Numeric Tails

[Jerry]

In one folder I have about ten files with similar names, for example:
WindowsMedia1
WindowsMedia2

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

In one folder I have about ten files with similar names, for example:
WindowsMedia1
WindowsMedia2
.
.
WindowsMedia9

My system is on a FAT32 formatted drive and is dual-booted with ME and XP
Pro. If I happen to boot with the ME Safety Boot floppy I found that the
similarly named ten files are named such that the first four names end with
~1 through ~4 but the others are a jumble of letters and numbers.

Is there no way to modify things so that the names as seen in real-mode DOS
would run from ~0 to ~9 (if there were, for instance, ten similarly named
files)?

In the days before XP you could modify the registry to prevent the numeric
tail on the first long file name and then the others would go from ~1 to ~9.
(Don't know what happens after the ~9 - I never had that many similar
names.)

Jerry

Your question is really a WinME question, not a WinXP
question. I suspect that the WinME Safe Mode does not
support LFNs (Long File Names), so you're stuck. You
probably have two options:

a) Boot WinME in normal mode, or
b) Use file names that are only 1..8 characters long and
that have no embedded spaces.

 

[Jetro]

HKLM\System\CCS\Control\FileSystem, binary value NameNumericTail, data 0,
makes no sense for NT line of products, you're right. OTOH, any NT doesn't
support real-mode DOS and it assumes the file system is NTFS, thus human
friendly 8.3 names aren't in big demand in NT.

Nevertheless, if WinMe registry has the parameter mentioned above, the files
created from within WinMe would have no tilde in their names if the first 8
symbols of LFN are unique.

 

[Jerry]

Pegasus and Jetro - you missed the point of the question. And XP supports
FAT32 so any comment about NTFS is not valid.

Again - ten files, same basic name. Reading the folder on the XP drive from
ME shows the first four names ending in~1 to ~4 and the others a jumble.
Even in XP's Explorer, if you highlight each file in sequence, right-click
and select properties you would find that the LFNs are truncated with the
first four ending in ~1 to ~4 and the others jumbled.

So, it is NOT just an issue of trying to read the folder's files from ME it
is also an issue from within XP itself.

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

It seems this is a moving target. In your first post you wrote
"If I happen to boot with the ME Safety Boot floppy" (proably
meaning "Safe Mode", or "Recovery Mode"). The reader
would now assume that the problem occurs only when running
your machine in a 16-bit environment.

Now you say that it is a issue from within WinXP too.

If so then I suggest you explain what the WinXP problem is.
After all, WinXP fully supports LFNs, and you never need
to bother about SFNs.

Giving some explicit examples would also help.

Lastly, if you do not like the jumbled-up SFNs then why not
just stick to file names that are compatible with the 8.3
specification? And why the emphasis on the WinME 16-bit
mode?

 

[Jetro]

Jerry,

You missed the point of the answers

Again, there is no setting in NT registry or wherever to remove name tail in
8.3 name generated from LFN as it's possible in any W9x/Me which use the
real-mode DOS. Here is the trick - adjust WinME registry (NameNumericTail)
and rename any XP file from within WinMe, then boot into DOS with FAT32
support and dir /x.

P.S. Forget about WinMe and move yourself forcibly into XP only environment,
it's 2005! HNY!

 

[Jerry]

I've been running XP Pro for over a year.

My complaint is with numeric tails. I want them to at least follow a
sensible procedure and when read be in the order ~1 to ~9, if necessary. I
thought there would be at least one knowledgeable person with an answer.

It makes no sense that it could be done in 98, SE, and ME but is
incompatible with NT and XP. Dumb programmers I guess.

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

I've been running XP Pro for over a year.

My complaint is with numeric tails. I want them to at least follow a
sensible procedure and when read be in the order ~1 to ~9, if necessary. I
thought there would be at least one knowledgeable person with an answer.

It takes two to tango. So far you have consistently avoided answering the
obvious questions:
- Why the insistence on using short file names?
- If you must use SFNs, why not use names that conform to the 8.3 standard?

It makes no sense that it could be done in 98, SE, and ME but is
incompatible with NT and XP. Dumb programmers I guess.

It's risky to attach labels to other people unless you know
the exact design criteria they were given, and how well these
criteria were implemented. It is a fair guess that the criteria
did not include your precise requirements.

Let's not forget: SFNs are a crutch, to be used in emergencies only.