MakeLink

[Joc]

I made a little program for my unattended XP. It makes links for the installed programs with a lot of special macros. Here is the description:

You can use this macros:

@AppDataCommonDir: Application Data (for everyone)

@AppDataDir: Application Data (for the current user only)

@CommonFilesDir: Common Files

@DesktopCommonDir: Desktop

@DesktopDir: Desktop

@DocumentsCommonDir: Documents

@FavoritesCommonDir: Favorites

@FavoritesDir: Favorites

@HomeDrive: Drive of the current user folder

@HomePath: Path of the current user folder

@MyDocumentsDir: Current users documents

@ProgramFilesDir: Program Files

@ProgramsCommonDir: Programs (Start Menu folder)

@ProgramsDir: Programs (Start Menu folder)

@QuickLaunchDir: Quick Launch Bar folder

@StartMenuCommonDir: Start Menu (for everyone)

@StartMenuDir: Start Menu (current user's)

@StartupCommonDir: Startup folder

@StartupDir: Startup folder

@SystemDir: \Windows\System32 folder

@TempDir: Temp

@UserProfileDir: Profil folder of the current user

@UserName: Current user's name

@WindowsDir: Path of Windows folder

@WorkingDir: Current folder's path

You can use this hotkeys prefixes:

^: Ctrl

!: Alt

+: Shift

#: Win

-------------------------

Sample:

makelink /file="@WindowsDir\Explorer.exe" /lnk="@DesktopDir\Explorer.lnk" /workdir="@WindowsDir" /args="/e,c:\" /desc="Wow! An Explorer link to drive C: ;-)" /icon="@SystemDir\shell32.dll" /icon_number="15" /hotkey="^!t"

It makes an Explorer link on the Desktop. You can Start Explorer with Ctrl+Alt+T and starting in folder C:\.

The icon of the link has come from shell32.dll, and the icon position is 15.

Other sample:

makelink /file="@ProgramfilesDir\WinAMP\winamp.exe" /lnk="@QuicklaunchDir\WinAMP Audioplayer.lnk"

It makes a simple winamp link to the quicklaunch.

Sorry about my english, my origin language is hungarian.

I hope it will usefull. Any help (suggestions) accepted.

Link: MakeLink 1.1

Joc

[Gogol]

Thanks

It's more complete then nircmd.exe and it will be usefull in the installation phase.

But the compiler you use to pack the exe make it detected as malware by *some* scanning tools, in my case Outpost.

Only one switch is missing ... silent mode !

[blinkdt]

Nice idea, Joc, thanks. AutoIt rules!

[Joc]

gogol: Silent switch? It has! Try /s! And I packed with upx.

blinkdt: thx, it wasnt so hard with autoit.

Joc

[jamesbebby]

hi, can u please explain how to use this a little better, i would like to make some desktop shortcuts form programs

sorry i dont strand james

[submix8c]

Self-explanatory... "Macros" is terminology used by OP; you could also construe this as "variable" instead of "macro". It runs from a Command Prompt (or in Win9x/ME an MS-DOS prompt), or from a ".CMD" file (or in 9x/ME a ".BAT" file) executed during Install.

More info here. This particular version (this thread) appears to be an improved version.

edit - not to "snub" the OP... from the makers of XXCOPY -

XXMKLINK as an alternative. For this -

system variables

Edited March 21, 2009 by submix8c

[Ascii2]

edit - not to "snub" the OP... from the makers of XXCOPY -

XXMKLINK as an alternative. For this -

system variables

I have used XXMLINK in the past and have found that it works well, unlike Shortcut from http://www.optimumx.com/download/ or SHORTCUT.EXE included in the Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Resource Kit.

I have not yet tried MakeLink.