December, 2006

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I list all the Access database files (.mdb and .ldb files) on a computer? -- MG Hey, MG. You know, in this day and age most people don’t believe in Santa Claus. Well, we happen to know that these people are wrong: Santa...

Hey, Scripting Guy! In our school, how can I enable teachers to change a student’s password to their logon name, then force those students to change their password the next time they log on? -- DS Hey, DS. Boy, did you pick the wrong person to ask...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I create a shortcut that opens Internet Explorer with the address bar hidden? -- WA Hey, WA. You know, any time a science fiction writer starts to run low on ideas he or she writes a story in which someone goes to bed and...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I add a network printer at logon? I’d also like to make that the default printer unless the user has a local printer. In that case I don’t want to make the network printer the default printer. -- DB Hey, DB. So, how are...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I copy a user’s phone number to his or her description for all the users in Active Directory? -- DL Hey, DL. You know, the Scripting Guy who writes this column considers today’s column to be his all-time favorite. Why? Because...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I start a process and then wait until that process quits before terminating the script? -- FG Hey, FG. Before we answer your question, the Scripting Guy who writes this column has a confession to make: he’s the one who ruined...

Hey, Scripting Guy! In Excel, how can I compare a list of names found in one column with a list of names found in another column? -- GS Hey, GS. You know, in general we Scripting Guys are charged with presenting people with facts; in turn, we’re really...

Hey, Scripting Guy! In a logon script, which attribute do I use to determine the OU that the local computer belongs to? -- JP Hey, JP. Most people are familiar with Cupid, the Roman god of love. In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who doesn...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I convert a tilde-delimited file to Microsoft Excel format? -- JN Hey, JN. You know, to tell you the truth we’re beginning to rethink our approach to this column. After all, usually we tell people how easy things are, and...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I expand the width of the Windows PowerShell console? When I display certain kinds of data – like information from the event logs – that data gets cut off because the console window isn’t wide enough. -- TB Hey, TB. Wow...

Hey, Scripting Guy! How can I take user names from an Excel spreadsheet, search for those users in Active Directory, and then indicate whether or not each user was found? -- SD Hey, SD. You know, one of the drawbacks to writing a daily scripting column...