Take Command for OS/2 Introduction and Installation Guide Developed By Rex Conn and Tom Rawson Documentation By Hardin Brothers, Tom Rawson, and Rex Conn Published By JP Software Inc. P.O. Box 1470 East Arlington, MA 02174 U.S.A. (617) 646-3975 fax (617) 646-0904 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We couldn't produce a product like Take Command without the dedication and quality work of many people. Our thanks to: JP Software Staff: Christine Alves, Mike Bessy, Michael Hart, Ed Lucas, Ellen Stone. Beta Test Support: The sysops of CompuServe's CONSULT forum. Online Support: Brian Miller and Tess Heder of Channel 1 BBS; Don Watkins of CompuServe's IBMNET. Beta Testers: We can't list all of our beta testers here. A special thanks to all of you who helped make Take Command for OS/2 elegant, reliable, and friendly! The following tools are used in creating and maintaining Take Command: Compilers: IBM C-Set/2, Microsoft Macro Assembler Editors: RimStar (RimStar Technology), Brief (Borland), Boxer (Boxer Software) Version Control: PVCS (Intersolv) Documentation: Microsoft Word for Windows with Adobe Type Manager Copyright 1996, JP Software Inc., All Rights Reserved. "Take Command," "4OS2," "JP Software," and the JP Software logo and product logos are trademarks and "4DOS" is a registered trademark of JP Software Inc. Other product and company names are trademarks of their respective owners. 3-96 Contents ------------------------------------------------------------------- Contents Introduction...............................................1 How to Use This Manual.................................2 Customer Service and Technical Support.................3 Chapter 1 / Installation...................................4 Installing Take Command................................4 Changes Made During Installation.......................5 Manual Installation....................................5 Take Command for OS/2 Files and Directories........7 Uninstalling Take Command..............................7 Chapter 2 / Configuration..................................9 Configuring Take Command Objects.......................9 Take Command Startup Options..........................10 Configuring Take Command..............................11 TCSTART, TCEXIT, and Startup Commands.................12 Take Command Help.....................................13 Chapter 3 / Using Take Command............................15 Using an OS/2 Command Line............................15 Take Command and OS/2.................................16 Character-Mode Applications...........................17 Take Command, 4OS2, and 4DOS..........................19 Using Your Batch Files and Aliases................20 Index.....................................................23 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / i INTRODUCTION ------------------------------------------------------------------- INTRODUCTION Welcome, and thanks for purchasing Take Command! We developed Take Command for OS/2 to bring the power and convenience of our popular 4DOS and 4OS2 programs to the OS/2 Desktop. Whether you are a computer novice or an experienced user, Take Command for OS/2 will help you get the most out of your computer system. To use Take Command for OS/2, you must have OS/2 version 3.0 (Warp) or later installed on your computer. You're probably already familiar with graphical applications running under OS/2, and with the command line, but you may not be used to seeing them combined in one product. Most graphical applications offer limited command-line capability at best, and most command-line utilities aren't designed for a graphical environment like the OS/2 Desktop. We designed Take Command to give you the best of both worlds. You'll probably find it most useful when you need to perform tasks like managing your hard disk, scripting a series of steps with an alias or batch file, or starting applications. There are graphical utilities that perform some of these tasks, but often you may find it more convenient or productive to perform them from the command line. Unlike a character-mode session, Take Command also looks and feels like the other OS/2 programs you use. Take Command offers a host of features that couldn't exist at all in a character-mode command-line utility. For example, you can pop up simple dialogs from a batch file, pass keystrokes to OS/2 applications, use an OS/2-based dialog to find files or text on any of your disks, or configure Take Command with notebook pages instead of editing an .INI file. If you are familiar with the traditional command prompt, or with 4DOS or 4OS2, you won't have to change your computing habits or unlearn anything to use Take Command. If you know how to use commands to display a directory, copy a file, or start an application program, you already know how to use Take Command. And if you are a 4DOS or 4OS2 user, you already know how to use most of the advanced features that we have built into Take Command. You can even use many of your 4DOS and 4OS2 batch files with Take Command (see page 20 or the online help for tips about making batch files work properly in both environments). Once you have Take Command installed, you can learn its new features at your own pace. Relax, enjoy Take Command's power, and browse through the manuals occasionally. Press the F1 key whenever ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 1 INTRODUCTION ------------------------------------------------------------------- you need help. Take Command will soon become an essential part of your computer, and you'll wonder how you ever got along without it. We are constantly working to improve Take Command. If you have suggestions for features or commands that we should include in the next version, or any other way we could improve our product, please let us know. Many of the features in Take Command were suggested by our users. We can't promise to include every suggestion, but we really do appreciate and pay attention to your comments. How to Use This Manual This manual is only one part of the documentation that you will need for Take Command. It introduces the product and will help you install it correctly on your computer. It will also help you understand some of the terms and concepts that you need to know to get the most from Take Command. Take Command for OS/2 includes complete online help for all of its built-in commands. The online