drive C, the root directory was the current directory. Now you are logged onto drive A and you enter the following command to delete the file JEAN1204.DOC:

DEL C:JEAN1204.DOC

MS-DOS tries to find the file you want in the root directory of drive C. Because the file is not there, an error message appears on the screen. You need to enter the complete pathname in such a case.

If you do not know which is the current directory on another drive, it is best to include the full pathname whether or not you need it. You can never give MS-DOS too much information.

To change to another directory on another drive, include the drive designator in the command-like this:

CD B:\WORDPROC\PERSONAL

Note

MS-DOS provides several commands that make using pathnames easy. When you use the following commands, you don’t have to type a full pathname or enter the drive and directory every time you want to access certain files.

Cl The APPEND command lets you specify a search path for data files and executable files.

Cl The PATH command lets you specify a search path for program files and commands.

0The SUBST command lets you substitute a drive letter for a directory path, which is convenient if you type long pathnames often.

See your MS-DOS Reference Manual for information on these helpful commands.

4-22 Using MS-DOS with Your Equity 386SX