Forum Home
Press F1
 
Thread ID: 22067 2002-07-11 03:38:00 Search Files Windows ME thephoenix (850) Press F1
Post ID Timestamp Content User
61501 2002-07-12 06:33:00 in a command window, say you were looking for "xyz.abc"

navigate back to the root directory
C:\ <enter>

dir xyz.abc /s <enter> note the spaces after dir and after the file name

the /s tells it to search all directories, else it will only do the C:\ one

If you do not know all the file name, use wildcards, for instance if you do not know the extension use xyz.*

In the next lesson you will learn to make batch files and run them from windows......for instance for copying only those files that have changed from a specific directory into a backup directory, overwriting the previous copies..
godfather (25)
61502 2002-07-12 07:39:00 ... and to wildcard a single character, use "?". Handy if you have files called thing01.dat, thing02.dat ... thing99.dat, and you want to look for 20-29, you can search for thing2?.dat . One "?" for each character space. Also good when you want to copy a range of such files. The way the wildcarding works in dir is just the same in copy (and del) commands. Of course before doing a delete using wildcards, you always dor a dir first. Saves you hoping that undelete works. Graham L (2)
61503 2002-07-12 07:52:00 Dont you miss the days of DOS...sigh godfather (25)
61504 2002-07-12 10:00:00 *Susan B runs off to make a brand new DOS Cardfile and copy lesson instructions into it*

Thank you godfather and Graham, I enjoyed that lesson. Will try it out when I've finished this "session".

Looking forward to the next lesson. :-)
Susan B (19)
61505 2002-07-12 11:03:00 Oops

To reset to the root directory, use cd\ <enter>

note that DOS is case INseNsitIvE
godfather (25)
61506 2002-07-13 11:58:00 I did the DOS search and even on my old 'puter it is indeed "blindingly fast"!

Had lots of fun hunting down waist-deep files buried in the dungeons of Explorer then demanding that DOS dig them out. It did, without fail and within seconds everytime.

Just as well I know the /p trick because some of the wildcards produce screens of files that I couldn't keep up with otherwise.

Ready for lesson two in the morning. :-)
Susan B (19)
61507 2002-07-13 12:06:00 tempted to teach "del *.*" but thinks twice as too full of fish godfather (25)
1 2