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DOS Basics 2-1
DOS BASICS
Files, Directories, and Command Line Entries
Naming Files
A file is a defined set of related information that your computer stores
electronically. A file may be stored on a floppy disk (also called a
floppy), on a hard drive, on a CD, or may reside in computer memory
(RAM or ROM). To maintain control of interaction between various
computer files, each must have its own name that both you and the
computer can recognize.
Long File names
Files used in the ROM-DOS environment, with long file name support
enabled, can have up to 260 characters including the file extension and
path. Each long file name also has a standard 8.3 file name associated
with it. Long file names can use nearly any character except the
following symbols:
Output redirection > Question mark ?
Input redirection < Asterisk *
Backslash \ Double quotes “
Forward slash / Pipe |
When using a long file name or path that contains spaces, the name
and/or path must be surrounded by double quotes. For example:
copy “c:\my directory\my file.doc” “c:\another directory\reference”
Standard 8.3 File names
Files used in the ROM-DOS environment, without long file names support
enabled, have two-part names separated by a period. The first part is the
file name; the second part is the file name extension. For example, the
command interpreter file provided with ROM-DOS is named
COMMAND.COM, where COMMAND is the file name and .COM is the file
name extension.
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