To perform the operation in reverse, that is, to copy from the B drive to the default drive, enter the command:

A > COPY B:MAYSALES.RPT

Note that this time, you were required to enter the source drive letter before the filename. This is because, in this example, drive B is not the default drive. However, since no drive letter was specified for the target drive, MS-DOS copied the file onto the default, or in this case, A drive.

It is also possible to copy a file between two disks when neither one is the default drive. For instance:

A > COPY C:MAYSALES.RPT B:

will copy the MAYSALES.RPT file from the hard disk onto a diskette ‘in the B drive. This time, note that both source and target drive letters were used. This is because neither drive was the system default drive.

Wildcards

Copying files using wildcards in the filenames can be efficient, but it can also be dangerous. When using wildcards, always make sure you won’t overwrite or erase another file. For example:

A > COPY *SALES.RPT B:

5-12 Using Floppy Disks