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P A T R I Q U I N ' S
PSEARCH - File Find and Text Search Utility
by
Norm J. Patriquin
User's Guide
March 13, 1988
Copyright 1986, 1987 by Norm Patriquin
Table of Contents
PSEARCH -- Search for filenames on disk or text within files. . . . . 1
Starting PSEARCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Recommended Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Command Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Specification of default parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Function Key Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Screen colors and monitor support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Pausing the Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Batch Command File Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Bonus features for registered users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Overview of new features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Registering The Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
PSEARCH 3.8 Registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Reporting Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
PSEARCH -- Search for filenames on disk or text within files.
PSEARCH is a generalized search facility for all PC users. PSEARCH can
search the current directory or all directories of an hard disk for files
or text in files. It also can scan non-text files and show only the text
(readable) data from the file. PSEARCH is not just another search type
command. It works with normal DOS command parameters or with menus. This
ensures that PSEARCH can be used by anyone that uses a PC.
PSEARCH goes much farther than just searching for data. Once files are
found, you can include file names in DOS commands which can either be
executed or placed in command files. This turns PSEARCH into a very useful
utility that can aid in many different situations. For instance, if you
want to print a selected group of files based on how old they are, you can
issue a print command for each file using PSEARCH. Any DOS command may be
built. The only limit to the use of this facility is your imagination.
Another of the most popular features of PSEARCH is the ability to peak into
files and show the first readable data in a file. One of the best uses of
this is for 123 users who have forgotten the name of a work sheet file they
previously created. When users have a great number of work sheet files, it
is prohibitive to load and inspect each one, but PSEARCH can quickly find
the work sheet desired. You optionally specify a word or words to look for
in .WKS files and then have PSEARCH locate any files containing those
words. PSEARCH will show you a line containing the first text found in the
file. This is often the title line of the work sheet file. It will allow
you to determine if it is the file you want. If you need to examine more
text, press a key and it will be displayed.
Here are a list of some of the many possible uses for PSEARCH.
** List all files on a hard disk that match a wildcard
specification.
** Show the names of any files containing specified text
** Show text lines of any file containing a specified string.
** Look for word "Mrs" in any file and preserve case in search.
** Find 123 files containing the word "BUDGET" and print their name.
** Find 123 files with word "BUDGET" and show first text data in
file.
** Compile all C programs that refer to the "RECDESC.H" include
file.
** Find a word processing document containing the name "Wiffle".
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** Delete any *.DOC files containing "To: Mr. Johnson".
** Locate all readonly files existing on a disk.
** Use the ARC utility to archive any *.DOC file over n days old.
** List all files updated today.
** Build a DOS command to archive manually selected files from one
or more directories.
** Search multiple drives attached to the system for text or a file
name
** Search for a file name even if it has been archived with the ARC
utility and exists in a .ARC file.
** Extract lines found in a file to another extract file
** Limit text search to WORDS, PREFIXES, or SUFFIXES. This greatly
enhances the search by returning only the data you want.
** Ability to exclude COM and EXE files from text searches greatly
reduces the time required to find data.
Starting PSEARCH
To start PSEARCH using menus, just enter the command "PS" without any
parameters. A menu will be provided to guide you along. To use PSEARCH in
command mode you will need to learn the command parameters. These are
described in this document, and in a online help display that is accessible
through the menus.
Recommended Implementation
Although PSEARCH can be used with menus, it is easiest to use when you
build DOS batch command files to accomplish your most often used search
requests. Batch files can relieve you from keying in parameters over and
over again, and will save you from having to remember all the parameters
you need each time it is used.
Command Parameters
Since PSEARCH has so many different functions, there are many different
command parameters. They are easy to understand and learn, and will give
you the flexibility to get the work you need done. Remember that each
parameter is summarized in the online help display. Just type PS.
2
COMMAND FORMAT:
PS [fspec] /T:text /F /S /E /A /D /M /C /P /PR /PF /MO /O:nn/N:nn
/X[F][P]:cmd /AT:c /FW /FP /FS /DR:xxx /SO /AR /AO /FX
/SK
PS - PS is the name of the PSEARCH command.
PS actually refers to Patriquin's PSEARCH. Enter the command without
any parameters for menus and help.
[fspec] Enter the DOS file specification for the directory and file
names to be searched. If no directory name is specified the
current directory will be searched. If the /A option is
specified, the directory name portion of this parameter is
not used.
SPECIAL FILENAME SEARCHING CONTROL CHARACTERS
The filename specification may contain a full DOS pathname
including the standard DOS wildcard characters * and ?. In
addition the special characters '~', '!', or ';' may be
placed immediately before the filename to indicate special
filename find criteria.
