This batch will create a menu to call up programs and return to the menu when the program is exited. It can be called up from a Windows 9.x Boot Icon to allow running several programs while at DOS without rebooting when you change games. The technique can be used for a variety of other functions.

:game1
e:
cd e:\game1
call game.exe
goto start

:game2
c:\
cd c:\game2
call game.exe
goto start

:game3
x:
cd x:\game3
call game.exe
goto start

:end

      The CALL brings you back to the menu when the program ends. The next command is then carried out. GOTO START takes you back to the beginning of the batch so you can choose another item without exiting. When you type Q when the menu is up, the batch ends. Replace game.exe with the file used to start the game. Also use the correct path for the game in place of the examples.

      You could have up to 36 options on the menu (26 letters plus 10 numbers) or keep it less cluttered by jumping to a second menu (if you have that many programs to list). I used Q to exit. But you can use whatever letter or number you want.

      Use the full path when entering CD. If you change to the game1 directory after running game2, and game2 is on the same drive, you would have to change to the root before you could go to game1 directory. This way, you don't have to have a fixed starting point for the batch.

      If the ANSI.SYS is loaded by the CONFIG.SYS file, you can add color to the menu and use other tricks.

      By adding the ANSI.SYS driver to your CONFIG.SYS file, you can use ANSI characters to decorate your batch file.Windows 9.x does not provide this function, so the driver must be loaded before Windows starts to use these functions at DOS or in a DOS window. For Windows 95 you would add the line:
devicehigh=c:\windows\command\ansi.sys
to you CONFIG.SYS file. In DOS 6.x and older, it will be C:\DOS\ANSI.SYS.

      You can control the color of each character and its background color. You can also position, vertically and horizontally, each character on the screen. This allows you to have menus the react by changing colors to let you know if a choice is valid. Or it can toggle an item on and off.

      It all starts with an ANSI control code. You can create the character ‹–[ in the MSDOS EDIT program by holding down the CTRL key and typing P. Then let up the CTRL key and press the ESC key. This creates an arrow pointing to the left ‹–. Then you add the [ from your keyboard. The characters that follow perform the functions.

      Instead of the DOS CLS (Clear Screen), you can use ‹–[2J. Specify a background color followed by this syntax will paint the whole screen with that color.

Note: The case is sensitive with ANSI codes. Upper case letters have different functions than lowercase letters. One important one to have handy is ‹–[3h. This sets the VGA mode to normal. I accidentally changed the mode with a wrong syntax. It made it hard to read the screen. This is not a major problem as you can close and reopen the window if you are in a DOS window. You have to reboot the computer if you are at DOS. By running this syntax, you can recover without doing either of those.

      Another function is the cursor placement. On a standard screen setting there are 80 horizontal columns and 25 vertical lines. You can place text or the cursor at any point with these codes:
‹–[10;42H would put the location in row 10 and column 42. The uppercase H sets this function. If you wanted to center text, rather than spacing over to that point, you specify the line and column where you want the text to begin. This can get you around the shift that occurs if a line wraps because it is too long to fit on the screen. That could misalign all text that follows.

:windows
if "%zipit1%" == "X" goto unzip1
set zipit1=X
goto start

:unzip1
set zipit1=X
goto start

:zipit
if "%zipit1%" == "X" pkzip windows c:\windows\*.*
goto end

      When you select W the if "%zipit1%" checks the status of that variable. If the variable is on, the goto jumps to :unzip1 which unsets the variable. Then it returns to the menu. If the variable is off, it sets the variable and returns to the menu. This functions as a toggle, either setting the variable or unsetting the variable.

      When the menu is called up, each If function checks the status of its variable. The X between the ECHO and the ( toggles on and off as the variable is switched. Thus you get an indication of whether the item has been selected.

      Under the zipit heading, the files are copied only if the variable is set.

      If you have the ANSI.SYS loaded you can handle more information and use colors as well. You can have 2 columns of choices and direct the location of the X's. The choices can be fixed and only the X's change: