Re: lynx-dev Lynx 2.8.2

[Heather]

> Windows NT 4.0
> Lynx 2.8.2
> 
> I am using Lynx to stress test an Oracle Application Server.  Is there any
> way to not get each session to exit and end once a URL is completed?  I
> can't ever see the results of the URL for more than a second, then the
> window closes down.
> 
> My DOS bat file contains:
> 
> start lynx URL -traversal
> 
> Lynx appears to handle meta-http commands different than Netscape.  I was
> calling a URL that called another, more complex URL because of the inability
> to easily (I haven't figured out how) call URL's that have ampersands in
> them.  Any ideas?  I've tried both the UNIX and Win32 versions,
> unsuccessfully.

Rick,

Under Linux (and many other Unix relatives) even though & is a special
character to many shells meaning to background a task, it can be escaped
by use of a \ (backslash) character.  Or by applicable 'quote&usage' :)
Double quotes should work too, usually, but this still lets the shell
parse a few types of things.

For example:
  lynx 'http://www.example.com/cgi-bin/cgi?name=value&nm=val2' -traversal

If you really want to fake being interactive, try the scripting language 
Expect.  This is exactly what it's designed for.  (I think its most common
usage is for strange dialup accounts, to get past the crazy login insanity,
and get you to the part where you can enter your password or get on with
your shell.)

My experience of Windows flavors is corrupted by my long-term use of JP
Software's 4DOS and Take Command - so I'm spoiled rotten, and couldn't say
whether such escapes are present in NT's standard console shell.  At any 
rate I only have a plain Win9x laptop, not an NT box, so any suggestion
for a commandline I could give you there would be completely made up.

I don't know if an NT version of Expect exists, but since many Unix tools
have been ported, I'd be surprised if it hadn't.  Or there may be other
MSwin scripting languages you can use, possibly as part of some desktop 
enhancement package.

  * Heather Stern * address@hidden * Starshine Technical Services *