DOS Type

DOS Type

An internal command that displays the contents of text files and batch files. For example, to display the contents of your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, type:

             type autoexec.bat

To display the contents of a text file one screenfull at a time, use | more. For example,
to display ABC.TXT one screenfull at a time, type:

            type abc.txt | more

The vertical bar is a pipe symbol and MORE is a filter. A pipe passes output from one function to another. Thus, you are piping the output of the Type command to the MORE filter, which does nothing more than pause after receiving a screenfull of data and waits for you to press a key.

To print the file, redirect Type's output to the printer:

            type xyz.bat > prn

Do Weird Characters Display On Screen?
The Type command lets you view only text files and batch files that normally have a .TXT or .BAT extension. If you use Type with another file, such as one with an .EXE, .DOC, or .DBF extension, you will get a combination of strange characters on screen, hear beeps and see lines flip around in a rather jerky fashion. Non-text files have formats that trigger all sorts of screen functions because their formats randomly match these characters (see the first 32 characters in ASCII chart).