How to display files without trying to edit them?

[mm]

How to display files without trying to edit them?
Leaving them where they are instead of copying them to work area in
RAM.

What would a program that does this be called??

I've looked up file lister and all I find are programs like
Windows Explorer, that gives a list of files.
I've looked up file displayer and I only got 8 hits, none what I
wanted.
I've looked up file browser** and only found hits on web browsers.

Do you guys know a program that would do this, or at least what it
would be called so I can hunt for one?? Either that runs in XP or in
the CMD portion of XP?


I used to have 4DOS (also called Norton DOS for a while) that ran
under DOS and looked like DOS but I had more commands and it had a
great command, LIST , that enabled the user to display a file on the
screen without moving a copy to a work area. So it worked very
quickly and there was no chance of modifying the file, and it worked
with any file. One could say List *.* and it would display every
file in the current directory, and go to the next one when you pushed
ESC, and you could look at maybe 30 files a minute if you were looking
for something special.

My current need is to look for the list of applications that can be
called by FireFox, if it's not encrypted or packed, but I frequently
need a program like this.


**Because SPF used in IBM mainframes made a distinction between
editing a file and browsing it. Browsing just meant looking at it.

Thank you.

 

[Alan Edwards]

I would call it a file viewer, e.g. as in MS Word Viewer, MS
PowerPoint Viewer.
Try a search on "file viewer".
This looks promising, though I didn't look too deeply:
http://www.accessoryware.com/FileView.htm

If not, have a look for QuickView Plus. I used to use that in Win95 as
a quick all purpose viewer but haven't had it installed it for 12
years.

....Alan

 

[Brian A.]

How to display files without trying to edit them?

Leaving them where they are instead of copying them to work area in
RAM.

What would a program that does this be called??

I've looked up file lister and all I find are programs like
Windows Explorer, that gives a list of files.
I've looked up file displayer and I only got 8 hits, none what I
wanted.
I've looked up file browser** and only found hits on web browsers.

Do you guys know a program that would do this, or at least what it
would be called so I can hunt for one?? Either that runs in XP or in
the CMD portion of XP?


I used to have 4DOS (also called Norton DOS for a while) that ran
under DOS and looked like DOS but I had more commands and it had a
great command, LIST , that enabled the user to display a file on the
screen without moving a copy to a work area. So it worked very
quickly and there was no chance of modifying the file, and it worked
with any file. One could say List *.* and it would display every
file in the current directory, and go to the next one when you pushed
ESC, and you could look at maybe 30 files a minute if you were looking
for something special.

My current need is to look for the list of applications that can be
called by FireFox, if it's not encrypted or packed, but I frequently
need a program like this.


**Because SPF used in IBM mainframes made a distinction between
editing a file and browsing it. Browsing just meant looking at it.

Thank you.

Try the free Take Command Console LE, it's developed by the same company
(JP Software) that developed 4DOS:
http://jpsoft.com/tccledes.htm

It doesn't include the graphical environment, if you wanted that you would
have to purchase Take Command LE.

--

Brian A. Sesko
Conflicts start where information lacks.
http://basconotw.mvps.org/

Suggested posting do's/don'ts: http://www.dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
How to ask a question: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/555375

 

[Brian A.]

For a list of the commands used/supported in TCC/LE:
http://jpsoft.com/help/index.htm?tcc_and_tcclite.htm

--

Brian A. Sesko
Conflicts start where information lacks.
http://basconotw.mvps.org/

Suggested posting do's/don'ts: http://www.dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
How to ask a question: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/555375

 

[dadiOH]

How to display files without trying to edit them?
Leaving them where they are instead of copying them to work area in
RAM.

What would a program that does this be called??

A miracle if you mean you want the contents of files to be displayed without
that content being in RAM.

--

dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

 

[mm]

I would call it a file viewer, e.g. as in MS Word Viewer, MS
PowerPoint Viewer.
Try a search on "file viewer".

Ah! Of course I have those viewers too, used the second one just
last week, and still didn't think of hte word. Thank you.

This looks promising, though I didn't look too deeply:
http://www.accessoryware.com/FileView.htm

I looked at that. It looked good, but probably more powerful than I
need

If not, have a look for QuickView Plus. I used to use that in Win95 as
a quick all purpose viewer but haven't had it installed it for 12
years.

Well, I found it and it's grown to 17MB now! This is what happens
when you leave a programmer alone for 12 years.

Your answer inspired me to go on to the next step. Please see my next
post.

