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The PiCnix Package (PC Version): -------------------------------- This document describes the PC Version of the PiCnix* package by Peter Stephen Heitman. The utilities in the PiCnix package emulate the functionality of UNIX* System V commands as completely as possible for MS-DOS* and PC-DOS* users. The utilities included in the PiCnix package are: Name: cat - file listing utility Usage: cat [ -usx? ] [ -v [-t] [-e] ] file1 ... Version: 3.7 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: chlabel - set the volume label Usage: chlabel { "<volume label>" [drive specifier] } | -? Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: chmod - update attribute bits of files Usage: chmod <mode> file1 ... Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: cp - copy files Usage: cp file1 file2 cp file1 ... fileN directory Version: 3.6 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: cpdir - copy a directory Usage: cpdir Dir1 Dir2 Version: 3.5 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: df - print disk free space information Usage: df [ -a | drive_1 [ drive_2 ... ] | -? ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: diff - find differences between two text files Usage: diff [ -ebh? ] oldfile newfile Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: du - disk usage utility Usage: du [ -ars? ] [ names ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: fgrep - fast text search through files Usage: fgrep [ -mvclxins? ] <pattern> file1 ... Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: grep - regular expression search through files Usage: grep [ -mvclins? ] <pattern> file1 ... Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: head - beginning of file listing utility Usage: head [-count] [ file1 ... ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: ls - directory listing utility Usage: ls [ -cx1lmetsurpfaRd? ] [ file1 ... ] Version: 3.5 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: more - file listing utility Usage: more [-<n>cdflsd?] [+<linenumber>] [+/<pattern>] [ file1 ... ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: mv - move files Usage: mv [-f?] file1 file2 mv [-f?] file1 ... fileN directory Version: 3.5 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: mvdir - move a directory Usage: mvdir Dir1 Dir2 Version: 3.5 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: ncd - change to directory Usage: ncd [ - | new-directory | -? ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: ndate - set and display current date and time Usage: ndate [-?] [ mmddhhmm[yy] ] [+<format string>] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: necho - echo arguments Usage: necho [-?] <argument list> Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: nset - set and display the command processor's environment Usage: nset [-?] [ <name>=[<parameter>] ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: unset - delete a string from the command processor's environment Usage: unset [-?] <name> Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: ntime - time a command Usage: ntime [-?] <command string> Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: pwd - print the working directory Usage: pwd [ -a | drive_1 [ drive_2 ] ... ] | -? ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: rm - remove files Usage: rm [ -ifr? ] file ... Version: 3.5 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: show - find a file along a path Usage: show [ -a? ] [ -p <environment variable> ] file1 ... Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: strings - print ASCII strings embedded in binary files Usage: strings [ -? ] [ -t <n>] [ -n <n>] [ file1 ... ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: switchar - set or display the current system switch character Usage: switchar [ <new-switchar> | '<new-switchar>' | "<new switchar>" ] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: tail - end of file listing utility Usage: tail [ -? | {+|-} [<count>] [l|c] ] [file] Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: tee - create multiple outputs from the input Usage: tee [ -a? ] file ... Version: 3.5 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: touch - update last-write times of files Usage: touch [ -c? ] [ mmddhhmm[yy] ] file1 ... Version: 3.4 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher Name: wc - word counter Usage: wc [ -lwc? ] [ file1 ... ] Version: 3.5 for PCs with DOS 2.1 and higher * PiCnix is a trademark of Peter Stephen Heitman * UNIX is a trademark of Bell Laboratories. * MS-DOS is a U.S. registered trademark of Microsoft, Incorporated. * PC-DOS is a trademark of International Business Machines. CONDITIONS FOR USE AND DISTRIBUTION: ----------------------------------- PiCnix is being distributed under the user-distributed concept. Please pass this package on to others and upload it to your favorite computer bulletin board, but please make sure you give them the complete PiCnix package, including this document. You also may not misrepresent, either by commission or omission, the conditions under which this program is being distributed. If you use any of the utilities in this package on a regular basis, it is requested that you register as a user of PiCnix by sending a donation of $15 to the author. A registration form is provided below for your convenience. Your donation will help support improvements and additions to the PiCnix package. Your registration will entitle you to receiving notices when updates are available and will allow you to order the updated versions of the package for only $10 per update. When you register, please include your name and address so that notices of updates may be sent to you. If you are registered as a user of the PiCnix package, the source for all of these utilities, including the sources for the underlying libraries, is available for an additional fee. The source currently consists of over half a megabyte of 'C' source code compatible with TURBO-C by Borland International. One library of particular interest will be the code that provides for command line argument