Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!m2c!wpi!greyelf From: greyelf@wpi.wpi.edu (Michael J Pender) Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple Subject: Re: path variale addition to basic.system... Message-ID: <8275@wpi.wpi.edu> Date: 14 Feb 90 17:40:20 GMT References: Reply-To: greyelf@wpi.wpi.edu (Michael J Pender) Organization: Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester ,MA Lines: 52 In article bh1e+@ANDREW.CMU.EDU (Brendan Gallagher Hoar) writes: >has anyone looked into adding a routine to basic system that allows >the use of external commands WITH a path variable? Yes, someone has, I did. I did about a year ago. It was called SHELL and is available from a lot of FTP sites, and probably apple2-l also. >Say you set >$PATH = /h1/commands:/h1/basicdev/beta.comds... Actually I had the path automagically set by the startup program and included a command to change the command directories path. >then if you type at the prompt > >]reboot > >it scans the paths to see if you have a program of type CMD called >reboot. When and if you find shell you'll see a command called bootslot. It allows you to do exactly that, boot from any slot. >if you do, it executes it at $XXXX (stadardized). >if you don't, it passes it on... Acutally shell used the smart execution command, it could run basic, binary, system, or exec files without flinching. >it would have to know what to pass on immediately (with a\ table of >ProDOS and BASIC commands), or it would build a table of files in the >paths at start of execution and not have to scan ever. > >Good idea? or bad? I liked the idea. :^) >(probably would require aux ram...disabling the RAMDISK) Nope. the advantage of disk based commands is that you can have a lot of them, on disk, not sucking up memory. I designed shell so it could use the ramdisk for speed if a person wanted, but did not require it, so that anyone who can run prodos 8 can run Shell. If it still has the little notice saying to send me money ignore it, just send me a little note saying its actually useful. --- Michael J Pender Jr Box 1942 c/o W.P.I. W.O.S. is not dead. greyelf@wpi.bitnet 100 Institute Rd. ...its time to get started, greyelf@wpi.wpi.edu Worcester, Ma 01609 there is much to be done. If my next computer isn't a IIgs, it won't be an apple... Me.