Thursday, May 21, 2009

Automating Things with Batch Files

The point of this article is to help you to the next level and show you what this amazing subject has to offer.

They Work on nowadays's Computers Too!

If you're customary with MS-DOS at all, you'll remember that it's a direct-obsessed working routine that performs functions issued at the C:> stimulate. The only way to get an MS-DOS mainframe to do something was to class a direct at this stimulate and if you can suppose, it was a very cumbersome way to use a mainframe.

As an example, to charge up Microsoft's clean control course, you had to class the name of the urge that the course was on, the almanac that the course was in, and then the name of the course. So if Microsoft amend was in a almanac or folder named "manner," you could fright the course by typing, "C:>route\oversee.com" Then, and only then would the course charge up for use.

Keep reading further to learn how this topic can benefit you, as the rest of this article will supply you will the needed information.

This is a small direct, but just suppose if you had a course that was genuinely nested inside a cycle of folder. You could end up typing a direct as large as your mainframe test or inferior, long enough that the whole direct would have to wrap against the next line! Now suppose having to class these long directs every time that you hunted to fright a course. Yikes!

That's one of the reasons why batch profiles became so trendy. Batch profiles are small wording-based papers that hold a bunch of these directs on their own ranks. When executed, they would route each direct lacking the client having to class each and every one of them.

When Windows was urban, the requisite for typing directs was essentially eradicated merit to the introduction of the thrust-and-click (mouse) line. But this didn't obstruct the batch profile fever that frighted under MS-DOS - and in some small circles, batch profiles are still as trendy as they were in the launch.

Even still you may use Windows XP or view, batch profiles can avoid you tons of time by automatically frighting several courses and performing different errands at the only click of a knob. They don't compel any general courseming background and they don't requisite to be encrypted with some peculiar, steep compiler. Batch profiles are patent wording profiles, and you can foster one for your own private use with Windows' notebook.

You could make a batch profile that charges up your darling websites at once for example, or you could make a batch profile that fills your desktop with the most important applications for the day. To do so only compels a little records about the locations of these applications.

Let's say that every day we requisite to charge up the Yahoo web browser, Microsoft Word, and then the calculator that comes with Windows. Instead of liability this by hand, we could write a batch profile to do it for us.

First, we'd charge up notebook and class in the next:

onset "http://www.yahoo.com"

onset "c:/course profiles/microsoft work/work/winword.exe"

onset "c:/windows/calc.exe"

We would then avoid this records into a profile named, "myerrands.bat" against the Desktop for cool access. Each time we bend-clicked on this profile, the Yahoo website would charge up, Microsoft Word would fright, and the clean calculator would pop up.

because we want these courses to charge every day, we could build a shortcut to this profile and then place the shortcut inside our mainframe's institute Up folder. That way, these three courses would charge every time we outing on the mainframe. If you hunted these courses to fright diminishd, you could class the next into a batch profile instead:

onset http://www.yahoo.com /m

onset "c:/course profiles/microsoft work/work/winword.exe" /m

onset "c:/windows/calc.exe" /m

This will run all three courses as before, however the "/m" parameter will diminish them so that they don't litter up the desktop.

Other people have found greatly more creative and operative conduct to use batch profiles, but the important thing is that you know they're a reserve you can use to avoid a few seconds or record in performing important errands. We've come a long way from MS-DOS, but it's still a worthy cause of automation that someone can use with no courseming records at all.

Accessorizing Computers

After reading our article, you can impress your friends with the amazing amount of knowledge you have gained on this subject.

What Comes Out of the Box is a genuinely Just a Starter Kit

Yesterday, we depleted about three hours demanding to aspersuaded a client of ours that describe new processors just don't come equipped with the all effects that most processors should in a PC. We tried to aspersuaded him that a insincere functional processor is one that is personalized with expressly select hardware and software accessories - and that the processor purchased at the save doesn't come with these effects. Unfortunately, all of our convincing was to our reward. Our client insisted that he should never should more than what came with his boxed effect and that we were just demanding "dupe" more money out of him.

As processor consultants, it's our job and mission to make persuaded our clients are 100% pleased when they pace out our offices. But our job is unnecessarily made harder when people don't take the time to learn about processor accessories and familiarize themselves with the limitations of save-bought processors. Hopeinsincere by the time you veneer rendition this section, you'll understand the lecture that we were demanding to coach our client: "What comes out of the box is truly just a starter kit."

As we take a closer look, keep in mind all of the useful and important information that we have learned so far.

The classic processor packet comes with a CPU component, upright, mouse, and lecturer set. That may be just penalty for some, but most people oblige more than that eexpressly in nowadays's "attached" institute. nowadays's users oblige broad multimedia capabilities, a varied extend of graphics tools, and accommodations for the assorted portables we now have. These verys aren't included with "what comes out of the box," and the only way to get them is to accessorize.

To illustrate the importance of accessorizing, we like to use the "bare currency" analogy. Let's say that a describe new processor is a batch of bare currency - lingering to be flavored and baked into something practical. If we want to use this currency to make a delicious batch of chocolate chunk cookies, we would should to "accessorize" this currency with chocolate chunks and a little russet sweetie. If we want to use this currency into in a fiery mooch of sesame seed bread on the other hand, we'd should to "accessorize" the currency with mushroom and sesame seeds.

Like "bare currency," the describe new processor isn't very practical by itself. It shoulds accessorizing.

Depending on what's shoulded, accessorizing doesn't should to be steep. In truth, you can get away with paying a token total for very software and hardware if these accessories are for children. It's when these accessories are work obligements or when they're shoulded to fabricate workings of trait for any other deduce that they can become somewhat steep. And this rate applies to microphones, digital cameras, PDAs, scanners, record cams, and more.

Regardless of outlay, it's important to understand that accessories can become "necessities," and that the best time to get them is the minute you buy a new processor. Waiting too long to accessorize can origin more troubles than crucial beorigin while you linger, manutruthurers continuously expand new technologies - technologies that your processor won't be able to accommodate in the upcoming. Once you're prepare to accessorize, the new effects on the bazaar are too difficult for your processor and they just won't work. This is a classic riddle experienced by those who want to use hardware planned for Windows view on a Windows XP or Windows 2000 machinery.