expansion that is consistent with the argument expansion provided by Unix. The only restrictions on the use of this source code is that you may not create a competing product and a copyright notice is required when using some of the included libraries. No warranty is given that these sources will be suitable for any particular purpose. Of course, anyone may send in bug reports and suggestions for how the package may be improved. Please try to describe the bug as completely and accurately as possible along with a description of how it may be reproduced consistently (if you know). I am very interested in making the PiCnix package completely bug free, so please help me by reporting any bugs you encounter. Suggestions for how the package may be improved are always welcome, particularly suggestions about which System V commands to implement next. Date: ____________________ PiCnix Package Peter Stephen Heitman 23 Burwell Road West Roxbury, MA 02132 Version of the PiCnix package: PC Version Release Date of this package: May 1, 1988 Registration Fee: ($15.00) _________ Ordering the most recent update: ($10.00) _________ Ordering the sources: ($30.00) _________ Total: _________ NOTE: You must be currently registered as a user or must include your $15.00 registration fee with your order to be able to order an update or the sources. Select ONE: 360K Floppies ______ 1.2M Floppies ______ YOUR NAME: ________________________________________________ YOUR ADDRESS: ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ____________ IMPORTANT THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE USING PiCnix: --------------------------------------------- All the utilities in the PiCnix package share a common command line format, in general the command line for each will look like the following. COMMAND argument1 .... argumentN The possible arguments are described more fully in the following sections. Arguments: Options: The Options are also referred to as switches and are used to modify the action or purpose of a COMMAND. All the options for a COMMAND are grouped before the first filespec. Options are distinguished from filespecs by the very first character called a switch character. The switch character is user definable but will be a '/' whenever the computer is first turned on. You may want to use a minus sign '-' for the switch character to be consistent with the switch character assumed by Unix. There are two ways to change the switch character used by the PiCnix Utilities. First, each of the PiCnix Utilities looks for the environment variable PICNIX_SWITCHAR. If it exists, the first character of its value is used as the switch character. You can set the environment variable by including the following command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file or issuing the command at the DOS prompt: set PICNIX_SWITCHAR=- The second method of changing the switch character is to change the switch character that DOS uses. I have supplied a utility called SWITCHAR that will allow you to show what the current system switch character is and to set the system switch character to a new value. NOTE: not all programs look to see what switch character is used by DOS. This causes some programs to fail to execute properly when the system switch character has been changed. If you experience problems with software after changing the system switch character, you may want to use the first method mentioned above. It will not interfere with the operation of any other software. To set the switch character you can include the following command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file or issuing the command at the DOS prompt: switchar - The switch character that you select will also determine the meaning of other characters on the command line. If you use the default switch character of '/', the following will be used: On input, the single-escape will be a pound sign '#'. On output, the directory separator will be a back-slash '\'. and filenames by default will be printed in UPPER CASE. If you use a switch character different than the default '/', the following will be used: On input, the single-escape will be a back-slash '\'. On output, the directory separator will be a slash '/'. and filenames by default will be printed in lower case. The single-escape character is explained below. The way that filenames are printed can be changed by setting the environment variable PICNIX_FNCASE. If the value of the environment variable is 'down', filenames will be printed in lower case. If the value of the environment variable is 'up', filenames will be printed in UPPER CASE. You can set the environment variable by including the following command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file or issuing the command at the DOS prompt: set PICNIX_FNCASE=down switch character: If the switch character is at the beginning of an argument, that argument is assumed to be an option. Files should not be created that begin with the switch character as this makes them very difficult to work with. It is not even possible to remove them with the rm command! single-escape: The single-escape causes the next character to not be treated specially. For example, a space or a tab normally separates one argument from another. By using the single-escape, it is possible to make one argument out of two words. If the single escape is a back slash '\', the following is one argument: one\ argument The utility would see the argument as being a string of 12 characters "one argument", including the space. This is particularly useful for the utilities fgrep and grep, which search for a string in a list of files. The single escape also causes the special characters single quote ', double quote '"', dollar sign '$', star '*', question mark '?', left bracket '[' and single-escape to not be special if the single-escape appears immediately before the special character. NOTE: The single escape is removed from the argument unless the argument is enclosed in single quotes. In order to get a single-escape in the argument, use two of them. The first single-escape causes the second one to not be treated