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Command Prompt Portable 1.0 Pre-Release

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John T. Haller
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Command Prompt Portable 1.0 Pre-Release

Final Version Released - Topic Locked:
https://portableapps.com/news/2007-07-04_-_command_prompt_portable_1.0

This is just a quicky I had kicking around a while ago. It allows you to have a link to the command prompt within the PortableApps.com Menu easily. It works with both command interpreters (Win9x and Win2K/XP/Vista) and allows you to run a custom .BAT file on startup so you can set the window title, colors, prompt, etc to that of your choosing. A default .BAT file is included which sets the colors and prompt to normal (on the off-chance you wind up on a PC where they're set oddly), window title to "Command Prompt Portable", turns echo off, clears the screen, shows the Windows version and then sets the current path to the root of your portable device.

Please give it a shot and post any feedback.

Download Command Prompt Portable 1.0 Pre-Release 1

LittleUnkn0wn
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Bug?

It sets the current path to C:, but my usb drive is G:.
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yurzub
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Work fine with setting the

Work fine with setting the path for me.

Nice nice choice of font! clean, easy to read! This is going to be very helpful for running on-start script, especially with netroid's PAM MOD's run apps on start feature.

Great launcher!

John T. Haller
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Odd

What OS? Where are you running it from?

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LittleUnkn0wn
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Fixed

2000 Pro, SP4. I tried re-installing and it worked fine. It must just hate me.
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LittleUnkn0wn
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Ah, wait a second...

If I run CommandPromptPortable.exe directly, it works, but if I run it through PAM, it sets the path to C:

Edit: And now it randomly starts working. Sorry for the confusion.
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John T. Haller
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Hmm

Works for me in XP with PAM.

Try this modded launcher:
https://portableapps.com/downloads/CommandPromptPortable.exe

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LittleUnkn0wn
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Yup

It works.
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John T. Haller
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Consistently?

Consistently? Can you reproduce the problem you had before?

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LittleUnkn0wn
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Nope,

I've been trying it since I downloaded the new launcher. Also, the old launcher started randomly working just before you posted the new launcher. Thanks for the help.
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millarrp
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So far so good

I've tried it and it shows up as the root directory of my thumdrive.

I'll keep playing with it, but so far looks good

The MAZZTer
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Not sure if you're implying

Not sure if you're implying you don't WANT it to show up there, but in Data\commandprompt.bat, the "cd\" command is what does this. You can change it to any directory or remove it to not switch directories on launch at all.

IE:

cd \portableapps

cd /d C:\Windows\system32

(The /d makes it switch the drive letter as well as the path; it's a compatibility hack from the old MS-DOS days. Back then you'd just type "C:" by itself to change to drive C:, and CD couldn't change the drive letter at all!)

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Patrick Patience
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Works.

Works fine for me in XP SP2, and the drive is set to the right letter.

P.S. I'm fairly sure this is an open-source tango icon, I got it from the Super Turbo Tango Patcher, under the "res_named" folder, which is where all the official tango icon were. So I'm not sure of the source, but I think it's a nice displaying icon in "Tile View" than yours. And it's nicer overall. Yours looks like one from a Crystal Icon Set, where is it actually from? Anyways, just lettin' you know, because I believe this one is better.
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John T. Haller
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Tango Incompatible

But I can't compile the tango icon into the GPLed launcher. Since the Tango icons are CC which is incompatible with the GPL.

Well, I suppose I could grant an exception, since I wrote it.

I liked the tango one better, too, but the licensing killed it.

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Simeon
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Works ok

leaves nothing.
My number of Apps is increasing... making a "sort Apps funktion" more needed Smile
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The MAZZTer
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I like PAM's design. Take

I like PAM's design. Take something everyone knows and adapt it to the needs at hand. But still IMO PAM could use:
- Vista-style Start Menu, complete with a more traditional scrollbar, user-definable folders, and user-definable shortcuts. On a first run it could scan PortableApps for programs and generate the currently-seen list of programs, but then it's fair play for the user to add/remove and sort and categorize.
- Vista-type search thing to filter the PAM start menu. Everybody's doing it! Wink
- Maybe you could take it further and hide the actual menu (optionally?) behind an "All Programs" button like Vista, and show a list of pinned and frequently used apps, just like Vista.

To summarize, I like the idea behind PAM, although I think John should take it all the way. Biggrin

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Patrick Patience
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Sorry.

For the late reply. My internet went down earlier.

Umm, yea, I guess it's all up to you then.

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Patrick Patience
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You...

...got everything in the _________PortableSource readme except this:

"ABOUT VIRTUAL MAGNIFYING GLASS PORTABLE"

Smile

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consul
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running dos games

Is this something that can be modified or written to so that I acn start up my old DOS games? If I run the program directly from clicking on the link, it works fine, the DOS window opens and stays. But if I put the .exe file in its folder and openit via PAM, it doesn't run. Window opens and close quickly.

