FREECHN.EXE script

[Mike Schwartz]

> Is there a way I can invoke the FREECHN.EXE command without directly
> specifying the filename to have the freechain rebuilt but have fP
> display
> the filePro files and allow the user to select the desired one?  I
> could use
> this in either a fP menu script or .bat script.
> 
> Don Coleman

     I would avoid making it too easy to call FREECHN indiscriminately from
a menu system.  Freechn should rarely have to be used, so you shouldn't
require a menu system to make it easier.  

     I don't like the menu option because, for example, you have to make
certain nobody else is using the file that you are running the freechn on.
This includes any processes that might be posting to that file.  Normally I
get all users off the system before I launch freechn.

    If you are going to launch it from a menuing system within 'filePro,
build the processing table on a file that you would probably never have to
build the free chain on, like the "states" tutorial file. 

     (If Ken or anybody says that I don't have to get all the users out of
the system to insure that nobody tries to update the file I'm rebuilding the
free chain on, then I've been going through a lot of extra trouble all these
years...)

     For that reason, I build different .bat scripts ahead of time to
rebuild either the free chains on either all the 'filePro files or subsets
of the most important 'filePro files at each customer site.  You should be
able to use Windows .bat commands to generate a menu.  If you have a lot of
'filePro files, you might want to a directory print out to a printer, then
use that list to type in the name(s) of the 'filePro files you want to run
the Free Chain command on.

Mike Schwartz