specially. dollar sign '$': The dollar sign signals the beginning of an environment variable. The characters beginning right after the dollar sign and continuing until the first character that is not a digit or a letter is assumed to be an environment variable. If that sequence of characters IS an environment variable, the value of the environment variable is inserted in its place on the command line. For example, assume that the command line argument is: $lib/myfile. If at the DOS prompt you had previously entered the command: SET LIB=/source $lib/myfile would be interpreted as /source/myfile. If $lib was not defined (did not exist in the current environment), the utility would see that argument as /myfile. The $lib would be ignored completely. Environment variables are defined using the DOS command SET, or the PiCnix command NSET, and are active until deleted or the system is re-started. Please see the section in your DOS manual about the SET command for additional information. Many of the utilities in the PiCnix package use environment variables to set or change default options. single quote ': The single quote is used to make one argument out of a string of words. For example: 'this is one argument' NOTE: Everything inside of a single quoted string is passed to the application as is. No expansion of environment variables or wildcard characters are done. double quote '"': The double quote is like the single quote except that the single-escape and the dollar sign (described below) ARE expanded. Filespecs: File specifiers are made from 3 parts, Wildcard characters * ? Environment variables $variable Character classes [abf...] For example: necho $user\* uses the value of the environment variable "user" as the path necho *a* operates on file names that contain at least 1 'a'. necho *.[qrzg] expands to match any file with a 1 character extension that is either q,r,z or g necho test?.* will match all file names that have 5 characters in the name before the extension and the first 4 characters are "test" These characters enable you to specify patterns that can match 0, 1, or many filenames. If more than one filename is matched, all of the filenames that matched become arguments to the utility. For example, since a star '*' all by itself matches all filenames in the current directory, the command more * is the same as more <file1> <file2> <file3> ... Let's assume that the following files are in the current directory: C1.A C1.B B1.A B1.B MYFILE BLAH star '*': The star '*' matches 0 or more characters in a filename, including the dot '.'. The argument * would be expanded into all of the filenames in the current directory. The argument B* would expand into 3 filenames, B1.A B1.B and BLAH. The argument *1.A would expand into 2 filenames, C1.A and B1.A. The argument C*1.A would expand into one filename, C1.A. question mark '?': The question mark '?' matches any one character, including the dot '.'. For example, the argument C1.? would expand into the filenames C1.A and C1.B. However, the argument C1?.A would not match any of the filenames in the current directory and so would not be expanded. left and right brackets '[' and ']': The left and right brackets [] are used to construct character classes. Character classes are matched against any ONE (1) character, in the same manner as the question mark '?'. The left bracket '[' begins the character class and the right bracket ']' ends the character class. A character class contains a list of the characters that are allowed to match. For example, the argument C1.[ABC] contains a character class that has three characters, A, B and C. This argument would be expanded into two filenames, C1.A and C1.B . Character classes can also contain ranges of characters. For example, the pattern C1.[ABC] is equivalent to the pattern C1.[A-C]. Finally, if the first character in a character class is an exclamation point '!', the character class matches any character that is NOT specified between the brackets. Thus, the argument [!B]1.A would expand into the filename C1.A. NOTE: as a special case, patterns that end in a dot '.' will not match any filenames that have extensions. For example, the pattern *. will match all filenames in the current directory that do not have an extension. Getting help for each utility: Each utility in the PiCnix package will display a brief summary of what it does and what each of the command line options are if you execute it with the argument <switch character>?. For example, if your switch character is the default '/', you can find out what the utility 'more' does by executing the following line at the DOS prompt: more /? NOTE: In the description for each utility, command line options are shown with the switch character being a minus sign '-'. You need to substitute the switch character you are using if it is not the minus sign. History Log for PiCnix releases: Changes Since Second Dated Release: cat.com cp.com cpdir.com mv.com mvdir.com tee.com each of these utilities have been changed to correctly recognize when the destination disk is full. Second Dated Release: November 1, 1987 Updated: May 25, 1988 Included in this release: cat.com chlabel.com chmod.com cp.com cpdir.com df.exe diff.exe du.exe fgrep.com grep.exe head.com ls.exe more.exe mv.com mvdir.com ncd.com ndate.com necho.com nset.com ntime.com unset.com pwd.com rm.com show.com strings.com switchar.com tail.com tee.com touch.com wc.com New in this release: head.com tail.com Modified in this release: All of the utilities have had the following changed: 1) All utilities now look for the environment variables PICNIX_SWITCHAR and PICNIX_FNCASE. These environment variables can be used to specify the switch character and the case for printing filenames, respectively. 2) The accent grave processing in the command line has been removed. It turned out that adding this feature added around 6K bytes to most of the utilities. It did not seem worth it. The capability has been left in the sources for those who purchase them. Let me know if you don't like this change. I may put back accent grave processing at a later date. 3) if a drive specifier is provided to a filespec, a slash character is no longer inserted after the ':' if one is not already there. DOS users seemed to find this objectionable. See the notice in the first dated release below for a description of what this did. Now, specifying a drive with a relative path name is resolved relative to the drive's current directory. 