Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!bellcore!rutgers!sunybcs!bingvaxu!marge.math.binghamton.edu!sullivan
From: sullivan@marge.math.binghamton.edu (fred sullivan)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: A warning about switchar (Re: using "/" in pathnames)
Message-ID: <1245@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu>
Date: 4 Jun 88 01:20:06 GMT
References: <1238@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu> <1548@titan.camcon.uucp>
Sender: news@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu
Reply-To: sullivan@marge.math.binghamton.edu.cc.binghamton.edu (fred sullivan)
Organization: SUNY Binghamton, NY
Lines: 35

In article <1548@titan.camcon.uucp> igp@camcon.uucp (Ian Phillipps) writes:
>From article <1238@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu>, by sullivan@marge.math.binghamton.edu (fred sullivan):
>> Some time ago someone complained about having to use "\" in MSDOS
>> pathnames.  I just submitted to comp.binaries.ibm.pc a program to
>> fix this.
>
>Beware! If this uses the "Switchar" system call (which has been in some but
>not all MSDOS docs) you can break some system programs.
>In particular, I found that it broke "restore", which couldn't restore files
>saved when the switchar was changed to '-'.
>(very old info - PCDOS 2.0 - but many other programs might break less
>disasterously).
>
A few weeks ago I repartitioned my hard disk.  I backed up 10 meg worth
(using msdos 3.2 backup), about half of which was put on the disk before I
started using switchar, and about half of which was put on the disk after
using switchar.  After repartitioning, I restored everything (using msdos
3.2 restore).  No problem.  I can suggest a possible problem, though.

If a command.com is started with switchar = '-', then foreslashes show
up in the current directory.  E.g. c:/usr\tools.  Perhaps old versions of
backup store paths like this.  Not the msdos 3.2 version though.  Everything
gets done with \ on backup disk.  If anyone has specific details of backup
breaking, I would like to hear about it.

Setting switchar to something other than "/" does break norton utilities.
(Only while it is in effect.)

I have seen no ill effects.  The benefits to my fingers far outweigh any
inconvenience caused by having to reset the switch character for a few
badly written programs.
Fred Sullivan				SUNY at Binghamton
Dept. Math. Sciences			Binghamton, NY 13903
					sullivan@marge.math.binghamton.edu
First you make a roux!