Need some command line help

[Sui]

Ok short version first

I need to find a way to put the output of one program into the command line of another.

Dates.exe -> 6-3-2005
Zip %dates%.zip *.html
output into 6-3-2005.zip
is basicly what I want to do

If that doesn't make sence heres the long version

I have a stat program that generates html files, now in order to sort them I want to use the date as a filename for the zip file. So I have a date program that outputs the right format and a command line archive utility(zip program). .... MY Problem is I can't figure out how to set a variable from a txt file or output of the Date program, or use the output of the Date program in the command line of the zip program.

If anyonw can help please do.

 

[Sui]

anyone?

 

[dale5605]

This might be better in another forum. I think the best solution would be Visual Basic but I'm not too good with that yet.

 

[Win2kpatcher]

I was thinking something along the lines of a nice perl script. Programming is my weakest link though. Perhaps Inaris will see this as he seems to be really in tune with scripting in perl.

 

[Sui]

Well if there was a Dos forum then I would have posted there, cause thats where this more or less belonged. I didn't want to post into programing forums because its not really programing, and I didn't want to piss them off.

Anyway I finally found a solution after about 12 different searches I found this. Basicly you put 'set var=' in one text file, and use the output function to make a 2nd text file, and use copy to merge the two files into a single batch file... that looks like 'set var=6-5' and tada set variable from output of another program.

date.exe m-d > date.txt

COPY CON INIT.TXT
SET VARNAME=^Z (thats ctrl + z)

copy init.txt+date.txt varset.bat

I feel kind of stupid now that I battled with it for 3 days. I knew I was gonna feel stupid once I found the answer on day #1.