General

The Commander Lite is a useful tool for your Computer. You have a large palette of commands for files, directories and logical drives.

Related Information:

File

Disk

View

Commands

Options

Left and Right

Keys

Quick search

Copyright (c) 1994-2001, Emil Fickel


File

Operations with files

User menu

Use this command to start a custom defined menu complete allowing the user to launch defined programs.

Run

If you have selected an executable program you can run it directly by double-clicking with the left mouse button, or by pressing enter while the file is selected.

With this option, you can run an external program in the same situation or search for new program.

Edit

Edit loads the file under the cursor bar into the specified editor.

Copy

The Copy command allows you to copy files and directories.

File/directory wildcards are allowed.

Move

This command allows you to move files and directories.

File/directory wildcards are allowed. You can also move and rename at the same time with this command.

If the target drive is the same logical drive as the source drive, this operation goes very quickly; just the references are affected.

Rename

This command allows you to rename files and directories.

File/directory wildcards are allowed.

Rename file/directory names admits now the < and > as placeholder. The < bring the name(s) to uppercase, the > to lowercase. Any * and ? combinations are be accepted.

Example:

   <> or >< as mixed case

   > entire name to lower case

   < entire name to upper case

   >.* / <.* only name

   *.> / *.< only extension

Make directory

This command allows you to create directories.

The new directory must not be a subdirectory on the active directory. It is possible to make directory directly on a new drive.

Commander allows you to create an entire group of subdirectories with a single mouse click.  To create more than one subdirectory:

Select the target drive/directory; click on the Make Directory icon or press the F7 key; type in the names of your subdirectories separated by backslashes (\), for example, abc\efg\hi\jk, and press ENTER.  Commander makes all directories.

Delete

This command allows you to delete files and directories. All marked or selected files or directories are deleted.

Print

With the Print operation, you have the posibility to print files.

Select

Select and deselect a group of files and directories.

Select group

Select all filetred files.

Deselect group

Deselected all filtered files.

Invert selection

Invert the current selection by deselecting all the files witch are selected,

and selecting all the files which are not selected.

Restore selection

Restore the selection after a copy, rename or other function.

Exit Quit Commander.


Disk

Operations with disks

Format Disk

Format a logical disk.

Disk Info

Displays information about the selected disk.

Select Drive

Change the selected drive.


View

Use the View menu to customize Commander's interface.

History

This command brings up a list of the last paths that you have issued in this Commander session and (optionally) the saved paths from old sessions.

Each path will be stored just one time; old items are removed.

To go back into a path from list, press the lightning button.

You can remove paths from list by selecting the path and pressing the "eraser" button.

Preferred Paths

This command brings up a list with the preferred paths that you have stored and saved from old sessions.

Container

The Container is a temporary place to hold full pathname references that you want to manipulate later.

Tool Bar

The Tool Bar can be hidden or displayed.

Disk Bar

The Disk Bar can be hidden or displayed.

Status Bar

The Status Bar can be hidden or displayed.

The Status Bar provides more information including current directory/file, amount of free space on current drive, settings for Left and Right windows, date and time.  You can bring up a context menu with the right mouse button or can activate the menu for files, for the left or right panel, or one of the specific menus. For example if you use the context menu with the mouse pointer on the time field you can modify the date and time settings for your computer.

The status bar also supports different fonts.

Command Bar

The Command Bar can be hidden or displayed.


Command

Commands

The Commands menu provides access to a number of commands in the Commander.

Search

This command searches the selected disk(s) for files. You can search for files by name or search

for files containing specified text.

Metacharacters (wildcards) in a file name work as follows:

A question mark (?) match one character.

An asterisk (*) match any characters for the rest of the name or extension.

A period (.) in the name causes to match same as "*.*"

Swap panels

This command changes the position of the two panels so that the left appears on the right and the right appears on the left.

Left = Right

Change the path on the deselected panel to the current selected path.

Compare directories

This command compares the contents of the directories displayed in two panels and marks the differences.

Calculate occupied space

Calculates the space occupied by the marked files and their complete subdirectories.

If no file is selected, the space occupied by the file or directory under the cursor bar is calculated.  Additionally, the file size is rounded to the cluster size of the source and destination directory, to determine the actual space required.

The space for the directory information itself is not considered.

Kill Process

Use this option to send the KILLPROCESS exception to another process or group of processes.

Shut Down

Warning: You might lose information if you turn off your computer without shutting down your system. Check all sessions for unsaved  information before you start the shutdown.


