Fsrch/Windows Version 2.0 User's Manual Copyright (c) 1992, Stan Leeson, Leeson Software Services 1. Introduction 1.1. About Fsrch/Windows Fsrch/Windows is the latest in the line of Fsrch products. The original DOS version is still distributed widely. Fsrch/Windows will search for files finding them by path information, file names, file contents, file date, or any combination of these attributes. I hope you find it easy to install and use. As always, comments, criticisms, and suggestions are welcome. 1.2. About Shareware Fsrch/Windows is a Shareware product distributed for your trial use before you purchase a license. This Shareware program may be freely distributed for trial use only, provided it is not changed in any way. If you find it useful, send the registration form and fee to: Stan Leeson Leeson Software Services. PO. Box 130672 St. Paul, MN 55113-0006 Many software users do not realize that Shareware developers do not receive any money from the Shareware distributors. The only compensation that the developers receive is from your registration fees. In exchange for registering, you will receive a copy of the latest fully registered product with Shareware notices removed. You will also receive a printed manual, notices of new versions, new products, and bargain upgrade offers. 2. Installation Fsrch/Windows provides an easy to use installation program to perform the required initial installation tasks. Once this installation is complete, you may move the program to any program group that you would like. 2.1. Normal Installation If you received Fsrch/Windows from a Bulletin Board or other source that delivered it as a compressed file, it will first be necessary to decompress the file into its individual file components. If you are reading this file, you must have already accomplished this task. You may use the directory containing the decompressed files as a source for the installation process. If you received Fsrch/Windows from a Shareware Distributor, you have a diskette containing the individual files. This diskette may be used directly as a source for the installation. 1. SELECT RUN PROGRAM - Begin the installation by selecting the Run Program option on the Windows desktop that you are using. If you are using the standard Windows Program Manager, select the Program Manager File menu and the Run ... option on that menu. If you are using a desktop other than Program Manager, consult the documentation for that desktop to determine how to run an external program. 2. RUN THE "INSTALL.EXE" PROGRAM - Fill in the file name and path for the Fsrch/Windows installation program and start it in execution. This is the INSTALL.EXE program provided with Fsrch/Windows. It will be on the distribution diskette or in the directory containing the decompressed files. 3. SELECT THE "SOURCE LOCATION" - The INSTALL program will ask you to fill in the Source Location for the distribution files. If you are installing from a distribution diskette simply indicate "A:" or "B:" to select the floppy drive containing this diskette. If you are installing from decompressed files, this will be the drive and directory containing those files: EXAMPLES: A: Selects floppy drive A: as the source of the installation C:\MYDIR Selects the directory \MYDIR on the C: drive as the source 4. SELECT THE "FSRCH DIRECTORY" - The next step is to select the destination directory on your hard drive that will contain the Fsrch/Windows program files. The INSTALL program will suggest a directory name based on the version number of the current FSW program, e.g. "C:\FSW2". 5. RUN THE FSRCH INSTALL PROGRAM - Once the source and destination have been selected, run the installation program by clicking the mouse on the INSTALL button. The installation process will usually take about 5 minutes. At the beginning of the installation program's execution, you will be asked to enter your name. Please use your full name. When installing the registered version of the software, make sure that the name entered matches the name on the registration form. 6. MOVE FSRCH TO A PROGRAM GROUP - The INSTALL program places Fsrch/Windows in its own program group. In most cases, you will want to move it to one of your existing program groups. To do that with Program Manager under Windows 3.1, simply click on the Fsrch/Windows icon and drag it to the desired program group. If you are using other versions or other Windows desktops, consult their documentation for instructions on moving the program between groups. 7. DELETE THE FSRCH PROGRAM GROUP - If you move Fsrch/Windows to a different program group, delete the empty Fsrch program group by clicking on it and then choosing the File menu Delete option in Program Manager. If you are using a different desktop, consult its documentation for instructions. 2.2. Other Desktops If you are using a desktop manager other than Windows Program Manager, you will want to consult the user documentation for that desktop before beginning the installation. If you are using a desktop other than Program Manager or Norton Desktop, the installation program may be unable to create the program group and install the Fsrch/Windows program in it. It is still necessary to run the INSTALL program to properly prepare the files for execution. With these other desktops, if you have followed the steps outlined above, and more than ten minutes have passed since you clicked on the INSTALL button, and the floppy disk drive is no longer active, simply click on the EXIT button in the INSTALL program. At that point, the files have been prepared and installed in the indicated destination directory. Consult the documentation for your desktop manager, and install the FSW.EXE program on the desktop. 