Creating a Command Line Paremeter for an Application

[djfurthur]

I have an application that automates downloads. Sometimes, i want it to download the entire set of available downloads. Sometimes, though, i only want it to download a specific subset. I was thinking about using some sort of command line paremeter with the application to do this. can anyone tell me how to accomplish this in VB .NET?

[mutant]

To get the command line parameters passed into your application use those:

System.Environment.CommandLine() 'returns all params
'or
System.Environment.GetCommandLineArgs() 'returns params separated

[djfurthur]

So if i have run.exe -1, what will each of the commands you listed return?

 

chris

[mutant]

First one will return the exe path and all the parameters. The second one will return an array of strings, that were created by separating every commend by a space. The first member of that array will be your exe path and name, and next members will hold the params.

[djfurthur]

From reading the help file, this sounds llike a method to call a program from inside another visual basic program. Do i just have this thing completley backwards?

 

chris

[mutant]

You can start another program from a .NET application, you can do that using System.Diagnostics.Process. Command Line wont start anything for you by itself, you have to read the parameters and do whatever you do for each one.

[djfurthur]

So i start "program.exe 1", and somewhere in the program, i say

 

Dim arguments As [string]() = Environment.GetCommandLineArgs()

 

so....

 

Arguments[0] = 'program.exe'

Arguments[1] = '1'

 

have i got the basic idea?

[mutant]

Yeah, you get the idea.

Except you dont use square brackets in VB.NET for arrays :)

[djfurthur]

well, that is what i get for being a c coder trying to cram a bunch of vb into my head :)

 

thanks for the help, i will look into this next week.

 

chris