Title -- Copyright -- Dedication -- Acknowledgments -- About the Author -- Contents at a Glance -- Contents -- Letter from the Series Editor -- Introduction -- Why Windows Shell Scripting? -- Who Should Read This Book? -- What You Need to Begin -- How This Book Is Organized -- Conventions Used in This Book -- CHAPTER 1 Introducing Windows Shell Scripting -- Project Preview: The Knock Knock Joke -- Overview of Windows Shell Scripting -- What Can Shell Scripts Do? -- Supported Microsoft Operating Systems -- Alternatives to Windows Shell Scripting -- The Windows Script Host -- WSH Advantages and Disadvantages -- WSH Complexities -- Third-Party Scripting Languages -- Understanding the Windows Shell -- Assembling Your First Windows Shell Script -- Creating a Scripting Environment -- Back to the Knock Knock Joke -- Designing the Game -- Starting the Script Development Process -- Configuring the Execution Environment -- Formatting the Display -- Collecting Player Responses -- Validating Player Input -- Displaying the Punch Line -- The Final Result -- Summary -- CHAPTER 2 Interacting with the Windows Shell -- Project Preview: The Unpredictable Command Prompt -- Command Shell Command Syntax -- Starting Windows Shell Sessions -- Working with the CMD Command -- Working with the START Command -- Internal vs. External Commands -- How Windows Locates Commands -- Using the PATH Command -- PATHEXT -- Other Useful Windows Commands -- Using the TITLE Command -- Working with the PROMPT Command -- Changing Colors -- CLS -- ECHO -- Customizing the Windows Command Console -- Customization Options -- Configuring Options Settings -- Specifying Font Settings -- Setting Up the Windows Command Console Layout -- Specifying Color Settings -- Back to the Unpredictable Command Prompt -- Designing the Game -- Selecting a Random Number -- Clearing the Windows Command Console.

Modifying the Windows Command Console Title Bar -- Changing Background and Foreground Colors -- Greeting the User -- Changing the Command Prompt -- Terminating Script Execution -- Creating the Second Scenario -- Setting Up the Third Scenario -- The Final Result -- Summary -- CHAPTER 3 Windows Shell Scripting Basics -- Project Preview: The Fortune Teller Game -- More Scripting Basics -- Documenting Your Scripts with Comments -- Creating a Script Template -- Mastering Command Redirection -- Examining Data Input and Output -- Using One Command's Output as Another Command's Input -- Generating Reports -- Creating Error Logs -- Conditional Command Execution -- Chaining Two Commands Together -- Setting Up Conditional Command Execution -- Grouping Commands -- Back to the Fortune Teller Game -- Designing the Game -- Establishing the Execution Environment -- Creating a Welcome Screen -- Building the Story Line -- Collecting the Player's Question -- Creating an Exit Process -- Generating Random Answers -- Displaying the Fortune Teller's Prediction -- Replaying the Game -- The Final Result -- Summary -- CHAPTER 4 Storing and Retrieving Information in Variables -- Project Preview: "The Story of Buzz the Wonder Dog" -- Passing Data to Scripts at Execution Time -- Handling Large Numbers of Arguments -- Handling Arguments That Include Blank Spaces -- Working with Variables -- Accessing Environment Variables -- Viewing Environment Variables -- Modifying Environment Variables -- Creating, Modifying, and Deleting Script Variables -- Naming Variables -- Determining the Limits of Variable Access -- Working with Mathematical Variables -- Variable String Manipulation -- Replacing a Portion of a String -- Extracting a Portion of a String -- Back to "The Story of Buzz the Wonder Dog" -- Designing the Game -- Configuring the Windows Command Console.

Building the Welcome Screen -- Providing the Reader with Instructions -- Collecting Key Story Elements from the Reader -- Using Variable Substitution to Write the Story -- The Final Result -- Summary -- CHAPTER 5 Applying Conditional Logic -- Project Preview: The Guess a Number Game -- Applying Conditional Logic to Control Script Execution -- Working with the IF Statement -- Providing for an Alternative Course of Action -- Determining Whether a Variable Already Exists -- Keeping an Eye Out for Errors -- Checking the Windows Shell Version -- Looking for Files and Folders -- Determining Whether a File Already Exists -- Determining Whether a Folder Currently Exists -- Reversing the Logic of Conditional Tests -- IF NOT -- IF NOT DEFINED -- IF NOT ERRORLEVEL -- IF NOT CMDEXTVERSION -- IF NOT EXIST -- Building Multi-Line IF Statements -- Creating Advanced Conditional Logic Tests -- Performing Different Kinds of Comparisons -- Back to the Guess a Number Game -- Designing the Game -- Configuring the Execution Environment -- Displaying the Welcome Screen -- Collecting Player Input -- Determining Whether the Player's Guess is High, Low, or Correct -- Displaying Game Results -- The Final Result -- Summary -- CHAPTER 6 Creating Loops to Process Collections of Data -- Project Preview: The Six-Million-Dollar Quiz -- Creating Loops -- Looping Through String Contents -- Looping Through Command Output -- Processing Collections of Files -- Processing Collections of Folders -- Reading Text Files -- Iterating a Specified Number of Times -- Back to the Six-Million-Dollar Quiz -- Using Pseudo Code -- Designing the Game -- Configuring the Script's Execution Environment -- Creating a Welcome Screen and Main Menu -- Processing Menu Selections -- Creating the Help Screen -- Creating the About Screen -- Managing Game Play -- Beginning the Score Card Report.

