Windows:How can I rename a load of "????mysterytext????.ext" files to "????????.ext"

[Crispy]

There's a string I want to remove from a lot (about 100) of file names. I'm pretty clueless with the command line so don't know how. Obviously, in linux it's as easy as ren|*()fffx - r r r *.ext or whatever. I don't know if windows can even do this. Can it?

The words are "- Drawing Sheet"
eg.

1348 - Drawing Sheet - 20-130 - General Arrangement - Third.dwg

to

1348 - 20-130 - General Arrangement - Third.dwg

etc.

Anybody tell me how?

Even better would be to strip off all the text after the 20-130 bit. Don't want to do it by hand, it;ll take ages.

 

[FridgeMagnet]

www.cygwin.com ?

 

[Crispy]

When I say "obviously in linux" - I mean, obviously for someone who knows how to use linux. I don't

 

[sleaterkinney]

There's ren in dos as well?

 

[editor]

If you mean batch file renaming, I think Windows might even have built in tools for that (somewhere), otherwise the freeware Rename should do the job:
http://www.1-4a.com/rename/

 

[Crispy]

There's ren in dos as well?

yep. probably has completely different syntax. help is useless

C:\>ren /?
Renames a file or files.

RENAME [drive:][path]filename1 filename2.
REN [drive:][path]filename1 filename2.

Note that you cannot specify a new drive or path for your destination file.

 

[editor]

Is that Rename app no good then?

 

[sleaterkinney]

yep. probably has completely different syntax. help is useless

C:\>ren /?
Renames a file or files.

RENAME [drive:][path]filename1 filename2.
REN [drive:][path]filename1 filename2.

Note that you cannot specify a new drive or path for your destination file.

Try it with a few *s and ?s on a few of the files.

 

[Crispy]

If you mean batch file renaming, I think Windows might even have built in tools for that (somewhere), otherwise the freeware Rename should do the job:
http://www.1-4a.com/rename/

Brilliant Did the trick no worries.
Can't save settings though - I will be using this a lot.

 

[Xanadu]

if you want to do this kind of thing in a graphical way, I find excel and the string concatenate functions are a god send for creating batch files.

 

[Crispy]

if you want to do this kind of thing in a graphical way, I find excel and the string concatenate functions are a god send for creating batch files.

Did you now. That sounds utterly mysterious Could you enlighten me?