help provides information about the commands and features of Take Command in an electronic form which you can access quickly. See page 13 for more details about using the online help. We also offer a separate Reference Manual for Take Command. It contains all of the information in the online help, in printed form. The Reference Manual is sometimes sold separately from Take Command, so you may not find it in your package. If that's the case, use this manual to get started, and use the online help for reference information. A Reference Manual can be purchased from JP Software; contact our Customer Service department for pricing. You should start with this introductory manual to install Take Command on your system. Once you have successfully installed Take Command, you can move back and forth between this manual and the online help and Reference Manual. For the sake of clarity, we have chosen not to indicate each of the dozens of places in this manual where you can refer to the Reference Manual or online help for additional information. If you see a reference here to a command, the initialization file TCMDOS2.INI, or any Take Command feature, you can be sure that detailed information on that topic is available in the reference material. Files distributed with Take Command for OS/2 cover important additional information beyond what's included in the manuals. README.DOC contains general notes, highlights of the latest ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 2 INTRODUCTION ------------------------------------------------------------------- release, and brief installation instructions for those installing from a downloaded copy, and UPDATxx.DOC contains detailed information for users with older versions on what has changed in the latest release ("xx" is the version number). JP Software also offers a version of Take Command for Windows 3.1, and another version for Windows 95 and Windows NT. Except where we specifically say otherwise, in this manual the terms "Take Command" and "Take Command for OS/2" are used interchangeably to refer to the version of Take Command for the OS/2 operating system. If you are a 4DOS or 4OS2 user, or you use the OS/2 or DOS prompts to do command-line work, be sure to read Chapter 3 before using Take Command. It will give you a feel for some of the differences between a character-mode command processor and a Desktop-based one. You will likely find some parts of the documentation too simple or too technical for your tastes. Unless you are convinced that one of those sections holds just the information you need for a specific task, feel free to skip to the next part of the manual that is more to your liking. You can use almost every feature of Take Command without having to worry about other features or commands. Customer Service and Technical Support Technical support is available via public electronic support conferences, private electronic mail, telephone, fax, and mail. For complete details, including a listing of electronic support conferences, see the Support topic in the online help, or your Reference Manual. Customer service is always available through the telephone and fax numbers listed on the title page of this manual. See your Reference Manual or the online help for electronic mail addresses for our Sales and Customer Service departments. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 3 CHAPTER 1 / INSTALLATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPTER 1 / INSTALLATION Installing Take Command To install Take Command you must run the INSTALL program on your Take Command distribution disk. INSTALL will copy the files from the diskette to your hard disk, create a Desktop object to run Take Command, and make any other changes necessary for Take Command to run properly on your system. If you're installing a downloaded copy you will not have an INSTALL program. Instead, use the appropriate decompression program (for example, PKUNZIP) to extract the files from your download into a new directory. Then follow the instructions on page 5 to complete your installation. If you are updating from a previous version, check the README.DOC file for update instructions. To begin the installation process, put the Take Command for OS/2 distribution diskette in drive A. (You can use drive B if you prefer) Open Drive A by selecting the Drives icon in the OS/2 System folder and then select the Install program. If you prefer, you may use a 4OS2 command prompt, the OS/2 Full Screen command prompt, or the OS/2 Window command prompt to enter the command: a:install Once the installation program has started, just follow the instructions on the screen to install Take Command on your system. Use Express Installation for a quick and simple installation with default settings, or use Custom Installation for finer control over the installation process. You can exit from the installation program at any time by pressing Esc, then pressing "Y" in response to the next prompt. The Take Command files are contained in a special library file on the distribution diskette. You cannot simply copy the files from the diskette onto your system. You must use INSTALL to extract and decompress the Take Command files even if you want to perform a manual installation (see below), or if you need to replace a damaged Take Command file on your hard disk. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 4 CHAPTER 1 / INSTALLATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- If you also have 4DOS or 4OS2, do not install Take Command in the same directory as either product. Some file names (for example README.DOC) are the same in all three products, and the files should be kept separate to avoid confusion. Changes Made During Installation Some OS/2 installation programs make changes to your system which are difficult to find or modify. While the Take Command installation program makes few such changes, we know you may feel more comfortable knowing exactly what is done to your system and OS/2 configuration when you install Take Command. Take Command's installation program takes the following steps. Step (1) is always performed once you select a drive and directory. Express Installation performs steps (2) through (4) automatically. Custom Installation asks you to confirm steps (2) through (4) individually. 1)Copy all Take Command files to a hard disk directory of your choice. 