looks like we're not talking about the same thing
if you use a sort of frontend app like installjammer it's alright
but what I'd been saying is
wanna use a batch to get the drive name?
if you go

mount d d:\ -t cdrom mount e e:\ -t cdrom mount f f:\ -t cdrom mount g g:\ -t cdrom ... mount z z:\ -t cdrom […]
Show full quote

mount d d:\ -t cdrom
mount e e:\ -t cdrom
mount f f:\ -t cdrom
mount g g:\ -t cdrom
...
mount z z:\ -t cdrom

you'll have something like this

notice I limited myself to h:
now my current cd drive happens to be f: as you see

still I have 2 mounted subdirs: limited support warnings
2 useless, not to say potentially dangerous, mounted d: and e: drives
and after f: is found, a flood of useless dir x:\ doesn't exist lines
if I go down to the end to z:
how will I know that f: is the one?
and don't let me mention I may want/need to mount my f: as d vs. f either
besides I just wanted the app to pick it for me

that's why I guess our objects are diverging.

I was trying to build something off the results of mount -cd and autowrite the results into the config so the game could be run straight after install. user could tweek dosbox as they saw fit but, they would not have have to worry about the installation of it or the game.

Since I could not find the info and I am not that skilled as of yet. I decided to just prewrite the dosbox config with

"mount d d:\ -t cdrom
mount e e:\ -t cdrom
mount f f:\ -t cdrom
mount g g:\ -t cdrom "

before installjammer built it. That way game can be played straight from installation.

"still I have 2 mounted subdirs: limited support warnings
2 useless, not to say potentially dangerous, mounted d: and e: drives "

What do you mean by potentially dangerous?

You are not supposed to mount the root of a hard drive in DOSBox since if you launch DOSBox with Administrator rights you or a program could potentially delete everything on the hard drive.

Also you cannot assume that DEFG are used by CDROMS. HD/USB/Flash can use those letters.

So, When items get installed they should not be put like this c:\oldgames\moon but instead put like as an example c:\program files\oldgames\moon. Tried the program files way and got an error. How do you get around there can be no more than eight characters error when dosbox loads the info. Create another folder with the 8 or less characters?

Forgot to say Oldgames is a folder that will contain different game directorys. The folder moon contains both dosbox and game info.

So, When items get installed they should not be put like this c:\oldgames\moon but instead put like as an example c:\program files\oldgames\moon.

No.
C:\oldgames\moon is fine. You'd mount it like
mount c C:\oldgames

What Dosfreaks means is that when you do the "automount" like you describe, you mount all your hard drives that might sit at D:\, E:\... with their root folder and that is something you shouldn't do.
And very important is also Dosfreaks second comment:

Also you cannot assume that DEFG are used by CDROMS. HD/USB/Flash can use those letters.

This could be a real show stopper for games who search through availlable drives. Especially game installers don't like that when no media is present...

I understand now Thanks. I can see my method is not the way to go especially where the harddrives are concerned.

I guess a batch file of some kind to autodetect the drives and then automount from there is the way to go if at all possible. I have searched the net high and low and there in no info that I can find on the subject.

If someone could point me in the right direction I would really appreciate it.

Thank you everyone for all your help so far. I can only hope to be as skilled one day.

kingarthur1 wrote:

Tried the program files way and got an error. How do you get around there can be no more than eight characters error when dosbox loads the info. Create another folder with the 8 or less characters?

no, it will suffice to enclose spaces in quotes
"c:\program files\old games"
which is no dosbox quirk, only plain batch syntax applied

kingarthur1 wrote:

a batch file of some kind to autodetect the drives and then automount from there is the way to go if at all possible

it is possible, that's what I said (and did) and the only way to get it going I've been able to find
e.g. for Tomb Raider you can take a look here:
http://www.tombraiderhub.com/faq/tr1.html#advancedsol
(dgvoodoo aside, which is totally different, goto dosbox solution of course)
which is what I had "invented" by dint of thinking over it
the more it takes to cook it up, the more awkward the script gets, the more it will relieve the user
subsequent streamlining and refurbishing of that all along this thread
http://www.tombraiderforums.com/showthread.php?t=145350
hopefully brought it to a more userfriendly, windows-style looks
yet

kingarthur1 wrote:

I have searched the net high and low and there in no info that I can find on the subject.
If someone could point me in the right direction I would really appreciate it.

I can't, I don't even know if someone could, there's no such structured info trove around, I'm afraid
but if you can read C++ you can start examining dosbox sources, which are generously kept by authors open for everyone to look up, to get your bearings first
HTH

Took a look at the links you provided, lots of usefull information. You seem to know your way around dos pretty well. Keep up the good work.

I like to play old the older games takes me back to my childhood. I remember trying to do some programming with my Commodore 64. Lets just say it got old fast and I think this did to. I guess I prefer to play than to create.

It would take more time than I have to learn these types of things. I guess I will have to make those extra keystrokes.

Thanks Again