~ SOUNDEX -- Select any filename that sounds like the
specified name
~WORD would select:
WORD WOOORD WRD WOOD WORLD
; NOVOWEL -- Select equal filenames but ignore vowels
AEIOU in name
!WOORD would select:
WoRD WoooRD WieRD WRD
! CHARS -- Select any filenames that contain the
characters entered
!WD would select:
WorD.dat WilDone.dat lstWorD.x
/A All directories - Indicates that all directories on the
current drive are to be searched. If not specified, only the
current or specified directory is searched.
/AO Archive Only - Like /AR except at only filenames with the
DOS .ARC extension are processed. All non archive files are
bypassed.
3
/AR ARchive - If you use the ARC utility distributed by System
Enhancement Associates, this parameter will allow you to
find file names even if they have been archived and exist in
an archive file.
When /AR is specified and a file with the .ARC extension is
found, the filenames contained in it are searched for
matches. /AR only pertains to file name searches (/F
parameter).
/AT:c ATtributes - Only selects files that have the indicated
attributes. Indicate one of the following attributes as the
c value for the parameter.
U - Updated,the ARCHIVE bit is on to indicate the file has
been updated since the last backup.
R - Readonly,Files marked with Readonly attribute.
H - Hidden,Files marked with Hidden attribute.
S - System, Files marked with System attribute.
/C Case - Indicates that text search requests are to be case
sensitive.
/D Data - For text searches only. Causes the text that
matched the search to be shown on the screen. If a text
file is being searched, the screen line displayed will show
the line number of the text in the file and the offset into
the file where it exists. If it is not a text file, only
the offset from the beginning of the file will be shown.
/DR: DRive list. If the drive is not specified, text will be
located on the current disk. /DR: indicates one or more
drives that the search is to be performed on. The following
example indicates the search is to be done on drives A and
D.
/DR:ad
/E dirEctory - List all directories on the current drive.
4
/F Files - This parameter indicates the type of search being
done. If /F is specified, PS assumes that a locate for file
request is being entered. If not specified, a text search
is assumed and the /T parameter must be supplied.
/FP Find Prefix - Like find word, Find Prefix will only select
the text specified if it is found on the beginning of a
word.
/FS Find Suffix - Like find word, Find Suffix will only select
the text specified if it is found at the end of a word.
/FW Find Word - The text to be searched for is a word. Only
select text that is a complete word. A word is defined as
any string of characters and numbers that is not preceded or
succeeded with other characters or numbers.
In "This", "This" is a word. "is" is not a word.
/FX File Extract - All lines found to contain the matching text
are to be extracted to an output text file. The name of the
file is assigned by PSEARCH and it will be displayed at the
end of the search.
/M Multiples - For text searches only (/T:). Indicates
multiple matching text lines are to be displayed from each
file. When /M is not specified, only the first occurrence
of the text in the file will be shown. This is only valid
if the /D parameter is also specified.
/MO MOre - Stops screen scrolling when the end of each screen
page is reached.
/N:nnn Newdays - Indicates that only files created or updated
within the last nnn days are to be selected for processing.
/N:1 causes any files updated within the last day to be
selected. To search for files updated on the current date,
specify /N:0.
/O:nnn Olddays - Indicates that only files older than nnn days are
to be selected for processing. /O:365 will cause files over
one year old to be selected.
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/P Pause - Pause has different meanings depending on other
parameters that are specified.
For File locate commands, PS will pause whenever a matching
filename is found. You may terminate the search or continue
by pressing any key.
When the peek at file text request is active (/S), PAUSE
indicates to stop after each line of text is displayed. You
may then request that another line of text from the file be
displayed or to go on to the next file.
/PF Print to File - If you want to direct print to an output
file, enter /PR. The file PSPRINT.DAT will be created in
the current directory.
/PR PRint - Causes all screen output to also be directed to the
output printer device.
/S Scan - Peek into selected files and show the text found.
After a file has been selected because it contains found
text word or it matches specified filename pattern, PSEARCH
will scan the file from the beginning for text information.
This information will be shown on the screen one line at a
time.
If the /P parameter is also specified, you may see more than
one line of the text from the file by pressing a key.
/SK FIles with .COM and .EXE extensions are to be excluded from
text search operations.
/SO Turns the sound off at the beginning of a PSEARCH execution.
It may be turned back on at any time by using the sound
function key.
/T:text Text - Specifies the text to be found for text search
requests. The text string may contain any characters. A
terminating command line or the following slash character
will signal the end of the text to be searched. If this is
the last parameter on the command any trailing spaces will
not be included in the search. To include trailing spaces,
terminate the string with an ending slash character.
Text may be specified in upper or lower case. Unless the /C
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parameter is specified to force exact text matches, the
search will be made for any match regardless of case.
You may specify a wildcard value of ? in any text word.
This has the same use as if it were specified in a DOS
filename. Any character will match this character. For
example, /T:01-??-87 would match any date from 01-01-87 to
01-31-87. (Special thanks to George Timmer for suggesting
this feature.)