3. Using Fsrch/Windows FSRCH/Windows is a powerful file search utility that combines multiple .search keys with a wide variety of search modes to allow you find any file by its file name, its contents, or both. FSRCH/Windows makes it easy to print the results of a search, output them to another application through the windows clipboard, or examine the results directly in FSRCH/Windows. The following simple steps allow you to perform any type of file search. 1. Identify the file selector pattern to be used. 2. Select a file search mode 3. Provide one or two search key 4. Select the appropriate search options 5. Click on the OK button to start the search. 6. Examine the contents of the results buffer 3.1. Setting File Selector The search file selector identifies a file path and file name pattern that will be examined for matches to the search criteria. Typically, the file selector consists of a file directory specification and a file name pattern including the '*' wild card character. Each file in the path which matches the file name pattern will be searched. Optionally, the file selector may include a disk drive specification to search on a different disk or may omit the directory path information to use the current default directory. The file selector specification may also be a list of path and file name pattern strings. In that case, each of the specifications in the list will be searched in the order that they are listed. EXAMPLES: "\MYDIR\SUBDIR\*.DOC" All .DOC file in the indicated directory will be searched. "F*.TXT" All .TXT files whose names begin with 'F'. "\DEV\*.C, \DEV\*.H" All .C and .H files in the \DEV directory. 3.2. Setting Search Strings The search strings are text strings that must be present (or absent depending on the search mode) in the searched file to form a match of the search criteria. In its simplest form, a search key is a contiguous string of characters that must be found in the file. Wild card characters may not be used in the search strings. The use of the search strings may be modified by the search options that are used. For example, the Ignore case option will cause keys to match even if there are differences in text case between the search key and the string in the file. 3.3. Selecting Search Mode Fsrch/Windows support ten basic search modes. See the appropriate subsection below to get complete information on that mode. 1. file names only 2. key 1 ONLY 3. key 1 NOT present 4. key 1 OR key 2 5. key 1 XOR key 2 6. key 1 AND key 2 7. key 1 BEFORE key 2 8. key 1 BUT NOT key 2 9. key 1 HEXADECIMAL values 10. key 1 ALL OFFSETS 3.3.1. File Names Only In "file names only" mode, Fsrch/Windows will list in the results buffer all files matching the file selector. This mode simply searches for matching file names in the indicated path(s). This is the fastest of the search modes and does not use any search keys. 3.3.2. String 1 Only In "String 1 Only" mode, FSRCH/Windows will list in the results buffer each occurrence of the string in search key 1 found in any of the files matching the file selector. This mode searches for a single block of text in matching files in the indicated path(s). This is the most common of the search modes and uses a single search key. 3.3.3. String 1 Not Present In "String 1 NOT Present" mode, FSRCH/Windows will list in the results buffer each file matching the file selector which does not contain an occurrence of the string in search key 1. This mode searches for a single block of text in matching files in the indicated path(s). This is an "absence" search mode and uses a single search key. 3.3.4. String 1 Or String 2 In "String 1 OR String 2" mode, FSRCH/Windows will list in the results buffer each occurrence of either the string in search key 1 or the string in search key 2 found in any of the files matching the file selector. This mode searches for both blocks of text in matching files in the indicated path(s). This search mode performs a fast, inclusive OR search using two search keys. 3.3.5. String 1 XOR String 2 In "String 1 XOR String 2" mode, FSRCH/Windows will list in the results buffer each occurrence of either the string in search string 1 or the string in search string 2 as long as both strings are not found in the same line or sentence. This mode will match strings found in any of the files matching the file selector. This mode searches for both blocks of text in matching files in the indicated path(s). This search mode performs a fast, exclusive OR search using two search strings. 3.3.6. String 1 AND String 2 In "String 1 AND String 2 " mode, FSRCH/Windows will list in the results buffer each occurrence of a text line, found in any of the files matching the file selector, which contains both the string in search string 1 and the string in search string 2 . This mode searches for both blocks of text in matching files in the indicated path(s). It performs fast, exclusive searches using two search strings. 3.3.7. String 1 Before String 2 In "String 1 BEFORE String 2 " mode, FSRCH/Windows will list in the results buffer each occurrence of a text line, found in any of the files matching the file selector, which contains both the string in search string 1 and the string in search string 2 where the string 1 text appears before the string 2 text. This mode searches for both blocks of text in matching files in the indicated path(s). It performs fast, exclusive searches using two search strings. 