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From: nather@ut-sally.UUCP (Ed Nather)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: DOS enviroment size
Message-ID: <7386@ut-sally.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 6-Mar-87 12:34:14 EST
Article-I.D.: ut-sally.7386
Posted: Fri Mar  6 12:34:14 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 8-Mar-87 06:20:07 EST
References: <2091@ncoast.UUCP> <409500003@prism> <2986@iuvax.UUCP> <2778@sdcsvax.UCSD.EDU>
Organization: U. Texas CS Dept., Austin, Texas
Lines: 31

In article <2778@sdcsvax.UCSD.EDU>, holtz@beowulf.ucsd.edu (Fred Holtz) writes:
> >PATH=c:\;c:\this\that;c:\work\bin
> >PATH=%PATH%;c:\this\also;c:\ramres
> >PATH=%PATH%;c:\thats\all
> >
> >---Sharad Singhal
> 
> I tried this under PC-DOS 3.1 with no luck.  I like the construct; what
> DOS are you using to achieve environment variable substitution?
> 
> Fred Holtz

This method of environment-variable substitution works fine under DOS 3.1 --
I use it regularly.  I have not tried the multiple substitutions described
above, but it appears that any construct of the form

set xx=whatever

in a batch file can be followed by a reference to the variable, as in

if %xx% == "whatnot"

will have the string from the environment substituted before the comparison
is made.  This can shorten batch files dramatically, and goes a fair way
toward overcoming the "no variables" rule in batch files.

-- 
Ed Nather
Astronomy Dept, U of Texas @ Austin
{allegra,ihnp4}!{noao,ut-sally}!utastro!nather
nather@astro.AS.UTEXAS.EDU