4) Many of the utilities have been changed to allow boolean command line switches (i.e., switches that changed the action from TRUE to FALSE or vice-versa ) to be set more than once in the command line. For example, if the command touch -c -c newfile is executed, the first -c says to not allow touch to create files that did not previously exist. The second -c says to undo the previous -c and allow touch to create files. The primary use for this would be to undo the default values set in the environment variable for a utility. For example, if I had set the environment variable nset TOUCH = -c and then wanted to create a file with touch, I can now execute the command touch -c newfile and get the expected result. 5) Files that have the 'system' mode bit set are not automatically hidden anymore. If a file is 'system' but not 'hidden', it will show up with ls and the other utilities. 6) Utilities that always expanded tabs to spaces only do so now when tabs have been defined to something other than 8 spaces. 7) If the switchar was '/' and a single-character filename existed at root (i.e., '\'), then using the option /? would result in strange error messages rather than printing help. This is now fixed. cat.com : fixed so that if it is not in visible mode (-v) and tabs are not expanded, cat now does read()'s and write()'s instead of fgets()'s and fputs()'s. This fixes the problem of trying to cat binary files that contain tabs and bytes equal to 0. Also added the -x switch to tell cat explicitly to expand tabs to spaces. It used to be the only way cat worked. diff.exe : fixed the output to correspond to Unix's output more closely. Modified to now work with files with up to 2500 lines rather than with up to 2400 lines. Changed to the Compact memory model. Used to use a custom psuedo-virtual memory manager. Execution is now more dependent on available memory size but runs faster and the executable is smaller. Fixed problem occurring when using -b switch. Used to hang the computer. Fixed problem occurring with files >2500 lines. grep.exe more.exe : The regular expression operator '|' has been changed to the '!' character. This was done because the DOS command interpreter always interprets the '|' character, even when it is within a string. This means that it is impossible to use the '|' character as part of an argument to a program. The '!' character is not recognized by DOS and thus will not cause the problem. ls.exe : ls .. now works correctly. Before, ls would not display anything. ls /l used to change filenames to lower case, even when they were supposed to be printed as upper case. This is now fixed. more.exe : now displays the correct argument list in the help screen. ncd.com : ncd validdir/.. now works correctly. Before, ncd would usually remain in the current directory. Now ncd searches for the directory validdir on CDPATH and then does the .. pwd.com : pwd again allows for arguments to specify the drives to be checked for their current directory. The option -a checks all drives. mv.com mvdir.com : mv and mvdir now set the destination file's time and date to be the same as the source files time and date. They also delete the destination file when any error occurs while writing the file. Before they would just leave a partially written file around. mvdir now tries to rename the source directory to be the destination directory before actually copying the directory over. wc.com : now correctly counts the number of characters in the file. First Dated Release: January 1, 1987 Included in first dated release: cat.exe chlabel.exe chmod.exe cp.exe cpdir.exe df.exe diff.exe du.exe fgrep.exe grep.exe ls.exe more.exe mv.exe mvdir.exe ncd.exe ndate.exe necho.exe nset.exe unset.exe pwd.exe rm.exe show.exe strings.exe switchar.exe tee.exe touch.exe wc.exe New in this release: ndate.exe nset.exe unset.exe ntime.exe strings.exe Modified in this release: All of the utilities have had the following changed: 1) The accent grave processing in the command line has been added. The single escape character has been changed to a pound sign '#' when the switch character is the forward slash '/'. 2) if a drive specifier is provided to a filespec, a slash character is inserted after the ':' if one is not already there. For example, cp a:this . will become a:/this before cp checks for the file. cp.exe, cpdir.exe, mv.exe, mvdir.exe: Modified the buffer size for copies to 32K from 8K. diff.exe : fixed the case where a directory is given as one of the filenames. Before, the entire pathname of the other argument was appended to the directory name. Now, only the filename part of the other argument is appended to the directory. fgrep.exe : fixed -i (ignore case) option. Before fix, lines with matching pattern were printed in all lower case. Now, lines with matching pattern are printed as they were read from the file. grep.exe : added -i (ignore case) option. Before, this option would report that it wasn't implemented. ls.exe : fixed the -u (unsorted filenames) option. Before, sorting of filenames was done at a very low level and it was not an option to not do the sorting. Now the low level routines can be told not to do the sorting. ncd.exe : changed the method by which the environment is modified. The old ncd would not work correctly in batch files. It left a copy of itself around in memory. pwd.exe : pwd no longer allows arguments other than -?. pwd always shows the current working directory on the default drive only. rm.exe : now correctly removes hidden and system files during the -r (recursive) option. show.exe : fixed -p (search path) option. Before fix, if the command line argument was -pPATH with no space between the -p and the path, this would not be handled correctly. Also, it is now allowed to specify the path in lower case, i.e., -p path.