS & Windows.

More in these pages from Horst Schaeffer.

TSBAT — Collection of useful batch files, other utils & tips.

* * * * *

[updated 2005-08-22]

ADDPATH.BAT		Append directories to the path
APATH-OM.BAT		Otto Makela's version of addpath
ARC2ZIP.BAT		Single .arc to .zip with comment
BDIR.BAT		Bare list – count of directories
BLANK.BAT		Poor man's screen saver
BLK.BAT		Poor man's screen saver + popup
BOOT.BAT		Choose your boot configuration
BOOTW.BAT		Different boots choices for BOOT
C.BAT		Lazy changing of directory
COLORMAP.BAT		Ansi screen color esc. seq. map
COLORS.BAT		Set screen color attributes
D.BAT		Directory with sort + wildsearch
DAILY.BAT		Run a program only once a day
DATEDIR.BAT		Display all files updated today
DELDIR.BAT		Remove directory and its files
DELPATH.BAT		Delete a directory from the path
DOSHIS.BAT		Store/restore command history
EXE2ZIP.BAT		Self-extracting file into a zip
FU.BAT		Poor man's function evaluator
GFIND.BAT		Combine Garbo index files info
HEX.BAT		Add and subtract hexadecimals
LASTBOOT.BAT		Show date + time of previos boot
LC.BAT		Line count for text files
LEVEL.BAT		Testbench for program errorlevel
LINK1.BAT		How to link batch files together
LINK2.BAT		Batch link demo's second file
LOCATE.BAT		Wildcard file find
LOGRUN.BAT		Log program usage + time and run
LOOP.BAT		An index loop demonstration
M.BAT		Give multiple MsDos commands
MAKESURE.BAT		Simple command.com virus warning
MENU.BAT		Run programs from a menu
MVE.BAT		Move file to another directory
M_TSBAT.BAT		A makefile to build this package
POPDIRE.BAT		Restore (pop) saved directory
POPPATH.BAT		Restore the saved path
PORTS.BAT		Display port base I/O addresses
PUSHDIRE.BAT		Non-resident push directory
PUSHIT.BAT		Alternative pushing of directory
PUSHPATH.BAT		Save the current path
REPEAT.BAT		Repeat command to several files
REPLY.BAT		How to give input within a batch
REZIP.BAT		Remove zip authenticity labels
RULER.BAT		Show screen columns
RUN.BAT		Testing for viruses
SAFEDEL.BAT		Safe delete of files
SAMENAME.BAT		Display drive's files by name
SAMESIZE.BAT		Display drive's files by size
SCANZ.BAT		Scan for viruses (incl. execomp)
SCOPY.BAT		Copy a file with a single device
SETCOM.BAT		Secure your command.com
SETPRN.BAT		Set an Epson compatible printer
SHOW.BAT		Wildcard multifile type command
SHOWTIME.BAT		Show current date and time
SKIP.BAT		Perform commands, skipping files
SUBS.BAT		Make current dir a subst drive
SWEEP.BAT		Go recursively thru directories
TEST33.BAT		Test for MsDos 3.3 or later demo
TESTANSI.BAT		Has ANSI.SYS been loaded?
TOUCH.BAT		Touch a file's datetime stamp
UNPACK.BAT		Unpack-test-view any archivetype
VIRAL.BAT		Another batch-based virus test
WEEKLY.BAT		Run program(s) once a week
WHERE.BAT		Generic searchstring fname find
WILD.BAT		Wildcard any command
ZIPDATE.BAT		Equate .zip date to latest file
ZOO2ZIP.BAT		Single .zoo to .zip with comment
ASK.EXE		Ask questions in a batch file
ASKENV.EXE		Ask, returning environment value
BASENAME.EXE		Extract file name from full name
BASEPATH.EXE		Extract path name from full name
BASEXTEN.EXE		Extract file extension from name
CLRBUF.EXE		Clear the key ahead buffer
ECHON.EXE		echo -n, Echo without a linefeed
1BATFAQ.TXT		Assorted batch tricks and tips
1DOSTRIK.TXT		Assorted MsDos tricks and tips
1PATH.TXT		How to beat the 127 byte limit
1PROMPT.TXT		Tips on prompt usages with ansi

Docs are built into the batch files.

