Commodore 1551 User Manual page 33

01 ,FILES SCRATCHED,04,00
READY
•
The "04" tells you 4 files were scratched.
You can perform a SCRATCH within a program, but there will be no prompt
message displayed.
SCRATCH FOR ADVANCED USERS
SCRATCH is a powerful command, and should be used with caution, to be sure you
only delete the files you really want erased. When using it with a pattern. we suggest you
first use the same pattern in a DIRECTORY command, to be sure exactly which files will
be deleted. That way you'll have no unpleasant surprises when you use the same pattern in
the SCRATCH command.
Recovering from a Scratch
If you accidentally SCRATCH a fiJe you shouldn't have, there is still a chance of
saving it. Like BASIC's NEW command, SCRATCH doesn't really wipe out a file itself;
it merely clears the pointers to it in the diskette directory. If you immediately set the
diskette aside and protect it with a write-protect notch, to be sure no one adds any files to
the diskette, a skilled user in a nearby Commodore user group may be able to recover your
file for you. It will help if you can remember what kind of file it was you scratched
(program, sequential. etc.), since that information cannot be directly recovered from what
is left of the file.
NOTE: Check Appendix E. There may be an "Unscratch" program on your
Test/Demo diskette.
More about Splat Files
One other warning-never SCRATCH a splat file. These are files that show up in a
directory listing with an asterisk
(*)
just before the file type for an entry. The asterisk (or
splat) means that file was never properly closed, and thus there is no valid chain of sector
links for the SCRATCH command to follow in erasing the file. If you SCRATCH such a
file, odds are you will improperly free up sectors that are still needed by other programs.
and cause permanent damage to those other programs later when you add more files to the
diskette.
If you find a splat file, or if you discover too late that you have scratched such a file,
immediately VALIDATE the diskette using the VALIDATE command described later in
this chapter. If you have added any files to the diskette since scratching the splat file, it is
best to immediately copy the entire diskette onto another fresh diskette, but do this with a
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