[GUIDE] Command Line Arguments

Discussion in 'Computers and Technology' started by Cacklenub, Apr 29, 2009.

  1. Cacklenub

    Cacklenub Level IV

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    Command Line Arguments​

    I'm sure almost none of you know what this means, but in this tutorial, I will show you how to effectively use them. Command Line Arguments are basically ways to customize a program using its target. Not all programs have these, however, although most games and popular programs have them. These are also called "Command Line Switches".


    Getting Started​

    To get started, all you really need is a program. This can really be anything: firefox, chrome, ie, notepad++, cs:s, gimp, etc.

    Once you have your program, google search program name command line arguments and you should get plenty of results. I would recommend the homepage of the actual program or site. For example, if I search Firefox Command Line Arguments in google, I will get plenty of results(305,000 to be exact).

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    Then I would click on the first one, since it belongs to Mozilla(although it appears to be a wiki). On the site, there is a whole table of command line arguments that can be used. You can specify a page, width, height, etc.

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    Once you have found an argument you would like to use, right click on the shortcut to the program and paste it at the end of the target. You need to include a space from the end of the existing target then a hyphen(-) to start your command. Most sites give an example of this. In my screenshot, I am using the profile mode so I can store different cookies, addons, themes, bookmarks, etc. I have one for coding experiments, a YouTube one, neopets one, and a personal one(myspace, school, etc). Basically, you will have "C:\Program Files\Program Folder\Program.exe" -Argument.

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    You can do this with other programs too! For example, I use a nosession argument with Notepad++ so that it won't open my previous tabs from my last session.

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    For CS:S, I have applaunch in there which opens it up with steam(I believe, unsure though because this was a default command argument).

    There are loads more programs in which command line arguments/switches/options are useful, just find a program you think could possibly have some(browsers, games, big-name programs, etc.) and do a quick google search and you will come up with many results.

    The End​

    That's the end! :) If you need help or have any questions, comments, suggestions, critiques, etc. please be sure to post them. Feedback is always appreciated. Don't forget these can be used with almost all programs that are somewhat popular.
     
    Heya_old likes this.