DAB (Delete All But) (C) Copyright 1989,1994 by Scott R. Anderson
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED


01/02/94 Version 1.40


Introduction
------------
This is a utility designed to supplement DOS's delete command. Many times
I've run into a situation where I wanted to delete everything in a directory
EXCEPT one or two files. This is impossible to accomplish with DOS's delete
command. Several ways around this problem are certainly possible, but all
are relatively clumsy. So, the solution was DAB.


If you have any problems, suggestions, or comments contact:

Scott Anderson
P.O. Box 38145
Tallahassee, FL 32315

or Compuserve 71600,2704

*Please* let me know if you like this and/or find it useful!

If you use this program on a regular basis, $5 would be greatly appreciated.



Software License and Disclaimer
-------------------------------

You are free to use, copy, and distribute DAB if:

- No fee is charged for use, copying, or distribution
- It is not modified in any fashion


I HEREBY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES RELATING TO THIS SOFTWARE, WHETHER EXPRESS
OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF
MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. I WILL NOT BE LIABLE
FOR ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT OR SIMILAR DAMAGES DUE
TO LOSS OF DATA OR ANY OTHER REASON, EVEN IF I HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE
POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. THE PERSON USING THE SOFTWARE BEARS ALL RISK
AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE SOFTWARE.


Setup
-----

Just put DAB in somewhere in your path and it's ready to go! DAB must be
used on a 386 or better CPU.


Command syntax
--------------

DAB [/srhc] [filename1 filename2 filename3 filenameN]

DAB without parameters displays command summary.

[/srhc] optional switches. "/" is mandatory if a switch is used.

s - Suppresses file displays. No confirmation prompt is given.
Intended for use with batch files. Be cautious with this
option.

r - Affects read-only files in addition to others.

h - Affects hidden files in addition to others.

c - Color displays.

[FilenameN] Optional filenames. Any filename can be used,
including wildcards. Each filename must be separated by one or
more spaces. DAB does NOT support full drives/pathnames. In
other words it works only for files in the current directory.

Examples:

dab abcxyz.exe

dab *.com xyz.txt abcxyz.exe

dab *.com xyz.*

dab ?bcxyz.* a*.com

dab /s abcxyz.exe (no file display/confirmation!)

dab *.exe /s (no file display/confirmation!)

dab /r abcxyz.exe (read-only files are deleted too)

dab /h a??xyz.exe (hidden files are deleted too)

dab /rsh *.?xt (no file display/confirmation!, read-only and hidden files
are deleted too)

dab *.?xt /r /h (read-only and hidden files are deleted too)


Operation
---------

DAB will display a list of files it proposes to delete. Then confirmation
is requested from you. If confirmation is received the files are deleted.
Nothing will be affected if you do not confirm the files to be deleted.

DAB is only going to work on the current directory. This was originally
intended as a safety feature, however, subdirectories may be added in the
future.

For batch file operation, use the /s switch. Remember that this will
suppress any error messages and/or confirmation. Use with caution!


Notes
-----

DAB has only been tested with MSDOS. Other versions of DOS may or may not
be compatible.

DAB generally has the same wildcard expansion that DOS's delete
command has with the following exception: "dab *.*" will delete all
files without an extension ("dab *" will delete all files with an
extension).

Only the first 12 characters of any filename on the command line will
be used. This is the maximum legal size of a DOS filename. Any additional
characters will be ignored.

Normally only files with no special attribute will be affected. Ie.,
read-only, hidden, system, and subdirectory files will not be affected. If
the /r switch is present any read-only files in the current directory will
also be affected. Read-only files are only displayed if this switch is
present. If the /h switch is present any hidden files in the current
directory will also be affected. Hidden files are only displayed if this
switch is present. Subdirectory and system files within the current
directory will never be affected.

The environment variable "DAB" has been added to make it easier to have
semi-permanent switches, rather than enter switches every time. Just use
the normal set statement syntax and add the variable "DAB" to the environment.
Any switches present will always affect the operation of DAB. For example,
"DAB=s" would mean that every time DAB is run no displays or confirmation
would be given.

If the /c switch is used, all the displays will be in color. This color
should be compatible with all CGA, EGA, and VGA monitors.

CTRL-BREAK (CTRL-C) will abort the program when DAB is operating.

The exit (errorlevel) code used in batch files will be set as follows:
0) successful completion
1) no files deleted
2) error

Quick Unerase in Norton Utilities Advanced Edition 4.5 will successfully
unerase any files DAB deletes.



Change history
--------------

version 1.00 8/23/89
- preliminary release (no public distribution)

version 1.10 9/23/89
- first public distribution

version 1.20 10/11/89
- no bugs reported, none fixed
- some changes/additions to the documentation
- changed software license
- added disclaimer
- added "No confirmation" message
- added /r switch
- added /h switch
- changed so that it did not display read-only files unless /r switch
is present
- changed to show when each file is displayed if it is read-only and/or
hidden
- added "Deleting" message, each period is one file deleted
- changed total calculation and display to show number of files deleted
out of total number of files considered for deletion
- added environment variable "DAB" to hold semi-permanent switches
- added flushing keyboard buffer before confirmation
- converted from TurboC 2.0 to Microsoft C 5.1

version 1.30 12/19/89
- no bugs reported, none fixed
- some changes/additions to the documentation
- added suppressing cursor
- added DOS version check
- changed exit codes
- added version date
- added color, /c switch

version 1.31 07/09/91
- fixed bug to allow DAB to operate with DOS 5.X

version 1.40 01/04/94
- no bugs reported, none fixed
- some changes/additions to the documentation
- removed DOS version check
- compiled with Microsoft Visual C++ 1.0 Professional Edition
- compiled for 386 or above processor