 

[mm]

Try the free Take Command Console LE, it's developed by the same company
(JP Software) that developed 4DOS:
http://jpsoft.com/tccledes.htm

I am so glad you posted. This is a great program, and everyone
should know about it. Anyone who has ever used DOS will still
appreciate its DOS-like commands. It has dozens or hundreds more
commands than DOS did, the commands have more options, and one can
easily write up combination commands, clists, macros, whatever they
are called.

After reading Alan's post, I went looking at the things he suggested,
then looked at other viewers and then looked for 4DOS, and I'll admit
I found this page before I read your post, but I'm glad to hear you
know about it too.

It doesn't include the graphical environment, if you wanted that you would
have to purchase Take Command LE.

I had actually bought for win98 or win3.1 both halves of this, but I
lost the use of them years ago after a harddrive failure, and I've
mislaid the install disks and didn't want to buy another copy if I
could find the disks instead. Soon after I got to the webpage, I
remembered that what I bought wouldn't work with XP which is like NT,
for which they made a separate program, 4NT.

But theh I saw that people still using win98 could download and use
the program for free. I don't know when that started but I could have
had the program for free if I'd looked at the webpage.

Now I'm using XP and then I noticed that the one you recommend TCC-LE
is also free! One of the ones one has to buy, I bought before and
though it is very powerful, I never found a use for it.

It only takes a couple minutes to install. I modified the ....I
forget the exact term, but the properties for the icon I had it put in
the quicklaunch tray, so that it runs in full screen and not a box.
There are advantages to the box because one can pretty easily select
and copy text from the box, but primarily I want to use LIST, to look
inside files. It works fantastically fast.

I used to know all the LIST subcommands and many of the other
commands. It's going to take a while to learn them again.

Thanks Brian

 

[mm]

A miracle if you mean you want the contents of files to be displayed without
that content being in RAM.

Fortunately I was careful enough to say they weren't copied to a "work
area" in RAM.

Is it not possible to copy the file straight from the hard drive to
the video card? That would save one of two big steps.

Regardless, it loads files far faster than any editor I've ever seen.
Even when my cpu was much slower I could display more than 100 files a
minute, although that didn't leave me enough time to perceive what was
on the screen.

It's been 14 or 15 years since I read the manual that came with NDOS
or 4DOS, and my recollection is vague but I think it said something
like what I said, but maybe I just jumped to a conclusion.

Since last night I dl'd a free version, it came with a help file but
not a whole manual with a narrative. I'll look for my old manual.

 

[Brian A.]

I am so glad you posted. This is a great program, and everyone
should know about it. Anyone who has ever used DOS will still
appreciate its DOS-like commands. It has dozens or hundreds more
commands than DOS did, the commands have more options, and one can
easily write up combination commands, clists, macros, whatever they
are called.

After reading Alan's post, I went looking at the things he suggested,
then looked at other viewers and then looked for 4DOS, and I'll admit
I found this page before I read your post, but I'm glad to hear you
know about it too.


I had actually bought for win98 or win3.1 both halves of this, but I
lost the use of them years ago after a harddrive failure, and I've
mislaid the install disks and didn't want to buy another copy if I
could find the disks instead. Soon after I got to the webpage, I
remembered that what I bought wouldn't work with XP which is like NT,
for which they made a separate program, 4NT.

TCC/LE was formerly 4NT.

But theh I saw that people still using win98 could download and use
the program for free. I don't know when that started but I could have
had the program for free if I'd looked at the webpage.

Now I'm using XP and then I noticed that the one you recommend TCC-LE
is also free! One of the ones one has to buy, I bought before and
though it is very powerful, I never found a use for it.

It only takes a couple minutes to install. I modified the ....I
forget the exact term, but the properties for the icon I had it put in
the quicklaunch tray, so that it runs in full screen and not a box.
There are advantages to the box because one can pretty easily select
and copy text from the box, but primarily I want to use LIST, to look
inside files. It works fantastically fast.

I used to know all the LIST subcommands and many of the other
commands. It's going to take a while to learn them again.

All of that info and more is on the linked page in my second response.

Thanks Brian

You're welcome.

--

Brian A. Sesko
Conflicts start where information lacks.
http://basconotw.mvps.org/

Suggested posting do's/don'ts: http://www.dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
How to ask a question: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/555375

 

[Barry Schwarz]

Fortunately I was careful enough to say they weren't copied to a "work
area" in RAM.

Is it not possible to copy the file straight from the hard drive to
the video card? That would save one of two big steps.

If Windows can move an applications window around the screen or
minimize it or hide it behind another window without telling the
application, then the answer to your question is no.