3.3.8. String 1 BUT NOT String 2 In "String 1 BUT NOT String 2 " mode, FSRCH/Windows will list in the results buffer each occurrence of a text line, found in any of the files matching the file selector, which contains the string in search string 1 but does not contain the string in search string 2 . This mode searches for both blocks of text in matching files in the indicated path(s). It performs fast, exclusive searches using two search strings. 3.3.9. String 1 Hexadecimal Values The "Hexadecimal values" file search mode will locate a single search string identified by the hexadecimal values associated with its bytes. This mode allows you to search for strings that contain unprintable or untypeable characters. EXAMPLES: When searching in Hexadecimal Values mode, the following matches would be made. STRING FILE TEXT 61 62 63 64 abcd 41 42 43 ABC etc. 3.3.10. String 1 Offset Encoded The "Offset Encoded" file search mode will locate a single search string even if it encoded in an 8-bit, sequential character set other than ASCII (e.g. EBCDIC). If the characters are contained in 8-bit bytes and they have the same relative numeric values as ASCII, this mode will match them. SEARCHES IN THIS MODE ARE SLOW! It should only be used on those rare occasions when non-ASCII character sets must be searched. When using this mode, avoid punctuation and special characters that are likely to have different relative positions in the character set. This mode can also be used for simple coded strings that shift the text character value by a fixed amount. EXAMPLES: When searching in All Offsets mode, the following matches would be made. STRING FILE TEXT abcdefg 1234567 abcdefg defghij etc. NOTE: Most users will never need to use this search mode. It uses a single search string. 3.4. Setting Search Options FSRCH/Windows provides a total of 8 options for controlling the file search process. the Examine the appropriate subsection below for complete information on any of the options. 1. List line numbers 2. Write Results to File 3. First match per file 4. Search subdirectories 5. Ignore case 6. Strip bit 8 7. Show search progress 8. Show all files 3.4.1 List Line Numbers The "list line numbers" option is a checkbox that controls whether or not the line number associated with key string matches are recorded in the results buffer. Although line numbers are only truly meaningful for ASCII text files, FSRCH will assign line numbers to any type of file based on the occurrences of end of line characters. These numbers only provide relative position information for other types of files. 3.4.2 Write Results to a File The "write results to file" option is a checkbox that controls whether or not the search results are recorded in a text file as well as in the results buffer. If this option is selected, FSRCH/Windows will prompt you to provide the name of the file that will receive the search results. FSRCH/Windows can search a little more quickly if file output is not required. 3.4.3 First Match per File If the first match per file option is selected, FSRCH/Windows will discontinue searching a file once a single match of the search criteria has been found. This option is useful if you are only interested in which file contain a given value or combination of values and not how many occurrences of the search criteria exist in each file. FSRCH/Windows can search more quickly if this option is selected. 3.4.4 Search Subdirectories The search all subdirectories option causes FSRCH/Windows to search the directory indicated in the file selector pattern and then repeat the search for all levels of subdirectories under the directory indicated in the file selector. NOTE: Take care in using this option with a file selector that consists of a list of file specifications. (e.g. "C:\MY_DIR\*.C, C:\MY_DIR\*.H"). The combination of multiple file selectors and multiple subdirectories under each one can result in a very large number of files to search. 3.4.5 Ignore Case The Ignore Case option allows FSRCH/Windows to successfully match letters that are different in case. Using this option lower case or upper case letters in the search keys will be successfully be matched with the same characters of either case found in the file. EXAMPLES: When the case is ignored, the following matches would be made. STRING FILE TEXT --------------------- the text The text THE TEXT the text the TEXT ThE TeXt the text THE teXt etc. 3.4.6 Strip Bit 8 This option clears the most significant bit of each byte from the file that before it is examined for matches with the search criteria. This option is useful for files that have had the upper bit set to indicate byte parity or for other encodings that modify this bit (2**8). Most users will not need to use this option for any searches, but some will require it when searching files that have been transmitted by certain types of communications networks. FSRCH/Windows can search more quickly if this option is not selected. 3.4.7 Show Search Progress The Show Progress Option controls the display of a search progress window. If it is selected, a window describing the file being searched, the search phase, and the current search position is displayed. This option is selected by default. FSRCH/Windows can search more quickly if this option is not selected. 3.4.8 Show All Files The Show All Files Searched Option controls whether FSRCH/Windows includes a line in the results buffer naming each file that is searched. If you want a full copy of the files that were searched, select this option. If you do not want the matches to get lost among the list of files, do not select this option. FSRCH/Windows can search more quickly if this option is not selected. 