Strings may also be single or double quoted. This allows
for special characters to be included in the search string
such as / characters.
Examples:
/T:BUDGET /T:Budget /T:Mr. Jones/
/T:"01/01/88"
Note, to include a trailing space as part of search text,
you must follow search text by another / command parameter.
For example:
PS *.C/T: SMITH /D/M
/W Wordstar 7 bit file is being searched. This option adjusts
PSEARCH to be compatible with the special format of Wordstar
files.
/X:xxx eXecute - Build and execute a DOS command whenever a
filename match or a text match is found. xxx is the DOS
command to be executed.
The command may either be a standard DOS command or the name
of a DOS batch command file. The command will be executed
with a second copy of COMMAND.COM. The command data may
contain the following special characters to allow for
substitution values.
# - Always replaced with the selected filename
& - Always replaced with the selected path/filename
! - Always replaced with the filename without extension
@ - Replaced with a slash to allow for command parameters to
be specified in executed commands.
Examples:
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/X:ERASE &To delete selected files
/X:ARC A OLD123.ARC # To use ARC utility to archive
file
/X:TYPE & To type the file
/X:LOTUS Start 123 for the file
/XF:xxx eXecute File - Works like /X except that the command is not
executed, it is generated and placed in a DOS batch command
file named PSCMDS.BAT in the current directory. This file
may be edited before it is executed.
/XP:xxx eXecute with Pause - Functions in the same way as the /X
parameter except that you are asked to indicate if the
command is to be executed for each selected file.
Specification of default parameters
Default parameters are parameters that do not need to be
specified each time PSEARCH is started. Any PSEARCH parameter
may be specified as a default parameter.
Use the DOS SET command to specify the parameter name and
contents to be used by PSEARCH each time it is started. The
following example indicates that text search is always to assume
/d and /m are specified:
SET PS=/D/M
Once this DOS command is issued, each subsequent use of PSEARCH
will operate as if these parameters have been specified on the
command line. The SET command is most commonly placed in the
AUTOEXEC.BAT file so it may be in effect every time your machine
is started.
Function Key Usage
F1 - Brings up a simple help display to show the use of other function
keys.
F3 - Toggle sound on/off. If a beep is sounded when the key is
pressed the sound has been turned on. If there is no beep, the
sound has been turned off.
F4 - Execute a DOS command. Pressing this key will clear the screen
and allow you to enter a DOS command. The command will be
executed from within another version of DOS COMMAND.COM. It may
be the name of a DOS batch command file. After the command is
executed you may return to activate the search at the point it
8
was stopped. The screen will be restored to its original
contents.
Screen colors and monitor support
PSEARCH checks the DOS equipment flags to determine what type of monitor
you have on your system. This is usually always correct except for one
specific information. For those users running a composite monitor with a
color graphics card, the screens may not be displayed correctly. If this
occurs, use the DOS MODE command to set your environment to black and
white. This can be done at system startup or just before starting PSEARCH.
Beware that some applications incorrectly reset these indicators and they
may need to be reset before again running PSEARCH. Following is an
example, see the DOS reference for more information about setting the
monitor with the MODE command.
MODE BW80
Pausing the Search
Even if Pause parameters are not specified, you may pause the search at any
time by pressing any keyboard key. At the end of the next file processing
will pause. You will then have the opportunity to continue processing, use
a function key, or exit from PSEARCH.
Batch Command File Examples
Following are examples of batch files that may be used to invoke PSEARCH.
1. PSFF - Find a file on the current hard disk. Stop screen from
scrolling past the end.
echo off
PS %1/f/mo/a
To execute enter: PSFF filename
2. PSFIND - Find any file on the disk containing the specified
characters and show the matching data.
echo off
PS *.*/t:%1/d/m/mo/a
To execute enter: PSFIND text
3. PS123 - To locate any .WKS files in the 123 directory that
contain the text specified. Show the first line of
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text data found in the file. Optionally allows you to
show additional lines of data.
echo off
PS \123\*.WKS/T:%1/S/P
Note: Replace the \123\ with the name of the directory
you desire to search in.
To execute, enter: PS123 text
4. PSSELECT - Manually select files to be processed with the
entered command.
echo off
PS %1/f/xp:%2 #
To execute enter: PSSELECT fspec command skeleton
Bonus features for registered users
To encourage users to register PSEARCH, the following sections of this
utility are made available only to registered users. Once you have entered
your registration information, the bonus functions will become available
for use.
/PR - Direct display output to the line printer
/PF - Direct display output to a print file
/SO - Turn off the sound
/SK - Ignore COM and EXE files for text searches
/FX - Extract text search lines to a file
/DR: - Multiple drive support is limited to 2 drives
If you cannot afford to register and need a bonus feature, or just don't
feel it is worth the amount asked, send me a letter describing your
situation and I will register you. If you are unable to pay, please
include a self addressed, stamped, envelope so I may return your
registration information.