Grading Player Results -- Recording Quiz Results -- Displaying Game Results -- The Final Result -- Summary -- CHAPTER 7 Creating Procedures and Subroutines -- Project Preview: The Rock, Paper, Scissors Game -- Reorganizing Your Windows Shell Scripts -- Understanding Labels -- Defining Subroutines -- Improving Script Organization with Procedures -- Setting Up Internal Procedures -- Creating External Procedures -- Using Procedures to Localize Variable Access -- Tunneling Data Out of Your Procedures -- Back to the Rock, Paper, Scissors Game -- Using a Flowchart as a Script Development Tool -- Translating Flowchart Design into Script Requirements -- Creating the Initialization Section -- Creating the Main Processing Section -- Developing the :DisplayMenu Procedure -- Developing the :CollectChoice Procedure -- Developing the :GetComputerChoice Procedure -- Developing the :CompareChoices Procedure -- Developing the :CheckForInvalid Procedure -- Developing the :DisplayResults Procedure -- Developing the :DisplayStats Procedure -- The Final Result -- Summary -- CHAPTER 8 Debugging and Error Handling -- Project Preview: The Tic-Tac-Toe Game -- Understanding Windows Shell Script Errors -- Syntax Errors -- Run-Time Errors -- Logical Errors -- Examining Windows Shell Script Error Messages -- Common Syntax Errors -- A Typical Run-Time Error -- A Typical Logical Error -- Examining Different Ways of Dealing with Errors -- Educating Your Users -- Tracing Logic Flow within Scripts -- Command Error Checking -- Logging Error Messages -- Displaying Error Messages -- Creating User-Friendly Error Messages -- Displaying Errors Using Graphical Pop-Up Dialogs -- Creating Scripts That Return a Custom Exit Code -- Other Things to Look Out For -- Insufficient Authority -- Dealing with Scripts That Are Difficult to Read and Understand -- Working with Windows Commands.

Managing Arguments and Variables -- Handling Files and Folders -- Taking Precautions with Loops -- Keeping Procedures Straight -- Back to the Tic-Tac-Toe Game -- Designing the Game -- Performing Script Initialization Tasks -- Constructing the Script's Main Processing Section -- Initializing Game Board Values -- Building the Welcome Screen -- Displaying the Tic-Tac-Toe Game Board -- Providing Help -- Taking Credit for Your Work -- Creating a Procedure to Control Game Activity -- Making Sure Player Selections Are Valid -- Associating Player Moves with Game Board Squares -- Displaying the Results of the Game -- Determining When a Game Is Over -- The Final Result -- Summary -- APPENDIX A Windows Shell Scripting Administrative Scripts -- Working with Network Drives -- Account Administration -- Disk Defragmentation -- Scheduling Script Execution -- The AT Command -- The Scheduled Task Wizard -- Starting the Task Scheduler Service -- Running the Scheduled Task Wizard -- Creating a Chat Script -- Adding a Graphical Interface -- Working with Third-Party Applications -- APPENDIX B What's on the CD-ROM? -- Windows Shell Scripting Examples -- Shell Scripting Editors -- JGsoft EditPad Lite -- JGsoft EditPad Pro -- APPENDIX C What Next? -- Recommended Reading -- Microsoft Windows XP Professional Resource Kit Documentation -- Windows Shell Scripting and WSH Administrator's Guide -- Windows 2000 Commands Pocket Reference -- Windows NT Shell Scripting -- Locating Internet Resources -- www.labmice.net/scripting -- www.robvanderwoude.com -- www.onesmartclick.com/programming/batch-files.html -- www.windowsshellscripting.com -- Glossary -- Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- K -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- Q -- R -- S -- T -- U -- V -- W.