MMBASIC for DOS question....

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Grogster

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Joined: 31/12/2012
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 9995
Posted: 06:02am 01 Jun 2025      

Hi everyone.  

As I continue to play around with my VLC idea, the MMB4D method seems to be a very real possibility, based on example code posted in my other thread by member mozzie.

However, is there any way to change the SIZE of the text inside the MMBASIC window?
It's tiny and hard to read - for me, anyway.....
Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops!
Grogster

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Joined: 31/12/2012
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 9995
Posted: 06:27am 01 Jun 2025      

Ignore.  Found out how.  

Right-click window title/properties/font....

Select size or font options, then click OK.
mozzie
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Joined: 15/06/2020
Location: Australia
Posts: 403
Posted: 03:56pm 01 Jun 2025      

G'day Grogster,
MMB4Dos is surprisingly powerful, between it and AutoHotKey all sorts of madness can be created  

A word of warning, unless someone knows a way around this, I have never figured out how to send a file name or path containing a space with the SYSTEM command, tried all sorts of things (chr$ / enclosing in single or extra brackets / separate strings) all with no luck.  

Mention this just in case your video names contain spaces.

Whoever made it "Program Files" instead of ProgramFiles or Program_Files needs space between his head and neck  

File names should NEVER contain spaces....

Good Luck
Lyle.
phil99

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Joined: 11/02/2018
Location: Australia
Posts: 3321
Posted: 09:41pm 01 Jun 2025      

On W10 hidden 8.3 format names still work.

Eg in Explorer when you enter C:\PROGRA~1 in the address bar it goes to "Program Files".
(between PROGRA and 1 is a Tilde not a dash. In my browser it looks like a dash)

In a CMD window enclosing in double quotes also works.

CHDIR "c:\Program Files"

I think MMBasic can include double quotes in a string but don't remember how.
.
Edited 2025-06-02 08:04 by phil99
TassyJim

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Joined: 07/08/2011
Location: Australia
Posts: 6546
Posted: 10:29pm 01 Jun 2025      

  phil99 said  
I think MMBasic can include double quotes in a string but don't remember how.
.

CHR$(34)
phil99

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Joined: 11/02/2018
Location: Australia
Posts: 3321
Posted: 10:34pm 01 Jun 2025      

Thank you!
> Print "adding double quotes in a string "chr$(34)"c:\Program Files"chr$(34)" is done this way"
addind double quotes in a string "c:\Program Files" is done this way
>

But for a string variable you need this:-
> P$ = "Or "+chr$(34)+"c:\Program Files"+chr$(34)+" this way"
> ? P$
Or "c:\Program Files" this way
>

Edited 2025-06-02 09:17 by phil99
Grogster

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Joined: 31/12/2012
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 9995
Posted: 01:39am 02 Jun 2025      

I hope to have a play about with this and mozzie's example code, tonight or in the next few days.  I'll keep the thread updated.

The first thing I plan to do, is basically run mozzie's example code as-is, so that I can(hopefully!) replicate that behaviour here.  Once I have the example code working, I can start playing about.  I plan to make use of DATE$ and TIME$ as I expand the code.

I already have a couple of very useful commands for use with IrfanView picture viewer, which I plan to use to show an image full-screen when nothing is being played, then I can kill that process and start VLC.

Amusingly, the command to close all IrfanView instances is i_view64 /killmesoftly  

I think this is a reference to Killing Me Softly With His Song.
Mixtel90

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Joined: 05/10/2019
Location: United Kingdom
Posts: 8964
Posted: 08:28am 02 Jun 2025      

I love Irfanview. It's a truly remarkable piece of programming. The sheer number of file types that it can either load or at least take some sort of a shot at is astounding.
Grogster

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Joined: 31/12/2012
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 9995
Posted: 11:55pm 02 Jun 2025      

Yes, I've been using it for years, and it still remains my go-to picture viewer and basic editor/cropper/resizer etc.
tgerbic
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Joined: 25/07/2019
Location: United States
Posts: 119
Posted: 02:07am 03 Jun 2025      

I have used it for years as well, both under windows and linux (WINE). Has great support and functionality.
Volhout
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Joined: 05/03/2018
Location: Netherlands
Posts: 5994
Posted: 11:36am 03 Jun 2025      

I just used MMBasic for DOS to convert some files to another format.
It works reliable and (on this PC) is fast.
But.
Coming from PicoMite the DOS version (5.05) is miles behind. I constantly try to use commands from pico, that are not available in the DOS version. It is easy enough to work around it, but I realize I am truly spoiled with pico.

Anyway, MMBasic4DOS performed it's task on some huge excel files, and is highly valued. Especially since it came packed with MMEdit (that I used to develop the file convertor code).

Volhout
mozzie
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Joined: 15/06/2020
Location: Australia
Posts: 403
Posted: 12:10am 04 Jun 2025      

G'day,
Thanks for the hints, I had the 8.3 figured out but after looking back at some older programs realized I was using chr$(22) instead of chr$(34), got my HEX and DEC muddled up  

Little wonder MMbasic refused to work  

I still reckon spaces in filenames are the work of the devil  

IrFanview can also play video files, but used Windows media player so you have no real control, might still be worth a try?

Regards,
Lyle.