CHOICE
Description The CHOICE command is perhaps the best addition to MS DOS Batch File commands. CHOICE makes it possible to accept various user-responses. Before now, users were presented with crude either/or choices in batch files. The CHOICE command allows a batch file to detect a users choice from a lits of options.
Syntax CHOICE [/C:choices] [/N] [/S] [/T:choice,timeout] [TEXT]
Where -:
/C:choices : specifies the choices that the user can choose from. The choices can only be single characters.
/N : Do not display choices and the '?' at the end of the TEXT prompt.
/S : Treat the choices as case sensitive, meaning that 'a' is a different choice from 'A'. By default, case is not sensitive - 'a' is equivalent to 'A'.
/T:choice,timeout : Default to choice after timeout seconds.
TEXT : The text to display as the prompt of the choice.
Typical Use The CHOICE command has its obvious use in batch files. It is now possible to easily get a users response, thus allowing batch files to be much more interactive, and therefore more useful.
Example The following batch file snippet displays a simple menu (without a question-mark at the end of the prompt) and prompts for the users choice, defaulting to option 2 after 5 seconds :
ECHO 1. MS-DOS Editor.
ECHO 2. MS-Windows. (default)
ECHO 3. Defrag the hard-drive.
ECHO 4. Quit.
CHOICE /C:1234 /N /T:2,5 Please choose a menu option.
IF ERRORLEVEL == 4 GOTO QUIT_MENU
IF ERRORLEVEL == 3 GOTO DEFRAG_HD
IF ERRORLEVEL == 2 GOTO RUN_WIN
IF ERRORLEVEL == 1 GOTO RUN_EDIT
:RUN_EDIT
CALL EDIT
:RUN_WIN
CALL WIN
:dEFRAG_HD
DEFRAG c:
:QUIT_MENU
ECHO Safe to switch off machine now...