Limitation: The batch files in this collection are closely written to features of the MS-DOS COMMAND.COM. Some may fail under DR-DOS, 4DOS or MS-DOS 7 (Win9x) because of OS differences. Even more will fail under WinNT/2K/XP.

Author: Timo Salmi, Finland (1997-2005).

2005-04-19: v8.1.

Download tsbat81.zip (247K).

More in these pages from Timo Salmi.

Batchman — Multi-function batch program.

unrated

[added 1999-07-07, updated 2006-08-21]

Old, but packs 48 batch functions into BATCHMAN.COM, a single 6K program. Source code (ASM and BAS) included.

Syntax: BATCHMAN [command] [arguments] [/R]
/R = Display ErrorLevel

CLS [nn]  nn[H]=color H=hex            CECHO [C] [nn,]string  nn=color;C=no CR
SETLOOP n  n=loops (0-255)             DEC  decrements SETLOOP  EL=SETLOOP
QFORMAT [d:] [N] d:=A: or B: N=No ask  BREAK  EL=1 if break ON
PUSHPATH  EL=0 if successful           POPPATH  EL=0 if successful
ANSI  EL=0 if installed                BEEP [m,n[;m,n]...]  m=freq. n=1/18 sec
WAITTIL hh:mm[:ss]                     WAITFOR [mm:]ss
CURSORTYPE m,n  m=start; n=stop line   DRIVEEXIST d:  EL=1 if exist
DIREXIST directory  EL=1 if exist      ISVOL [d:]volume  EL=1 if exist
YEAR  EL=year from 1980 (0-199)        MONTH  EL=(1-12)
DAY   EL=(1-31)                        WEEKDAY  EL=(0-6) Sun=0; Sat=6
HOUR  EL=(0-23)                        MINUTE  EL=(0-59)
SECOND EL=(0-59)                       VIDEOMODE  EL=(0-19)
ROWS  EL=display rows                  COLS  EL=display columns
SETCURSOR m,n  m=row; n=col            E43V50
PRTSC [F]  F=formfeed                  COMPARE string string  EL=0 if match
CANCOPY filespec [d:]  EL=0 if room to copy
WARMBOOT                               COLDBOOT
SHIFT ALT | CTRL  EL=1 if depressed    NUMLOCK [ON | OFF]
CAPSLOCK [ON | OFF]                    SCROLLOCK [ON | OFF]
RENDIR old new  EL=0 if successful     ROMDATE  display BIOS date
GETKEY ['string' n] n=Function key EL=position; EL=scan code if no list
DOSVER  EL=x where x=(major*32)+minor; eg. DOS 3.30=(3*32+30)=126
MAINMEM n | R  main memory;  n=K bytes needed; EL=0 if enough; R=report
EXPMEM n | R  expanded memory          EXTMEM n | R  extended memory

Author: Michael J. Mefford, for PC Magazine (1989).

1989-12-18: v1.0.

Download v9n02.zip (52K), includes BATCHMAN and other PC Mag batch utils.

Batpower — Old but useful batch util collection.

unrated

[added 1999-09-13, updated 2005-04-10]

This ancient (1984-87) compilation of 18 small batch utils, all with accompanying docs, contains some gems that still come in handy (if there is a link, click it to see a longer description):

ALTER		Change attributes of a file
ANSWER		Stops a bat operation, with optional prompt, and waits for keyboard input
ASK		Branches within a batch file according to an interactive question and answer
BROWSE		TYPE replacement – scrolls forward and backward throughout a file
DO		String commands together on the DOS command line, separated by semicolons
FLIP		Switches NumLock on/off, CapsLock on/off, Mono/Color, 40/80 columns
KEY-FAKE		Stores keystrokes, supplies them to programs
NO		Excludes specified files in a subdirectory from the action of a command
PAWS		PAUSE replacement – displays user-created message (not the same as the other PAWS)
PUSHDIR & POPDIR		Return automatically to current directory after running programs that require directory changing
QUERY2		Aids in writing interactive batch files
REBEEP		PAUSE replacement – continually beeps until a key is pressed
SOUND		PC speaker controller, produces three different beeping signals
SWEEP		Executes a command in current directory & its subdirectories
TUNE		Plays one or more of five little tunes
WAIT		Idles machine for specified number of seconds
WAITUNTL		PAUSE replacement – expires at a specified time, letting the next command execute

Authors: Various. Origin of collection: MechEng Software Archive, of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Suggested by Howard Schwartz.