4. Fsrch/Windows Menus 4.1. File Commands The File menu includes commands that enable you to manage the complete context of the results buffer , easily interact with the Windows clipboard, and to print the results. The follow file commands are provided: * Delete Results Empty the results buffer. * Clip Results Clip the full results buffer. * Print Results Print the full results buffer * Printer Setup Set up the printer options. * Exit FSRCH Exit FSRCH/Windows. 4.1.1. Save The SAVE command in the File Menu directs Fsrch/Windows to write the current contents of the results buffer to a file. If a previous file save has been done during this session of using Fsrch, the same file name will be used for this one. If no previous save was done, the default output file will be used. 4.1.2. Save As The SAVE AS command is similar to the SAVE command above, except that it allows you to select the output file that will be used. Once you select this entry, Fsrch/Windows will prompt you to enter the name and path of the output file. 4.1.3. Print Results The print command prints the entire contents of the results buffer. It may be necessary to setup the printer before beginning to print. This can be done by using the Windows print manager. 4.1.4. Exit The Exit command causes FSRCH/Windows to terminate processing and exit. This is equivalent to closing the FSRCH Window. 4.2. Edit Results The Edit menu includes commands that enable you to move text to and from the clipboard to delete search results text, to insert clipped text from another application into the results text, to move results text to another application, and to select the full text of the results buffer in preparation for a clipboard operation.. The following types of edit commands are provided. * Cut Deletes text and moves it to the clipboard. * Copy Copies text to the clipboard. * Paste Moves text from the clipboard to the edit window. * Clear Deletes selected text without moving it to the clipboard. * Select All Selects all of the results buffer text.. 4.2.1. Undo The UNDO command reverses the effects of the most recent editing operation in the search results buffer. Only a single level of UNDO is provided. 4.2.2. Cut The Edit menu's Cut command performs a Windows clipboard cut operation. on the currently selected text in the FSRCH results buffer. This moves the selected text from the buffer to the Windows clipboard, removing it from the buffer. 4.2.3. Copy The Edit menu's Copy command performs a Windows clipboard copy operation. on the currently selected text in the FSRCH results buffer. This make a copy of the selected text from the buffer in the Windows clipboard and leaves the text in the buffer as well. 4.2.4. Paste The Edit menu's Paste command performs a Windows clipboard paste operation. over the currently selected text in the Fsrch results buffer. This make a copy of the current contents of the Windows clipboard and replaces any currently selected text in the buffer with it. If no text is selected, the clipboard contents are inserted at the current buffer insertion point.. 4.2.5. Delete The Edit menu's Clear command performs a Windows clipboard deletes the currently selected text in the FSRCH results buffer. This deletes the selected contents of the buffer but does not copy it to the clipboard as the cut command does. 4.2.6. Clear All The Edit menu's Clear command deletes the current contents of the FSRCH results buffer. This deletes the selected contents of the buffer but does not copy it to the clipboard as the cut command does. 4.3. Search Results These options perform searches of the results buffer. 4.3.1. Find You will be asked to find a string to search for and some search options. This is useful for finding items in a ver large search result. 4.3.2. Replace You will be asked for a string to find and the replacement text. This is useful for formatting results before saving to a file or moving to a different application. 4.3.3. Next This simply repeats the last selected search of the results buffer. 4.4. Options 4.4.1. Search Block Boundaries You may select either a LINE or SENTENCE mode of blocking text in the searched files. If LINE blocking is selecting, boundaries for context data displayed with matches that are found will be based on text lines delimited by carriage return and line feed characters. If SENTENCE blocking is selected, context boundaries will be set according to punctuation and white space characteristic of text sentences. These boundaries are then adjusted to fit the available space and to account for any control character that appear in the text string. LINE blocking is the default.. 4.4.2. Setting Date Restrictions You may restrict the directory date on files selected for searching to be either before an indicated date or after the date that you provide. Once you select a mode of date restriction, Fsrch/Windows will prompt you for the date that file dates are to be compared to. Files whose dates exactly match the indicated date will be considered to be candidates if the AFTER restriction is selected, but will not be candidates for searching if the BEFORE restriction is chosen. 4.5. Help Fsrch/Windows provides an interactive hypertext HELP system that provides the same information that is contained in this User's Manual. The menu allows you to choose either Fsrch/Windows specific HELP information by selecting the "Help Index" entry or general information on the Windows HELP system by selecting the "Help on Help" entry.