Save the Batch File
Saving the batch file is important, as we
need to make the sure the encoding is correct, and that Notepad won't save it
as a text file instead. With your batch file already typed in, go to File >
Save As, and choose a location for the batch file, then type in a name for the
batch file (in our case we imaginatively named it 'filel') and add '.bat' after
its name. Now make sure that the 'Save as type:' pull down menu is displaying
All Files, and not Text Documents, and check that the 'Encoding' pull down menu
is ANSI, then click Save.
Make sure you save as a .bat file, not a text file
When you now look at the saved batch file
in Windows Explorer, you should see it has a slightly different icon than the
usual (a couple of cogs) and the Type will be identified as a Windows Batch
File. To run it, if you are using Windows Vista, or Windows 7, with the UAC
still active, you will have to right click, and select Run as Administrator
from the menu. Why? Well because we are calling the command to view and dump
the directory listing of the Program Files folder, which as you know is a
folder that's protected under the UAC settings of Vista and 7. Of course, if
you're running this under Windows XP, or if you have turned off the UAC then
you can simply double click.
The result should be the listing of the
contents of the Program Files directory, as shown in Notepad. You'll also have
a blank CMD window pop up as well, but don't worry about that - it's only
because you're calling from the command prompt.
You'll end up with a blank command screen, and the results in Notepad
Playing With Variables
Although that last batch file was quite
rudimentary, it showed us that we can call up both DOS and Windows based
commands from with a single script (i.e. the dir. command and the Windows
Notepad application). Generally we can call up any Windows based application
via the Command prompt; however some will require an extra syntax that is
usually present when running from an icon.
For this next batch file, we'll have a play
with variables, and we'll see if we can import them to improve the first batch
we made. To start, open up a new Notepad instance, and type in the following:
@echo off
set /p name= What is your name? echo Hello,
%name%
As we already know, the @echo off command
turns off the displaying of the rest of the script's commands; the set /p name
creates a variable called name, with the /p part indicating that an '^prompt
string' will follow. What is your name? (note: there's a space after the
question mark, it gives you an extra space and looks better when run) part will
be displayed and will wait for the user to input their name, which will be
stored under the variable %name%. And finally, the echo command will display
the text Hello, followed by calling the variable %name%.
Save this batch file as file2.bat, for
example, and make sure the encoding and all files is correct as before. To run
it, drop into a Command prompt, by pressing the Windows key + R and typing in:
cmd, then change directory to the saved batch file, and type in: file2 to
execute.
Wonderful variables make a computer a more personal thing
Spice It Up
If we wanted to spice up this batch file a
little, we could again use Notepad to display the end output, the Hello so and
so part. To do this we could alter it as such:
@echo off
set /p name= What is your name? echo Hello,
%name% > name.txt notepad.exe name.txt
This alteration will ask for your name,
store it in the variable called %name%, output and pipe Hello, %name% to a text
file called name.txt, then open up Notepad, with the output.
Piping an output into a text file is handy for calling it up in Windows
applications...
As you'll notice, you're left with a file
called name.txt in the directory that the batch file was run in, and the
command prompt looks a little messy, so we could further spice things up by
adding a few extra lines:
@echo off
cls
set /p name= What is your name? echo Hello,
%name% > name.txt notepad.exe name.txt
cls
del /Q name, txt
This will clear the screen before the 'What
is your name' question is asked, then display the name.txt in Notepad, then
when you close down Notepad, the screen will be cleared once more and the
name.txt will be deleted. Plus, you can also run this from within Windows
Explorer, as everything is now neatened up a bit.