2)Brand your copy of Take Command with your name and serial number. 3)Create a folder for Take Command, and add objects to that folder for Take Command itself and for the online documentation. 4)Modify your CONFIG.SYS file to add the Take Command directory to the LIBPATH, BOOKSHELF, and DPATH settings, so that Take Command can find its library and help files. Manual Installation There is little difference between manual and automated installation for Take Command. The Custom Installation option will query you before any files are copied or existing files are deleted or modified, so there is no real advantage to performing these steps manually. However, if you prefer a manual installation, you can extract the Take Command files by using the Custom Installation option, and choosing No when prompted for additional installation steps after the files are extracted. Then follow the instructions below to complete the installation manually. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 5 CHAPTER 1 / INSTALLATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- You must use manual installation if you have a downloaded copy of Take Command (for downloaded copies, see the README.DOC file for any installation or update instructions specific to the version you downloaded). To install Take Command for OS/2 manually, first extract the files to a directory on your hard disk. We recommend that you use a new directory for Take Command for OS/2. It can be on any hard disk drive, and you can use any valid directory name. After the files are extracted, use the Esc key to exit from the installation program. Next, create a Take Command object on the Desktop or in a folder. To do so, switch to the folder where you want the object to appear and either copy an existing object (use the Copy or Create Another selection on the object's popup menu) or drag a Program Template in from the Templates folder. To adjust the settings for this new object, you must open its Settings notebook. To do so, click the right mouse button in the object. When the popup menu appears, select Settings. (If you copy an existing object, the Settings notebook may open automatically.) Once the Settings notebook is open, use the Program page to set the Path and File name to Take Command. For example, the Program page might look like this: Path and File Name: C:\TCOS210\TCMDOS2.EXE Parameters: Working Directory: C:\ The possible settings for the Parameter field are discussed in detail beginning on page 10. The Working Directory can be set to any directory on your system. Once the object is created, Take Command for OS/2 will start when you double-click the corresponding icon on the desktop. Take Command reads its configuration information from a file named TCMDOS2.INI, normally stored in the Take Command directory. You can modify the section of this file which begins with [TakeCommand] to configure Take Command to meet your preferences; see page 11 for details. In addition to Take Command itself, you will probably want to install the Take Command help files. See page 13 for details about the help system files and how to install them properly. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 6 CHAPTER 1 / INSTALLATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- Take Command for OS/2 Files and Directories The automated installation procedure places all Take Command for OS/2 files in a single directory. You may move the files to different directories if you wish, but you must make sure that the files can be found by the programs that need to use them. The following information will help you set up your system correctly if you are performing a manual installation: TCOS2DLL.DLL is a library used by TCMDOS2.EXE. This file must be in a directory which is included in the LIBPATH setting in CONFIG.SYS. You can either add the Take Command for OS/2 directory to the LIBPATH setting, or copy TCOS2DLL.DLL to a standard library directory such as \OS2\DLL. TCMDOS2.INF contains the text for the Take Command help system. For the help system to work properly, the directory containing this file must be included in the SET BOOKSHELF command in CONFIG.SYS. You can either add the Take Command for OS/2 directory to the BOOKSHELF setting, or copy TCMDOS2.INF to a standard help directory such as \OS2\BOOK. TCMDOS2H.MSG contains the help text for the /? option that is available as part of each internal command. For this feature to work properly, the directory containing this file must be included in the SET DPATH command in CONFIG.SYS. You can either add the Take Command for OS/2 directory to the DPATH setting, or copy TCMDOS2H.MSG to a standard DPATH directory such as \OS2. SHRALIAS.EXE is a small utility that saves the shared alias and history list between Take Command sessions. It is used by the internal command SHRALIAS (see the online help for details). This file should be stored in the Take Command directory, or in a directory listed in your PATH statement. If it is not, the SHRALIAS command will not work. Uninstalling Take Command We don't expect you to have trouble using Take Command, but we know some people feel more comfortable knowing how to uninstall a product as well as install it. Or, you may need to remove Take Command from one system to move it to another system. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 7 CHAPTER 1 / INSTALLATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- To remove Take Command, just insert the distribution diskette, start the INSTALL program as described on page 4, and select the Uninstall Take Command option. Uninstall will offer you several options which "undo" the corresponding steps in the installation procedure. Complete Uninstall will take all of the other steps automatically, and remove Take Command entirely from your system. The Uninstall option will attempt to reverse the changes made during installation. However, if you have removed files, changed folder or object names, or otherwise modified your system configuration, then the program may not be able to complete all of the steps automatically or successfully. In this case you will need to perform some of them manually. To uninstall Take Command manually, use the Drives icon or a 4OS2, OS/2 Full Screen, or OS/2 Window prompt to check the Take Command directory for any files you placed there that you want to save. Then delete the remaining files from the Take Command directory, and remove the directory. Finally, delete any desktop objects or folders that you have set up to run Take Command. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 8 CHAPTER 2 / CONFIGURATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPTER 2 / CONFIGURATION This chapter explains how you can tune Take Command to make it as efficient and as useful as possible in your computing environment. If Take Command works the way you want it to after installation, you can skip this chapter. You may, however, want to skim this material to see what options are available. In this chapter, you'll find information about using Take Command's startup options and startup batch files, and the basics of configuring Take Command. For more details on all of these topics, including complete reference information on the configuration options and TCMDOS2.INI, see your Reference Manual or online help. Configuring Take Command Objects You will typically start Take Command for OS/2 from an object on the OS/2 desktop or in a folder. Usually a single object is sufficient, but if you prefer you can create multiple objects to start Take Command with different startup commands or options, or to run different batch files or other commands. You can use these objects to run commonly-used commands and batch files directly from the desktop. Each object or icon represents a different Take Command window. Use the Settings notebook for the object to set any command line parameters such as a command to be executed, any desired switches, or the name and path for TCMDOS2.INI. More information on command line switches and options for Take Command is included later in this section. For general information on creating and configuring desktop objects or adding objects to the OS/2 LaunchPad, see your OS/2 documentation. When you configure a Take Command object, place the full path and name for TCMDOS2.EXE in the Path and File Name field, and put any startup options that you want passed to Take Command (e.g., the name of a startup batch file) in the Parameters field. For example: Path and File Name: C:\TCOS210\TCMDOS2.EXE Parameters: C:\GO.BAT Working directory: C:\ When Take Command starts it automatically runs the optional TCSTART batch file (see page 12). You can use this file to ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 9 CHAPTER 2 / CONFIGURATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- load aliases and environment variables and otherwise initialize Take Command. You can also place the name of a batch file, internal or external command, or alias in the Parameters field (as shown in the example above). The batch file, command, or alias will be executed after TCSTART, but before the first prompt is displayed. Take Command Startup Options When invoked with an empty Parameters field, Take Command will configure itself from the TCMDOS2.INI file (see page 11), run TCSTART (see page 12), and then display a prompt and wait for you to type a command. However, you may add information to the Parameters field that will affect the way Take Command operates. Take Command recognizes several options in the Parameters field. If you use more than one of these options, their order is important. The syntax for the Parameters field is: [@d:\path\inifile] [//iniline]... [/L] [/LA] [/LD] [/LH] [/C | /K] [command] In the descriptions below, d: means a drive letter and \path means a subdirectory name. @d:\path\inifile: This option sets the path and name of the TCMDOS2.INI file. You do not need this option if you aren't using a TCMDOS2.INI file, or if the file is named TCMDOS2.INI and it is stored either in the same directory as TCMDOS2.EXE, or in the root directory of the OS/2 boot drive. This option is most useful if you want to start a Take Command window with a specific and unique .INI file. //iniline: This option tells Take Command to treat the text appearing between the // and the next space or tab as a TCMDOS2.INI directive. The directive should be in the same format as a line in the [TakeCommand] section of TCMDOS2.INI, but it may not contain spaces, tabs, or comments. This option overrides any corresponding directive in your TCMDOS2.INI file. It is a convenient way to send Take Command one or two simple directives without modifying or creating a new TCMDOS2.INI file. /L, /LA, /LD, and /LH: These options force Take Command to use a local alias, directory history, and / or command history list. This allows you to use global lists as the ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 10 CHAPTER 2 / CONFIGURATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- default, but start a specific Take Command session with local aliases or history. See your Reference Manual or online help for details on local and global aliases and history. /LA forces local aliases, /LD forces local directory history, /LH forces local command history, and /L forces all three. [/C | /K] command: This option tells Take Command to run a command when it starts. The command will be run after TCSTART has been executed and before any command prompt is displayed. It can be any valid internal or external command, batch file, or alias; you may include multiple commands by using the command separator. All other startup options must be placed before the command, because Take Command will treat characters after the command as part of the command and not as additional startup options. When the command is preceded by a /C, Take Command will execute the command and then exit and return to the parent program or the OS/2 desktop without displaying a prompt. The /K switch has no effect; using it is the same as placing the command (without a /C or /K) at the end of the startup command line. It is included only for compatibility with CMD.EXE. See page 13 for details on using the command option to run a startup batch file. Configuring Take Command Take Command's configuration is controlled through a file of initialization information called TCMDOS2.INI. This file is created during installation, and is stored in the same directory as TCMDOS2.EXE. (You can move TCMDOS2.INI to the root directory of the boot drive if you wish; Take Command will find it in either location.) Take Command reads TCMDOS2.INI each time it starts, and configures itself accordingly. Many of the TCMDOS2.INI options can be set directly from within Take Command using its Configuration notebook, which is accessible from the Configure Take Command selection on the Setup menu. There are several pages of options in the Configuration notebook. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 11 CHAPTER 2 / CONFIGURATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- When you use the Configuration notebook, be sure to click the Save button to save your changes in TCMDOS2.INI. The OK button will save the configuration changes for the current session, but will not record them in TCMDOS2.INI for use in future sessions. The help text available from the notebook's Help button explains which specific TCMDOS2.INI directive is set by each item on each page. TCMDOS2.INI is divided into sections like other .INI files. Each section begins with a section name in square brackets, for example: [Fonts] The options you can set in TCMDOS2.INI are all in the [TakeCommand] section, which is normally the first one in the file. This is the section modified by the Configuration notebook. Take Command maintains all other sections of TCMDOS2.INI itself; you should not modify them unless you are instructed to do so by our support personnel. See the Reference Manual or the TCMDOS2.INI topic in the online help for complete details on the format and meaning of the directives used in the [TakeCommand] section of TCMDOS2.INI. Advanced Directives and Key Mapping Directives must be entered manually. Most other directives are accessible from corresponding items in the configuration notebook. If you prefer manual editing, or you want to enter a directive which cannot be set from the configuration notebook, you can edit TCMDOS2.INI with the OS/2 System Editor or any similar ASCII text editor. Be sure to edit only the [TakeCommand] section. Take Command will not automatically re-read TCMDOS2.INI when you edit it manually. For manual changes to take effect, you must exit Take Command and restart it. TCSTART, TCEXIT, and Startup Commands Take Command executes two optional batch files automatically: TCSTART is run whenever Take Command starts, and TCEXIT is run whenever Take Command exits. TCSTART and TCEXIT can be .CMD or .BTM files. TCSTART gives you a convenient way to load aliases and environment variables, and otherwise initialize Take Command. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 12 CHAPTER 2 / CONFIGURATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- If Take Command is started with the [/C] command option (see page 10), TCSTART, if it is available, is executed before the command. See the online help or your Reference Manual for more information on TCSTART and TCEXIT. To run a specific startup batch file or other command when a particular Take Command object is started, include the batch file or command name (with a path, if the file is not in the startup directory) as the last item in the Parameters field on the Program page of Take Command's Settings notebook. The batch file or command will be executed after TCSTART but before the first prompt is displayed. You can use this capability to run a specific batch file or command for a particular desktop object (as opposed to TCSTART, which is run every time Take Command starts). When you set up a batch file or command to run in this way you are using the command startup option (see page 10). For example, to run C:\STARTUP.BTM when the object starts: Path and File Name: C:\TCOS210\TCMDOS2.EXE Parameters: C:\STARTUP.BTM Working directory: C:\ To execute an internal or external command, an alias, or a batch file and then exit (return to the desktop) when it is done, place /C command (rather than just command) as the last item in the Parameters field. For example: Path and File Name: D:\TCOS210\TCMDOS2.EXE Parameters: /C TEST.BTM Working directory: C:\ Take Command Help Complete online help for all Take Command commands and features is provided with your copy of Take Command. Help is invoked with the HELP command, the F1 key, or the Help menu on the menu bar. When you start the help system, Take Command opens a new window to run the standard OS/2 help program. The help program displays the help text and lets you browse through it. You can keep the help window on the screen and return to the Take Command window, switching between the two as needed. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 13 CHAPTER 2 / CONFIGURATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- This may be useful when you are writing a batch file, working on a complex command, or experimenting with Take Command. In order for the Take Command for OS/2 help system to work properly, the help text file TCMDOS2.INF must be in a directory listed on your BOOKSHELF path in the OS/2 CONFIG.SYS file. For additional details see Take Command for OS/2 Files and Directories on page 7. OS/2 includes many other help files -- for example, a complete reference to all internal and external commands in the reference book named CMDREF.INF. You can specify a set of "books" to be opened when HELP or F1 is invoked. To do so, use the HelpBook directive in TCMDOS2.INI. For example, to set up Take Command for OS/2 so that both the CMDREF book and Take Command for OS/2 help are displayed when F1 is pressed, include the following directive in TCMDOS2.INI: HelpBook=TCMDOS2+CMDREF When more than one book is listed in the HelpBook setting, the OS/2 help program will display the combined group as a single book. The Table of Contents will include the tables of contents from all the listed books, concatenated together as one group of topics with no divisions to show where one book ends and the next begins. The Take Command installation program sets up a separate object for Take Command help so that you can load the help file directly. To create a similar object manually, use entries like this on the Program page of the object's Settings notebook: Path and File Name: VIEW.EXE Parameters: TCMDOS2 Take Command also supports the /? switch to display help for any command. Using /? will display "quick help" for the command inside the Take Command window. For example, to obtain quick help on the COPY command you would use the command: [c:\] copy /? The file TCMDOS2H.MSG contains the help text for the /? option used to obtain "quick help" on any command. In order for quick help to work properly, this file must be in a directory listed in your DPATH setting in the OS/2 CONFIG.SYS file. For additional details see Take Command for OS/2 Files and Directories on page 7. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 14 CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command ------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command Take Command works like any other OS/2 application or utility, and most of the time you won't need to make any special adjustments for it. However, as you learn to use Take Command you may want to understand in more detail how it interacts with OS/2, OS/2 applications, and DOS applications. The information in this chapter gives you an overview of these topics; most are covered in more detail in the Reference Manual or online help. This chapter also discusses using 4DOS and 4OS2 batch files and aliases under Take Command. Using an OS/2 Command Line Take Command is a new environment that lets you perform tasks easily under OS/2. You can use it to execute commands, start applications, and perform other work at the command line. In the past you may have accomplished some of these tasks with 4DOS or 4OS2, JP Software's replacement character-mode command processors for DOS and character-mode OS/2 sessions. Or you may have used a character mode session to run the default command processor (CMD.EXE for OS/2 command line sessions, or COMMAND.COM for DOS sessions). In either case -- and especially if you are an experienced user of 4DOS or 4OS2 -- you'll find plenty of familiar features in Take Command. You'll also find a lot that's new or different. While Take Command includes most of the command-line, batch file, and other capabilities provided by 4DOS and 4OS2, and goes well beyond those provided by CMD.EXE, the OS/2 environment places some limitations on how Take Command operates. These limitations mostly affect the use of external programs, especially character-mode OS/2 and DOS programs. This topic is covered in detail beginning on page 17. There are some other minor differences between using Take Command and using a 4DOS, 4OS2, or CMD.EXE session (for example, some keystrokes are interpreted differently to conform more closely to OS/2 conventions). There are also some considerations when running 4DOS or 4OS2 batch files or ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 15 CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command ------------------------------------------------------------------- aliases in Take Command. All of these differences are covered in more detail beginning on page 19. Take Command also offers a wide range of new features which are not available in 4DOS, 4OS2, or CMD.EXE sessions, including: * A built-in scrollback buffer that lets you look back through the output from past commands. * A standard OS/2 menu bar for access to many commonly used Take Command features. * A status bar showing date, time, swap file size, and keyboard state. * A customizable tool bar that gives you quick access to commands and applications. * OS/2 dialogs (accessible from the Take Command Utilities menu), for editing environment variables, aliases, and file descriptions. * A standard OS/2 notebook (accessible from the Setup menu) for changing startup parameters. * High-speed, dialog-based file and text search (see "Search Files / Text" on the Utilities menu). The FFIND command gives you the same capabilities at the Take Command prompt. * Commands like ACTIVATE, KEYSTACK, MSGBOX, QUERYBOX, and WINDOW that allow you to use OS/2 features and control OS/2 applications from your batch files. Take Command and OS/2 Take Command for OS/2 supports OS/2's Clipboard and Drag and Drop features to allow it to work smoothly with other applications. You can use the OS/2 clipboard to copy text onto the command line, or to transfer text from Take Command to another application. OS/2's Drag and Drop feature lets you insert file names from other applications onto the command line. For more information about these features, see the Reference Manual or the topics under the Take Command and OS/2 heading in the online help. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 16 CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command ------------------------------------------------------------------- Take Command also offers several methods for starting OS/2 applications, some of which go beyond what you may be used to when running programs from the character-mode command line. For complete details, see Starting OS/2 Applications in the online help. Character-Mode Applications Take Command for OS/2 starts OS/2 "graphical" applications in their own windows, just as if you had started them from the desktop. By default, it also creates a separate character- mode window to run each DOS or OS/2 character mode application you start. If you prefer, you can run some DOS and OS/2 character-mode applications within the Take Command window, using an OS/2 facility called "named pipes." When you use this option, output from the application is displayed in the Take Command window, and no separate window is created. Because not all applications work properly with named pipes, you must specify which TTY applications should be run within the Take Command window. To do so, use the TTY Applications Dialog (accessible from the Setup menu). The dialog lets you specify the application name, whether the application is a DOS or OS/2 character-mode program, and whether or not the application is currently enabled to run within the Take Command window. Information entered in this dialog is stored in the [TTYApps] section of TCMDOS2.INI. Your copy of Take Command comes with a list of applications which can be run within the Take Command window. The list is visible when you open the dialog. However, all applications in the list are initially disabled to ensure maximum compatibility. This prevents problems if you have a program with the same name as one we tested, but which is not the same program. To enable any application, select it and check the Enable box. Use the Add button to add your own applications to the list. When you include an application name in the dialog, you can use an executable file name (e.g., CHKDSK.COM), or a full path name (e.g., C:\OS2\CHKDSK.COM). If you use the full path name, the entry will apply only to that specific file. If you use just the file name, the entry will apply to any file of that name, regardless of its location. If you use both, the full path name entry will be used when you execute that specific file, and the file name entry will be used for other files of the same name. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 17 CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command ------------------------------------------------------------------- As an advanced option, you can also enter a path without a filename into the dialog (e.g. C:\OS2UTILS). This will tell Take Command to treat all DOS or OS/2 character-mode programs in the specified directory as TTY applications. This approach is useful if you have many applications of the same type in a single directory, but before you use it you should review the content of the directory carefully to be sure all the character-mode programs stored there are compatible with Take Command's TTY appliction support. If you do choose to configure an entire directory for TTY application support, you can create exceptions by entering specific filenames from that directory into the dialog as well. For example, if you enable the directory C:\OS2UTILS for TTY support, you could also add a listing for C:\OS2UTILS\MYAPP.EXE (or simply for MYAPP.EXE, with no path), and make sure the Enable box in the dialog is not checked for the MYAPP entry. This would prevent MYAPP.EXE from being treated as a TTY application despite the entry for the directory as a whole. If you use this approach, the two listings can appear in any order. Once an application is listed in the dialog and enabled, it will run within the Take Command window whenever you start it from the command line. However, if you start the application with the START command (without the /TTY switch, see below), the program will start in its own window. You can explicitly start any character-mode application within the Take Command window by using the START command's /TTY switch. For example, start /tty c:\os2\chkdsk.com Using this switch is the same as entering the application in the TTY Applications dialog and enabling it. Using START /TTY is a convenient way to experiment with your DOS and OS/2 character-mode applications to see if they are compatible with Take Command's TTY application support. See the START command in the online help or Reference Manual for additional details. The only character-mode programs which will run properly within the Take Command window are those which can handle input and output delivered through pipes. In technical terms, these are programs which read all input from the DOS or OS/2 "standard input" device, and write output to the "standard output" or "standard error" device. Applications which use command-line parameters (rather than typed user input or "question and answer" dialogs), and which use simple scrolling (TTY-style) output, are the ones most likely to work well. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 18 CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command ------------------------------------------------------------------- Common applications which run successfully in the Take Command window include program development software like compilers and linkers, and some command-line utilities. Programs which use "direct video" output to write complex screen displays, require dialog with the user, or display graphics, must be run in their own window. Many OS/2 character-mode programs meet this test, as do some DOS programs. However, some programs -- especially DOS programs -- which appear to work this way may in fact use internal tricks or contain internal restrictions which are not compatible with piped input and output. For this reason, you will need to experiment to determine which of your DOS and OS/2 character-mode applications can run successfully within the Take Command window. (If you try an application and it does not work, you can close the Take Command window with the mouse to clean up the offending application, then restart Take Command from your desktop.) Applications which do not run properly within the Take Command window can still be run from Take Command, but will have to use their own window. TTY application support for DOS programs depends on the TCNPDOS.COM file distributed with Take Command. This file must be available in the same directory as TCMDOS2.EXE. If it is not, Take Command will display an error message if you try to run a DOS application within the Take Command window. Take Command, 4OS2, and 4DOS If you're a 4OS2 or 4DOS user, many of the features in Take Command will seem familiar. Because the underlying command processing in Take Command is based on 4OS2 and 4DOS, you'll find the features of those products readily accessible. All the commands and switches you've used in 4OS2 or 4DOS work the same way and have the same meaning in Take Command; the only exceptions are those that don't make sense in a graphical environment. Other 4OS2 and 4DOS features are included in Take Command as well -- you'll find support for command line editing, command and directory histories, aliases, .BTM files, and virtually all the other features you already know. Even if you've never used 4OS2 or 4DOS, you'll notice plenty of familiar items in Take Command. Like 4OS2 and 4DOS, Take Command is compatible with the default OS/2 command processor (CMD.EXE), and the default OS/2 DOS-session command processor ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 19 CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command ------------------------------------------------------------------- (COMMAND.COM), either of which you may have used from the Command Prompts folder. There are a few differences between running 4OS2 or 4DOS (or CMD.EXE / COMMAND.COM) and running Take Command. The remainder of this section discusses minor differences in the way keystrokes are interpreted by 4OS2 and Take Command. It also explains some things to look for when using 4OS2 or 4DOS batch files and aliases (and CMD.EXE batch files) under Take Command. In order to support the scrollback buffer, some Take Command keystrokes are different from what you may be used to. In particular, Take Command uses Ctrl-Up Arrow and Ctrl-Down Arrow (rather than Up Arrow and Down Arrow) to scroll through the command history at the prompt, Ctrl-PgUp (rather than PgUp) to open the history window, and F6 (rather than Ctrl- PgUp) to open the directory history window. The arrow keys and PgUp and PgDn are then used to access the scrollback buffer. If you prefer to reverse this arrangement and use the arrow and PgUp keys to access the command