10
Overview of new features
There is an ongoing commitment to improve PSEARCH as long as there is
expressed need by PSEARCH users. I do respond to your requests. The
enhancements below reflect both user requests and my own ideas. Please let
me know of your needs, maybe they can appear on this list next time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
PSEARCH Version 1.0 was released in March 1st, 1986
PSEARCH Version 2.0 was released April 8th, 1986. It upgraded version
1 with the following new features.
-- Ability to search in .ARC files for filenames /AR /AO
-- Find text by WORD, PREFIX, or SUFFIX /FW /FP /FS
-- Returns back to menus after search is complete
-- Extract data to file implemented
-- Fix to show found text un upper/lower case
-- /SO to turn sound off
-- Ability to exclude .COM and .EXE files from search
-- Ability to search all drives attached to system /DR:abc
PSEARCH Version 3.0 was released Sept. 7th, 1986. It upgraded
version 2 with the following new features.
-- Sound alike and other new filespec wildcards (! ; ~).
-- More menu options on the Peak menu.
-- Correction to retrieve proper environment string to be used
when executing DOS commands.
PSEARCH Version 3.3 July 5, 1987
-- Change registration so there is no longer a need to have the
PSEARCH.REG file exist in the root directory.
-- Text searches will not attempt to search .ARC files. Since
these files are compressed it makes no sense to search them
for text.
-- Correct Peek menu screen spelling and menu item numbers
-- Use environment field PS= to specify default command
parameters.
11
PSEARCH Version 3.4 September 16, 1987
-- Allow ? as text search pattern character. This means that
searching for a ? character is not valid but gives you
greater flexibility in searching for variable text. See
description of the /T:xxx parameter for specific details.
-- Ignore ~ ! and ; filename search characters unless they are
in the first position of the filename. Previous versions
file searches would fail if these characters were found in
any position but the first.
-- Correct filename matching. If file XXX would not be found
if pattern name of XXX.* was specified.
-- When print option was used with menus, when processing
completed, menu text was printed to the printer. Corrected.
PSEARCH Version 3.8 March 1, 1988
-- Add /W parameter to accept 7 bit wordstar file format for
text searches.
-- Add ability to accept " or ' quoted strings in text search
input command data. This is for the /T: parameter only.
12
Registering The Utilities
All utilities are distributed under the Shareware concept. This makes them
available for anyone to try without obligation. If you decide one is
useful and want to keep it, I ask that you register your use of it. This
will allow for continued support and maintenance of the program and will
help to encourage that more quality software be made available through this
channel. We ask all corporate and government users of utilities register
their copies.
The form on the following page indicates registration costs and may be used
to register any or all of the utilities.
Send registration requests to:
Norm Patriquin
P.O. Box 8263
San Bernardino, CA 92412
The registration charge is a one time fee that entitles you to all future
versions of the product. These may either be obtained from normal
Shareware sources or directly from me. Any organization ordering more than
100 copies is also entitled to telephone support and will be given the
technical support number.
13
PSEARCH 3.8 Registration
Please register the following utilities. I have enclosed the fees as
marked below.
_____ PALERT........................................ $15.00
_____ PATTR......................................... $10.00
_____ PCOPY & PMOVE................................. $15.00
_____ PDAILY........................................ $10.00
_____ PDELETE....................................... $15.00
_____ PPRINT........................................ $15.00
_____ PSEARCH....................................... $15.00
_____ PTOUCH........................................ No Charge
_____ Users Guide for all utilities and disk........
(Does not include registration) $15.00
_____ Registration of all Patriquin Utilities with
program disk and User's Guide.............. $45.00
_____ Update of newest Patriquin Utility disk with
manual. ................................... $15.00
_____ Disk source for all utilities. This does not
include source for other vendors C tools
packages used for development.................. $200.00
****************************************************************
Name: ________________________________________________________
Company: _____________________________________________________
Address: ______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
City: __________________________ State: ________ Zip: ________
I learned about the utilities from: ____________________________
If BBS indicate name and number please._________________________
____________________________________________________
Please register the software under the following name:
____________________________________________________
Send to: Norm Patriquin
P.O. Box 8263
San Bernardino, CA 92412
14
Reporting Problems
I welcome all comments or enhancement suggestions. Please document each
item clearly and provide printed examples if possible. Please be sure to
include this form with all requests, it will help to make sure we can
provide you with the best possible service.
Name: _______________________________________________________
Company: ____________________________________________________
Address: _________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
City: __________________________________ State: _______________
Zip: ______________________________
Telephone: _______ / ________________________ (Home / Work)
Date: _________________________
Name of Utility: _______________________________________________
Description of problem or enhancement:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Suggested solution:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
15