Option

Options

The items in this pull-down menu allow you to set various options of the Commander.

Customize Tool Bar

Use this option to change the buttons displayed on the tool bar. You can add new buttons from the left listbox, delete or move it.  You can also show or hide the tool bar.

Button sizes are also optional, small buttons and big buttons.

Font

Use the standard dialog box to change fonts for the panels.

The dialog box presents all fonts.

Color

This option allows you to choose the Commander's colors.

For user defined colors, you must select a color from the palette in the list box.

An example area displays the color selection.

Configuration

This dialog box allows you to set various options, including settings for the panels, Copy/Move Confirmations, etc.

The Confirmations option lets you determine the security level you want for file operations.

Editor

This option allows you to select an external editor.

To edit a file, select the file and press the F4 key or select the Edit menu.

User menu

Use this option to define a custom menu complete allowing the

user to launch defined programs.

Parameter handling:

*.*	Filename with extension (without path)

*.	Filename without extension

*:	Current drive letter

*\	Current directory

*/	Target directory

**	Insert an "*" on the parameter string

Example:

- WinDiff to compare directories:  *\ */

- WinDiff to compare files:  *\\*.* */\*.*

Language

Commander supports a number of different language modules.  To install a different module, copy the EFCW_xx.DLL file (where xx stands of the language abbreviation) and the EFCW_xx.HLP file into the same directory as the Commander executable (EFCW.EXE).  Then select this menu and change to the new language. The installed modules are displayed in a listbox.

You can run more than one instance of the Commander a time, each in a different language.

N.B.  Commander will conflict with itself if you run two different versions at a time.

Save setup

This option saves the current settings so the Commander will come back with the same settings the next time you start it.


Left

Left and Right

The Left (Right) menu allow you to change the Left (Right) panel.

You can switch to the another panel with Tab key.

Brief

Displays directories/files in one or more columns, by name only.

Full

Displays one column with all files in a directory, along with the size, date,

time and attributes.

On/Off

Toggle the panel on and off.

Sort

Controls the order in which files are displayed in a directory.

By name

Sorts files alphabetically by name.

By extension

Sorts files alphabetically by extension.

By time

Sorts files by time.

By size

Sorts files by size, with the largest files first.

Files with the same size will be sorted alphabetically.

Unsorted

Show the files in the same order as on disk.

Reversed

Show the files in the reversed order.

Re-read

This option allows you to re-read the selected disk.

Drive

This menu item allows you to change drives in the left panel.


Key

Keys

F2	User menu

F4	Edit a file

F5	Copy files and directories

F6	Move files and directories

F7	Make a new directory

F8	Delete files and directories

F9	Container

F10	Exit

Alt F1	Change the drive in the left panel

Alt F2	Change the drive in the right panel

Alt F7	Search the current disk for files

Alt F8	History

Alt Q	Quick search

Ctrl F1	Toggle the left panel on and off

Ctrl F2	Toggle the right panel on and off

Ctrl F3	Sort files alphabetical by name

Ctrl F4	Sort files alphabetical by extension

Ctrl F5	Sort files by time

Ctrl F6	Sort files by size

Ctrl F7	Show the files in the same order as on the disk

Ctrl F9	Preferred Paths function

Ctrl C	Compare the content of the directories

Ctrl E	Make left panel = right panel

Ctrl H	Show the hidden files

Ctrl Q	Start the Quick Search

Ctrl R	Reread the directories left and right

Ctrl S 	Compute the occupied space from the selection

Ctrl U	Change the position of the two panels

Shift F2	Run an external program

Shift F4	Start the editor with a new empty file

Shift F6	Rename files and directories

Shift F9	Save the current settings

Ctrl+Alt+Letter	Quick search in current directory

Ctrl+Enter	Copy the selection (with path) into the command bar

Ctrl+Enter+Shift	Copy the selection (without path) into the command bar

Ctrl+Home	Change to the root directory

Ctrl+PgUp	Change to the up-directory

Shift+Left	Change to the up-directory

Ctrl+PgDown	Change directory

Shift+Right 	Change directory

Ctrl+Tab	Change le focus with the Command Bar


QSearch

Quick search

Searches for files within a selected directory.

Push the Alt and the Q Keys and the Quick search dialog box will appear on the bottom of the Commander window.

Type one or more letters from the beginning of the filename you're looking for. If the letter matches a filename in the directory, the select window will automatically move to that file.  To move to the next match, press the Ctrl and Enter keys.

Press Enter to keep the found selection, or press Esc if you want to restore

the old selection.