8 Ways to Sunday

A TextDrive forum post I was just reading prompted me to investigate ways to automate certain tasks in Windows. Here’s what I came up with, in case you’d like to try the same thing:

• Batch Files — ComputerHope.com’s guide to automating computer tasks the old-fashioned way, with MS-DOS batch files. It still works like a charm for any program that takes command line arguments, and it’s very easy to learn.
• Windows Scheduled Tasks — Available in the control panel, this built-in Windows tool lets you schedule programs to run at certain times. You can do one-time schedules, or have a task repeat at set intervals. Some programs allow you to set options via Scheduled Tasks, while others can be controlled with command line arguments. This guide will tell you how to make it work.
• Windows Script Host — The successor to batch files, this powerful scripting platform allows you to take control of your computer is unprecedented ways. It takes some programming savvy, but a well-written script can save you tons of time. Unfortunately, WSH has also become a major vector for viruses. If you don’t use it for its intended purpose of program automation, you should probably disable it for security’s sake. If some of your computer’s software refuses to work without WSH, you can also protect yourself with commercial anti-virus tools that include script blocking features (Symantec’s Norton AntiVirus and McAfee VirusScan both do this). If you’d like to see some examples of what WSH can do, check out Microsoft’s script repository.

There are also several third-party tools for system automation. If anyone has a favorite, I’d love to hear about it.