history (as they are used in 4OS2 and 4DOS), and the Ctrl- keys to access the scrollback buffer, use the configuration notebook (accessible from the Setup menu) to set the Swap Scrolling Keys option. See SwapScrollKeys (in the TCMDOS2.INI Configuration Directives in the online help) for additional details. Some command-line editing defaults have also been changed to conform more closely to OS/2 conventions. In Take Command the default editing mode is insert, not overtype, and the default insert-mode cursor is a line, not a block. You can change these defaults via the configuration notebook or with statements in TCMDOS2.INI. For complete details on all of the features listed above, see the online help or your Reference Manual (the Take Command for 4OS2 Users topic, under Using Take Command in the online help, provides links to detailed information on each of these topics). Using Your Batch Files and Aliases As a 4OS2 or 4DOS user, you may want to use your current batch files and aliases with Take Command. Or, you may want to run batch files developed for CMD.EXE under Take Command. In general you can run these batch files under Take Command -- ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 20 CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command ------------------------------------------------------------------- but you need to understand how the batch files and aliases operate first. Take Command and 4OS2 / 4DOS aliases are separate and independent; Take Command does not automatically "inherit" aliases from a previously loaded copy of 4OS2 or 4DOS, and it cannot pass aliases on to a copy of 4OS2 or 4DOS started from the Take Command prompt. However, you can load aliases from your Take Command startup batch file (see page 12). These can be the same aliases you use in 4OS2 or 4DOS, or a set that is just for Take Command. While many of your 4OS2 and 4DOS aliases will work well under Take Command, you'll probably want to create a separate set of Take Command aliases. This will allow your Take Command aliases to take advantage of features which are unavailable in 4OS2 or 4DOS. If you want to write aliases or batch files that are used in both Take Command and one of our other products, but that behave differently in each environment, use the %_DOS variable to make the distinction. For example, this batch file fragment uses the INPUT command to accept a string if it is run under 4OS2, but uses the QUERYBOX dialog box if it is run under Take Command: iff "%_dos" == "PM" then querybox "Enter your name: " %%name else input "Enter your name: " %%name endiff Aliases and batch files which simply manipulate files or use other internal commands should work with little or no change under Take Command. However, as a general rule, you should test any batch file developed for 4OS2, 4DOS, or CMD.EXE before assuming it will do exactly what you want under Take Command. Pay particular attention to batch files which run complex sequences of external programs. If you use aliases or batch files to perform a sequence which mixes internal commands and character-mode applications, the sequence may not work the way you expect under Take Command. For example, suppose you have an alias that changes the screen color, starts a character-mode application, and then resets the color again. Because the character-mode application normally will start in a separate window (see page 17) the color changes will not affect it -- a contingency you didn't have to consider when you wrote the batch file. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 21 CHAPTER 3 / Using Take Command ------------------------------------------------------------------- You may also want to take advantage of some of the new features of Take Command to improve your batch files. For example, the START command offers added flexibility in starting applications. MSGBOX and QUERYBOX can be used to create dialog-box input prompts, and KEYSTACK and ACTIVATE will help control your OS/2 applications. Once you get used to these enhancements and minor differences you'll find that you can use Take Command to manage your system using the same techniques and features you already know from your experience with 4OS2, 4DOS, or CMD.EXE. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 22 Index ------------------------------------------------------------------- Index Configuration, 6, 11 notebook, 11, 16 Customer Service, 3 4OS2 and 4DOS aliases and batch files, 20 and Take Command, 19 Desktop keystroke differences, and uninstall, 8 20 Take Command objects, 9 Directories, for Take Command Alias list, local and global, files, 7 10 Directory history list, local Aliases, 20 and global, 10 enhancing, 22 DOS applications, see Applications Applications character-mode, 15, 17 DOS, 15, 17 Drag and Drop, 16 OS/2, 17 Help system, 2, 13 Batch files, 20 /? option, 14 and OS/2, 16 and OS/2 command reference, enhancing, 22 14 location of files, 7 Batch files, startup, 13 selecting books to view, 14 Clipboard, 16 .INI file, see TCMDOS2.INI CMD.EXE Installation, 4 and Take Command, 19 changes to your system, 5 batch files, 20 manual, 5 reversing, 7 Command history keystrokes, 20 local and global, 10 Keystrokes, in 4OS2, 4DOS, and Take Command, 20 Command-line editing, in 4OS2, 4DOS and Take Command, 20 Local and global aliases and Commands history, 10 help on, 13 reference information, 2 Take Command startup, 11, Menus, 16 13 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 23 Index ------------------------------------------------------------------- Options, see Startup Options TCMDOS2H.MSG, location of, 7, 14 OS/2 applications, see Applications TCOS2DLL.DLL, location of, 7 OS/2, and Take Command, 15, 16 TCSTART, 9, 12 and startup command, 11 Quick help, 14 Technical support, 3 Tool bar, 16 Reference Manual, 2 Uninstalling Take Command, 7 Scrollback buffer, 16 keystrokes for, 20 Windows, Take Command, 9 SHRALIAS.EXE, location of, 7 Starting applications, see Applications Starting Take Command, 9 Startup commands, 9, 11, 13 options, 9, 10 //iniline, 10 /C, 11 /K, 11 /L, /LA, /LD, and /LH, 10 @inifile, 10 Status bar, 16 Support, 3 Take Command, and OS/2, 15, 16 TCEXIT, 9, 12 TCMDOS2.INF, location of, 7, 14 TCMDOS2.INI, 6, 11 directives, on startup command line, 10 location of, 10 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Copr. 1996 JP Software Inc. TCMD OS/2 Intro / Install Guide / 24