[Info-vax] OT: Rob Short: Operating System Evolution

[glen herrmannsfeldt]

Bob Koehler <koehler at eisner.nospam.encompasserve.org> wrote:
(snip, I wrote)
 
>> Windows accepts both CMD and BAT for command files.   I believe
>> it will run executables independent of the extension, though
>> I am not so sure about command files.
 
>   I've never seen Windows execute anything other than .COM and
>   .EXE files.  Care to share an example?

I believe that there are more extensions in current versions.

I just tested renaming a .exe file to .xxx on W2K.  
Typing the whole name will execute the file correctly.  

Also, for many years now the .COM extension on an EXE format 
file will work.   For .CMD and .BAT it will attempt to execute
the binary data as CMD.EXE commands.

All extensions specified in the PATHEXT environment variable will
be tried and executed if no extension is specified on the command.

On my system as installed it is:

PATHEXT=.COM;.EXE;.BAT;.CMD;.VBS;.VBE;.JS;.JSE;.WSF;.WSH

I am not so sure how it separates .BAT and .CMD from executable
code, though.

-- glen