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Number   :  4567
Date     :  2003-05-11
Author   :  meirman@e...
Subject  :  Re: DOS Automatic DOS Keystroke tool
Size(KB) :  3


At 03:28 AM 5/11/03 -0000, yodaslo wrote:
>Hello,
>I realize this only involes 
>xxcopy in my instance, but 
>having failed at locating a 
>program which enters keystrokes 
>into a dos window program 
>automatically, I thought I'd 
>ask the group.
>
>I am trying to automate a 
>task (print a report from DOS POS 
>Program) which takes too much time 
>to do by hand daily. I would like 
>to set it up to print the report 
>daily, so that xxcopy can back it 
>up nightly, yet keystokes have to 
>be entered to tell the program what 
>report details I want. I managed to 
>get the xxcopy part of it working once the
> report completes, but I can't get the 
>report part.
>
>I've test a couple of programs designed to automate keystrokes in 
>programs that run in DOS or a DOS window, but all have been extremely 
>difficult to implement due to a lack of a "record keystrokes" 
>capability for the DOS area. 

You've posted before, but I certainly can't remember what version of DOS
you are using.

>I've tried AutoIt, Automate5, and Fabsoft's Shortcut, and one more I 
>can't remember the name of, and although Shortcut would do the job, 
>you had to enter the date of the report by hand in the DOS program, 
>which defeats the purpose.

I must admit that I don't understand the question, in general or as it
pertains to Shortcut. If you mean you have to enter the current date, I
haven't tried the last suggestion given to me on the newsgroup, alt.msdos,
but it may work. (ok, I just tried it and it doesn't work for me.) If
not, 4DOS, definitely does it easily. 


And for everyone reading, someone on the newsgroup alt.msdos has a way to
do everything I've asked about in straight DOS 6 iiuc. The problem is that
I never understand his answers, but maybe you or the other guys here will
(and since I have 4DOS, I'm just not that motivated) All his answers are
similar in style, so I figure once I get the hang of them, they will all
fall into place, but I haven't spent enough time on them yet, and no time
copying them in and actually executing them. (they will all need a bit of
customizing, and I'm stubbornly insisting on understanding them in advance.)

Rather than print his whole answer regarding retrieving the date and time,
here is the message ID:  If you
go to groups.google.com, and then to advanced search, and then enter this
in the message-id field and click, you should get back his answer to my
question: "Is there a way within a .bat file to retrieve the system date
and the system time?"

I will give his signature, which includes pointers to a lot of DOS bat
resources, including his online instruction. I've only done a little of
that too, but I think if I started from the beginning of bat files, it
might explain what I said above I didn't understand:

> Learn to write Batch Files on your Win95/98/ME PC. Free, interactive
> Web Course. Syllabus and Index to Lessons: http://www.allenware.com/
> Batch Library StudyPacks: http://www.allenware.com/find?BatchLibrary
> For up-to-date Batch-related links: http://www.fpschultze.de/bss.htm


Someone else also replied to my question about current date/time with
http://purl.oclc.org/net/Batfiles/ Item number 6 of FAQ 1.


>Anyone here using such a program to automate keystrokes in DOS or a 
>DOS window?

You know the keystrokes in advance? Why not just put them in a .bat file?

>Thanks
>Rich

Meir 

meirman@e... Baltimore, MD, USA



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