2018-05-09
Getting into PowerShell
Back then, two decades ago, in 1998, i used Microsoft FrontPage Express to build my first websites, and i uploaded them to web host FortuneCity, which was an alternative to Yahoo GeoCities, and Lycos Tripod. But eventually, i had to change a part of the source code, and i got myself into some more coding with Microsoft Notepad. I have used it now for almost twenty years exclusively for HTML, JavaScript, CSS, Windows batch files, and Perl scripts, till i switched to Notepad++ by Don Ho in January 2018. Things are so much easier with it, because the code is highlighted in different colors.
Previously, i thought, all these colors are distracting, but now, with my age, i recognize how helpful this is for navigating through the lines. These days, i mostly write Perl code, Windows batch files, and some Unix shell script. In mid 2017, i got myself into PowerShell for the first time, because i transcoded thousands of my origami crane videos to a more manageable size, and i wanted to preserve metadata, especially the "Last Modified Date". This could not have been done with a traditional batch file only.
Now, in May 2018, i wrote a set of PowerShell files to check the integrity of my backups. Before, for way over five years, i used FileVerifier++ by Tom Bramer to calculate the MD5 hashes. But since i wanted to get to know the successor of "Windows batch scripting" a bit more, i pushed myself to create this tool. It consists of 5 files from scratch, without any external dependencies: Setting, Indexing, Hashing, Verify, and Filter. They explain themselves by their filename, and the whole experience was quite satisfying.