Win32Pad.ini-file

[Roger]

Hello Fans of Win32Pad!

Several months ago I downloaded one or the other version of Win32Pad 1.5.10.4 , and somehow I did manage to get an ini file.  I download the Win32Pad zipfile to flash-drive and unpacked it.  I don't remember whether the ini-file appeared in the directory on flash, by itself, after (that is) I customized the options for myself; or whether I had to look somewhere on the C: drive in (it might have been) an «Applications...» directory. 

I've been trying to repeat my results today — to get an ini to appear in the folder where I have been unzipping — but without success.  What I had downloaded months ago I removed before seeking to repeat my results.

Then I ran across the following under a Win32Pad v1.5.10 entry — dated 6. September 2007 — at http://www.portablefreeware.com/?q=Notepad++&m=Search where among other things directions are included «How to extract.»  The directions read — «Download the ZIP package and extract to a folder of your choice. Create an empty file called "win32pad.ini" in the same folder. Launch win32pad.exe.»

I deleted everything that had gotten unzipped, but I kept the zipfile.  By WinKey+R I typed in CMD [ENT] and navigated to the folder where the downloaded zipfile is located.  At this CMD (or what amounts to a dos prompt window) I executed the following command: echo. > win32pad.ini [ENT].  That command creates a (nearly) empty text-file whose size is about 4 or 5 bytes.  Yes, that is a period right after the echo.


I unzipped the zipfile again, and then (to load the program) I double-left-clicked (inside Explorer) on the win32pad.exe.  I made a few configuration changes for typeface, typesize, background color; and I sized the window and put it in a certain position (I had checked the option «save window position»).

I typed in a few sentences, named the file and saved it in the same directory as the EXE, and I quit by ALT+F4.

Then I had a look at the .ini-file.  Everything was fine.  I'm happy with the result.  I like the program.

My question is: where do you supply these directions, if you do?  If I had not run across the entry at PortableFreeware.com, I would still be in the dark. — In the readme.txt which is among items that get unzipped, I read under item 2, «Win32Pad uses win32pad.ini file to store its settings. (This file is now stored in the same directory where Win32Pad is installed).» — Which is great. But no mention of where this ini comes from. — I've also glanced at history.txt (it too gets unzipped) but don't see it there.

I happen to know from the old dos days how to «create an empty file».  How many readers at portablefreeware.com would know that? — I suppose they could intuit a brute-force method to open a blank Notepad, do no typing, name and save the file as «win32pad.ini» and exit.

Why, um Gottes willen, do you not include a zero-length or near-zero length win32pad.ini in the zip-package and smash this bug!  — I'm happy with the program, and I'm happy it all works out.  I'm not too unhappy I had to go through all this.  But why should anybody have to?  — At least include instructions in a text-file «Here's how to create for yourself a near-zero-length win32pad.ini which the program will use to store your configurations in the folder where the win32pad.EXE is located.»

Please do it!  Don't make people come to this post or scour through the Portable Apps web site!

Include it, naemlich, in the zipfile. — Vielen Dank!

Yours truly,

Roger

[Roger]

Hello again, fans of Win32Pad!

I remember now how last month I was able to find the win32pad.ini —

I read the post at http://www.gena01.com/forum/win32pad/win32pad_vs_notepad_newbie_question-t132.0.html and did succeed to find the ini-file (I followed the link to the Win32pad versus Notepad comparison).  Then I copied the ini over to flash drive, viz. where the EXE is, once I found out where to look for the ini.

I say it makes more sense to keep it right where the EXE is.  That way a person can have several configurations of Win32Pad, each in its own folder (directory).

Now what we need is a little how-to that ships with every zip-download: HowTo create a (nearly blank) win32pad.ini for Win32Pad to write to.  What it looks like is Win32Pad looks first in its own directory for an ini.  It will of course find one if we put it there before we run the EXE!

Win32Pad, with this ini in place where the EXE is, looks like a really great and truly portable app, because the configs now are portable too.

mit herzlichem Gruss,

Roger

[Roger]

Hello again, fans of Win32Pad!

I've stumbled onto another way to create a «blank slate» win32pad.ini — This way produces a file which is literally zero length.

Let's suppose you've downloaded the win32pad[...].zip file to a directory (a «folder») that you've prepared in advance exactly for the download. — Call it «N:\Win32Pad» where N: represents the drive letter (whether hard-disk, portable hard-drive, or flash-drive [«flash stick»] ). — You may or may not have yet unzipped («unpacked») the zip-file, but in any case there isn't any win32pad.ini, and you want one directly in the present N:\Win32Pad.

Get to a command-line prompt by WinKey+R . Tap DEL if anything is in the slot, and type «cmd» [ENT].  If the prompt does not read N:\> type cd\ [ENT].  If it still does not read N:\> but some other letter such as C:\> (unless C:\ is what you want), type N: [ENT]. The prompt will now read N:\> .

If you've not yet created your N:\Win32Pad directory, here's your opportunity: type «md Win32Pad» [ENT] (without the quotes).  In any case change from the N:\> prompt to the N:\Win32Pad> prompt, like this: cd win32pad [ENT].

The command-line prompt now reads «N:\Win32Pad>» where you'll see a flashing cursor after the >.  Now make up some wildly unlikely name for a file, one you know doesn't exist:  we'll use «poobah.txt».    If you have any doubts that poobah.txt does not exist, do the following command: dir poobah.txt /b [ENT] and it will tell you «File Not Found».  (If file is found, make up another name of course.) The «/b» switch produces a «bare» output with just the file name.

The idea of creating a blank win32pad.ini file exactly here in the N:\Win32Pad folder is to provide Win32Pad.exe with something to write to:  namely for your personal configurations such as type of font, background color and what-not.

Now we can create a (literally) zero-length win32pad.ini as follows.  Type the following at N:\Win32Pad>

dir /b poobah.txt > Win32Pad.ini [ENT]

The output from the dir is literally nothing and is written to the INI by the > operator (the «File Not Found» does not write to the INI).

Now do dir Win32Pad.ini [ENT] to see what you've just now created.  See for yourself that it indeed has zero bytes.

Other ways locally to create Win32Pad.ini exist which produce a perfectly-okay INI whose size is about 4 or 5 bytes. Here is a way — for purists (just kidding) — to produce a blank file of zero length.   The several ways all work where Win32Pad is concerned.

All the best,

Roger

«Es stimmt nicht, daß die Kühe Milch geben —
 Die Bauern nehmen sie ihnen einfach weg.»

[poetbox]

I say it makes more sense to keep INI right where the EXE is.  That way a person can have several configurations of Win32Pad, each in its own folder (directory).

[Roger]

Here is an even quicker way to create a zero-length file, for our purposes here named «win32pad.ini» --

At the command-line prompt corresponding to the folder where the win32pad.exe is located --

Namely, for drive «N:», at the prompt that reads -- N:\Win32Pad> -- for the case where you have downloaded Win32Pad to a folder you created for the purpose named «Win32Pad» (like this: «N:\>md Win32Pad [ENTER]» and then N:\>cd Win32Pad [ENTER]).

Type at the «N:\Win32Pad>» prompt the following: «cd.>Win32Pad.ini» [ENTER] without of course the quote marks.

Reference: http://www.robvanderwoude.com/useless.html#SETQuirk   Create Empty Files.

«cd.» is evidently a do-nothing command since «.» is the directory you are already in. Its non-existent output is directed to Win32Pad.ini. Its creation from non-existent output means it is zero-length file, which is perfect for Win32Pad to write to. 

Info from the Win32Pad site or download tell us that Win32Pad.exe looks first for its INI-file in its own resident folder. How convenient that EXE and INI are able to reside in N:\Win32Pad folder on a flash drive or portable hard drive! Toll!

mit herzlichem Gruß,

Roger

«Es macht keinen Sinn, daß die Kühe Milch geben --
 Die Bauern nehmen sie ihnen einfach Weg.»

[Midas]

My way of creating empty files:

1. Open explorer and navigate to the folder where you want the file created;

2. Click once with the right mouse button in the blank space (at the right pane, if explorer is showing two panes), and from the context menu that shows up, select ' New > Text Document ';

3. A "New Text Document.txt" file will be created with its name selected for changing (bear in mind that the .txt extension will only show if your WinOS is set to always show file extensions, via the ' Tools | Folder Options | View ' menu);

4. Optionally, change the name of the new file to "win32pad.ini" (trying not to get a win32pad.ini.txt instead) and you'll have an empty ini file for win32pad...

Thanks for a great app, my first runner-up for notepad replacement, after having tried loads of alternatives (have used both editor2 and notepad2 which are rather good, but manage to miss some of the things that win32pad offers in a much leaner package). 

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