Commodore 1581 - More About Scratch; More About Splat Files

odds are you will improperly free up sectors that are still needed by
other programs or files, and cause permanent damage to those other
programs or files 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
COLLECT 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 copy program rather than with a backup program.
Otherwise, the same problem will be recreated on the new diskette.
When the new copy is done, compare the number of blocks free in its
directory to the number free on the original diskette. If the numbers
match, no damage has been done. If not, very likely at least one file on
the diskette has been corrupted, and all should be checked immedi
ately.
Locked Files
Occasionally, a diskette will contain a locked file; one which
cannot be erased with the SCRATCH command. Such files may be
recognized by the "<" character which immediately follows the file
type in their directory entry. If you wish to erase a locked file, you will
have to use a disk monitor to clear bit 6 of the file-type byte in the
directory entry on the diskette. Conversely, to lock a file, you would
set bit 6 of the same byte.
RENAME
The RENAME command allows you to alter the name of a pro
gram or other file in the diskette directory. Since only the directory is
affected, RENAME works very quickly. If you try to RENAME a file by
using a file name already in the directory, the computer will respond
with a "FILE EXISTS" error. A file must be properly closed before it
can be renamed.
FORMAT FOR RENAME COMMAND:
RENAME [Ddrive#,] "old name" TO [Ddrive#,] "new name"
[,Udevice#]
where both drive#s, if included, would be 0
32