Download batpower.zip (40K).

Bat2Exec and BatLite — Convert batch files to COM executables.

unrated

[added 1999-09-02, updated 2005-04-10]

Both of these programs compile a DOS batch file into an executable COM file. One of the principle uses is to speed up execution/display of larger batch files. In addition, certain programs (e.g., LINK/LN) won't be able to utilize your batch files unless you convert them to a COM / EXE format. These programs do have basic limitations and reading the docs is suggested before converting a more complex batch file.

Bat2Exec is the classic no frills PC Magazine utility. Package includes ASM source.

Author: Douglas Boling, for PC Magazine (1991).

1991-06-20: v1.5.

BatLite is less well known but includes documentation of limitations of compiling batch files. "...has extended commands of its own, creates smaller files, and seems to run faster/better." Supports MS-DOS 6.22 and older. Free for private use only.

Author: Pieter A. Hintjens, Belgium (1995). Suggested by Howard Schwartz.

1995-02-05: v1.73.

"There are many freeware equivalents to the Unix sleep command (wait n seconds before doing the next command." One of these is sleep25.zip; another is...

* * * * *

[added 1998-03-21, updated 2005-04-10]

A very flexible command line tool for scheduling events; intended for batch files.

The possible events are: FOR a length of time, TILL a certain time, a question ASKed of the user, certain FILESPECS appear or disappear, the UPS is active, or a SCHEDuled event. Commands can be combined. Sleep is DOS, DesqView (uses DV System Memory), OS/2, and Windows aware.

• Sleep will accept an indirect command file. Multiple lines can be used and command files can be nested. The resulting command line must be under 16K.
• Sleep takes up to 100 filespecs, with paths and wildcards. Sleep will exit when any of these filespecs is created (+) or deleted (-). If also prefixed by "&", the conditions for those filespecs are ANDed rather than ORed.
• Serial and parallel port monitoring: Sleep outputs a byte to the port's control register, then monitors the port's status register, looking for the presence (+) or absence (-) of a bit or bits.
• Scheduled events can stored in a file which contains one line per event. Sleep returns the error level of an event when it occurs.
• Sleep can also be called to return an error level based on the date or time.
• The cursor keys can be used to modify time remaining.

Usage:
INDIRECT COMMAND FILE.Sleep "@"<file>
FOR syntax............Sleep for [[hh":"]mm":"]ss
TILL syntax...........Sleep till [[hh":"]mm":"]ss
ASK syntax............Sleep ask '<prompt string>' <responses>
FILESPECS syntax......Sleep ["&"]"+"|"-"<filespec> ...
PAR and SER syntax....Sleep par|ser <port adr> <out> "+"<in> "-"<in>
SCHED syntax..........Sleep sched <file>

No documentation – type SLEEP /? for extended help screens.

Author: John R. Souvestre (1997).

1997-06-19: v4.7.

Download sleep_47.zip (33K).

The basic purpose of a SWEEP tool is to execute a command on a series of files, recursing down through a directory tree. Several SWEEP tools have been developed over the years.

• A no frills SWEEP tool can be found in the BATPOWER tool set.
• Another basic SWEEP, available for DOS16 and for Win32 console, can be found at Freezerware.
• SWEEP 1.62 offers more options: allows you to pause or abort at any point, allows you to execute multiple commands in each directory, allows you to force the sweep to begin at the root directory, and/or allows you to NOT execute the commands in the current directory if you desire not to. Author: Robert Briggs (1990). Download sweep162.zip (19K).
• Also see LOCATE and FORALL.

* * *

This program will launch any specified program (EXE, COM, or BAT) after a countdown of a specified number of seconds. The countdown may be aborted and the program launched immediately by pressing the ENTER key. Pressing the SPACE or ESC key will stop the countdown without launching the program.

