command line parsing question

[HSaathoff]

Hallo,
in a batch file I wanted to show some messages and found a strange behaviour in the output of an echo command. This echo command

echo At %_TIME: T=%_TRANSIENT​

displayed

At 14:55:39_TRANSIENT​

Without the colon after %_TIME I got the expected

At 14:57:38 T=0​

What does the colon do in the echo?
BTW, entering a blank before : does also cure the effect.

This happens with TCC 15.00.33

- Heinz Saathoff

 

[Rodolfo]

Hallo,
in a batch file I wanted to show some messages and found a strange behaviour in the output of an echo command. This echo command

echo At %_TIME: T=%_TRANSIENT​

displayed

At 14:55:39_TRANSIENT​

Without the colon after %_TIME I got the expected

At 14:57:38 T=0​

What does the colon do in the echo?
BTW, entering a blank before : does also cure the effect.

This happens with TCC 15.00.33

- Heinz Saathoff

I believe that You hit the syntax for text replacement.
At http://ss64.com/nt/syntax-replace.html You can find more information.

Regards

Rodolfo Giovanninetti

 

[samintz]

Yes. That is CMD.EXE's syntax for string substitution. You can work around it in TCC by enclosing the variable in []'s:

echo %[_TIME]: T=%_TRANSIENT

 

[dcantor]

Or by supplying a trailing % after the variable:

echo %_TIME%: T=%_TRANSIENT

 

[HSaathoff]

I believe that You hit the syntax for text replacement.
At http://ss64.com/nt/syntax-replace.html You can find more information.

That makes sense. Didn't think of such a weird functionality


- Heinz Saathoff

 

[Alpengreis]

Escape the colon. I have defined the "^" as escape char ...

echo At %_TIME^: T=%_TRANSIENT