/Console-Utilities

Commands that provide advanced functionality and improved console management.

Primary LanguageCApache License 2.0Apache-2.0

Console Utilities

Console Utilities are a set of lightweight Win32 console programs written in pure C that offer funtionality and console management not found on stock Windows commands.

For detailed operation, click on the name of the command below or check the in-command help with option /?. The help included on each command is in english and spanish. If the Windows locale is a spanish variant, it'll show the spanish help, otherwise it'll show the english help.

Installation

You can download or clone the project and compile it for yourself or you can download a precompiled bundle. Whatever the method you choose, put the executables in a directory included in the PATH environment variable.

###Bundles:

Commands included so far

  • CCOLOR: Gets or sets the current foreground and/or background console colors for the next commands, but leaving unchanged what it's already present on the console.

  • EECHO: Displays a message enhanced with escaped characters with several functions like cursor positioning, local colouring and special control characters among other enhancements.

  • ELEV: If the UAC is enabled, launchs a program elevated, but using the existing console, instead of spawning a new one. Similar to the workings of unix command sudo.
    (Inpired by The Code Project article Vista UAC: The Definitive Guide).

Commands on roadmap

  • COLORTABLE: Changes the console color palette with new colors.

  • NSCRB: Launchs a program in a new screen buffer on the same console and reverts to the previous screen buffer on exiting.

  • MSGBOX: Displays a Windows dialog box with custom message, buttons and icon and returning the button pressed.

  • ISELEV: Checks if the script is running with elevated privileges.

  • PSET: Sets a environment variable through a pipe. Something like VER|PSET Version that sets the variable Version with the result of the command VER.

Personal background

I started this little project as a fun summer entertainment to detox of .NET, OO, lambdas, ORMs, repository patterns, async programming, SOLID concepts and whatnot.

So here I am, back to basics facing the arid Win32 API that I've almost forgotten, armed only with the ancient but beloved C89 and willing to learn one thing or two.

History

1.2

  • Added new escaped characters, expanded cursor positioning and made some corrections to EECHO.

1.1

  • Published command ELEV.
  • Corrected some help erratas.
  • Some internal enhancements and corrections.

1.0

 Initial release.

License

Copyright 2013 Juan Burgos.

Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at

http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations under the License.