This is ESPECIALLY useful for programs that run from the AUTOEXEC.BAT file (like Windows) that you may not want to run EVERY time. This is easier than maintaining multiple configuration files. There are two ways to run COUNTDN: Regular mode and Advanced Mode. The difference is that regular mode is very easy to use, but adds a small amount of memory overhead (3-4 K) to the launched program. Advanced mode is a little more complex to use, but does not take any memory from the launched program.

Default countdown beeps can be turned off with /Q switch.

Not as flexible as SLEEP – but more "showy" and easy to use.

Author: David C. Filmer (1994).

1994-01-03: v2.0.

Download countdn.zip (31K).

unrated

[added 2000-12-14, updated 2004-06-14]

Useful in batch files for audibly monitoring tasks when/if you're not looking at the monitor. Can also function as a PAUSE replacement (/P). Also see demo batches for an example of how to use Beep to play a song and echo lyrics simultaneously. Freeware.

BEEP [switches]

 /C                Clear any text printed with /P or /V after beeping
 /F*               The frequency (Hertz) to beep at (default=262, Middle C)
 /H[-|+|++]n[#|@]  Harmonics (n is note A-G, -/+/++ (optional) increase or
                   decrease scale (++ increase scale by 2), # denotes a sharp
                   note and @ denotes a flat note) EG /HC gives a Middle C
 /K                Keep beeping after program ends (usefull in batch files)
 /L*               The length (miliseconds) to beep (default=500)
 /N                After beeping, go to a new line.
 /P'hi there'      Display the quoted (') text EG : hi there
 /V                Verbose – print 'Beeping at ## Hz for ## miliseconds'
 /?                This help screen (overrides other switches)

Author: Quentin Christensen, Australia (1999).

1999-07-21: v1.2.

Download beep12.zip (22K).

unrated

[added 1999-12-23, updated 2002-12-27]

LMOD extracts data from an input source (e.g., redirected DOS screen output or from a text file); the data can then be inserted into a text or command string and sent to STDOUT for redirection into a file. Several options are available for specifying data to be extracted. Windows NT compatible.

• set environmental variables with information from (DOS) screen output
• get keyboard input
• generate a command using extracted input data
• generate a list of commands for each item of a given (file) list
• extract (and modify) range of lines from a file
• modify lists or tables, arrange columns

Syntax: LMOD options string_with_tokens
Options:
        /Ln[-m] line [range] to select (default: first non blank line)
        /L[n]*  all lines [starting n]
        /E      include empty input lines (default: no output)
        /S.    delimiters for word extraction, instead of default (,;=)
        /B.    as /S, but excluding blank space as delimiter
        /Nn     starting line number (for token [#]), default: /N001
Insert from source line (expression in square brackets):
 [p,l $n U|L Rn]  default []: complete line
        p,l     from position p, length l (default rest of line)
        $n      word number n ("!" for last word)
        U|L     convert to upper|lower case
        Rn      right aligned in output field of size n
Other tokens:
        [+]     insert CR+LF
        [-]     omit CR+LF at end of output
        [#]     line number (digits acc. to option, default:3)
        [=n]    tab to position n in output line
        [~n]    ASCII code n (decimal)
        [".."]  quoted char/string (use for redirection symbols)

Author: Horst Schaeffer, Germany (2002).

2002-12-27: v1.3.

Download lmod13.zip (11K).

Go to Horst Schaeffer's Software Pages, in English — auf Deutsch, for more info and other software for DOS & Windows.

More in these pages from Horst Schaeffer.

unrated

[added 1999-07-07, updated 2005-04-10]

Functionally similar to DOSKEY, holds commands in memory for quick operation: "Rambat is an interesting utility that stores all your small batch files in one file, and then puts them all in your ramdisk as single batch files." The purpose of the program is to reclaim wasted disk space allocated to (usually) tiny batch files. (You'll have to be willing to accept the memory penalty imposed by a RAM disk).

Author: Jay E. Morris (1992).

1992-02-19: v1.0.

Download rambat1.zip (5K).

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