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ozbodd
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Some Dos files work fine as

Some Dos files work fine as long as they are referenced from the drive root eg

Make a batch file like so named game.bat and save in /PortableApps/SomeDOSGame/
Put the game in /PortableApps/SomeDOSGame/App/

/PortableApps/SomeDOSGame/App/game.exe

Use AutoIT to compile a exe launcher like the script below

#include 
$rc = _RunDos("start /PortableApps/SomeDOSGame/game.bat")
John T. Haller
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Working Directory Bug

That's the working directory bug in 1.0.2 B 3. It'll be fixed in the next release.

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consul
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thanks

I'll await the next release. Though I'll give the other suggestion a try too. It would still work when the update comes through since it seems to follow standard folder protocols anyways, right?
"... respect, all good works are not done by only good folk. For here, at the end of all things, we shall do what needs to be done."

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The MAZZTer
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DOS games do not run well in Windows

Your best bet is emulation or virtualization. DOSBox is good, and portable, but slow. Virtual PC is the best choice IMO but it is not portable. I have found the other major free virtualization software to have problems with audio (VMWare's SB16 emulation crashes with LucasArts' iMuse in Dark Forces, VirtualBox doesn't even support anything iMuse can use).

QEMU works as well but it is only a smidgen faster than DOSBox, and just as hard to set up as Virtual PC etc. QEMU's Accelerator driver could theoretically speed games up, but I've found it doesn't work with DOS4GW (which powers many of the "good" DOS games, for example, Dark Forces).

Now why do I say don't bother running games right in Windows? Well first of all, if you have an nVidia card (maybe for ATI cards too, not sure if it's nVidia's fault or MS') and you're using Vista or considering upgrading, old games won't run at all, since NTVDM (Windows NT/2K/XP/Vista's built-in DOS emulation) can no longer run in fullscreen as it could under XP (you get an error which wrongly indicates your SYSTEM can't do 80x25 text mode!), and as anyone who's tried knows, no DOS graphical game will run in a window, Windows hasn't allowed that ever. So if you use Vista you're automatically going to have to turn to other software.

Secondly, and this is more important, even in XP running games won't work because NTVDM has almost non-existent support for sound and there are other little problems (IE Dark Forces again: the HUD flickers).

Third-party software can be used to restore sound. I have used VDMSound, which is partly portable, although only for NT/2K/XP. There once was a version for 98/ME but the download is no longer available. I have found the quality of VDMSound less than stellar at times, and it is no longer being updated. Plus you still have to put up with other NTVDM glitches (ie that HUD flicker I mentioned).

Here is an article I wrote which approaches this same topic from a "ok-so-how-do-I-do-it" POV: http://megazzt.googlepages.com/runningdarkforcesonxp

Wow what a coincidence, it focuses on my favorite DOS game. Wink Although the techniques are the same for any DOS game.

PS: Although the above is mostly for NT/2K/XP/Vista, even in 95/98 and especially ME there can be problems getting DOS games running even though Windows is running on top of "real" DOS, probably because Windows still hogs all the hardware. In 9x you can use a shutdown option to restart into DOS (I think you can hold shift while clicking shutdown to make this option appear? Haven't used 9x in forever...) although ME doesn't support this. And I personally don't like to restart my computer, and in DOS I wouldn't have my Internet lifeline! Sad

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The MAZZTer
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Batch File Tip

The command "mode con: cols=NN lines=NNN" can be used to adjust the width and height of the window as well as the amount of scrollback. Unfortunately it cannot be used to adjust the size of the window (it will automatically size to try and fit the number of lines) however it is useful in some cases.

mode con: cols=80 lines=300 is the windows default.

mode con: cols=80 lines=25 is the default with no scrollbar. It also produces a 'classic' fullscreen mode (if you fullscreen the default it will give you 50 lines instead).

In fullscreen, only values of 25, 43, and 50 are valid for lines. Only 80 may be used for cols (40x25 should theoretically work, but mode rejects it).

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The MAZZTer
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"Works ok?"

Haha, all these comments are funny, what is there NOT to work? hehe.

[Edit: Whoops, forgot about that other post I made up there. --^ Sorry for the double postage.]

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millarrp
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wasn't implying there was a problem

MAZZTer, I wasn't implying that there was a problem. I had just noticed a few posts where it opened in a path other then the root of the thumb drive, and I was just stating that it was doing what is in the discription of the program and opening with the root of the thumb drive when I open it.

Kevin Porter
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Sorry about the late post,

Sorry about the late post, tested it last week and forgot to post. Works great!

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