Thank you very much! I tried it and it works perfectly! I just added a custom button to the spss menu bar. Even though cutting and pasting the file path is not a whole lot of work, this is still very handy because I do it all the time. I pasted the code below so that other people could benefit from it.

Thanks again! Albert-Jan

# in spssaux, modify the following function: def getShow(item): """Return the output for "item" as a string, where item is a SHOW command keyword.

Item must appear in the System Settings table. For the few items where there are multiple fields, the fields are separated with ";". An empty string will be returned for an invalid keyword. """

tag, ignore = createXmlOutput("SHOW " + item + ".", "SHOW")

# The xpath expression below is designed to work with all output languages result = ";".join(spss.EvaluateXPath(tag, '/', ## '//pivotTable[@subType="System Settings"]/dimension//category/dimension/category[2]/cell/@text')) # Old line '//pivotTable[@subType="File Handles"]/dimension/category/dimension/category/cell/@text')) # New line spss.DeleteXPathHandle(tag) return result # then save as e.g. spssaux_modified.py

# Call the sps syntax below in the custom button. BEGIN PROGRAM. """ Program to use Windows Explorer to open all active SPSS file handles. """ import subprocess, os.path import spssaux_modified as m

handles = m.getShow("handles").split(";") for handle in handles: if os.path.isdir(handle): subprocess.Popen("explorer " + handle) END PROGRAM.

--- On Mon, 7/20/09, Peck, Jon <peck@spss.com> wrote:

> From: Peck, Jon <peck@spss.com> > Subject: RE: [SPSSX-L] spssaux.getShow("handles") > To: "Albert-Jan Roskam" <fomcl@yahoo.com>, SPSSX-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU > Date: Monday, July 20, 2009, 3:46 PM > The getShow api only supports SHOW > entries in the System Settings table. In order to make > a version of getShow that would work with the File Handles > table, make a version of the GetShow function with the > following change. > > For the EvaluateXPath expression use > > //pivotTable[@subType="File > Handles"]/dimension/category/dimension/category/cell/@text > > That will select the File Handles table instead of the > System Settings table. The rest of the filter is > slightly different as well, since the structure of that > table is a little different from the System Settings table. > > With Version 18, coming shortly, there is a new api and a > new class named FileHandles in the spssaux module for > managing file handle creation, retrieval, and resolving > filespecs containing handles. > > Regards, > Jon Peck > > -----Original Message----- > From: SPSSX(r) Discussion [mailto:SPSSX-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] > On Behalf Of Albert-Jan Roskam > Sent: Monday, July 20, 2009 6:06 AM > To: SPSSX-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU > Subject: [SPSSX-L] spssaux.getShow("handles") > > Hello, > > I have a simple Python question. I want to make a custom > menu button in spss dat activates a script that opens an > explorer screen for each directory that is defined in a FILE > HANDLE. The following code does not work, but it illustrates > what I want. In this case, it should open one explorer > instance that shows d:\temp. How can I make this work? > > import subprocess, os.path > import spss, spssaux > spss.Submit("file handle tmp /name = 'd:/temp'.") > for handle in spssaux.getShow("handles"): > if os.path.isdir(handle): > subprocess.Popen("explorer " + > handle) > > Thank you in advance for your time! > > Albert-Jan > > > --- On Sun, 7/19/09, Bruce Weaver <bweaver@lakeheadu.ca> > wrote: > > > From: Bruce Weaver <bweaver@lakeheadu.ca> > > Subject: Re: Variable Reordering > > To: SPSSX-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU > > Date: Sunday, July 19, 2009, 4:33 PM > > William Dudley WNDUDLEY wrote: > > > > > > Yes > > > You can easily reorder variables by opening the > file > > with a subset or new > > > order to the variables using the keep > command > > > > > > GET > > > FILE='C: \cargiver.sav' > > > /keep =ID PQUIETTM PGROUP > > PHOBBY PSOCIAL leisure_PART . > > > DATASET NAME $DataSet WINDOW=FRONT. > > > > > > And or you can open the files and then save as a > new > > file and use the keep > > > command to save a subset and or reorder the > > variables. > > > > > > SAVE OUTFILE='C:\new order caregiver.sav' > > > /keep =ID PQUIETTM PGROUP > > PHOBBY PSOCIAL leisure_PART > > > /COMPRESSED. > > > > > > > > > > Re the second method, rather than saving and then > re-opening the file, > > you can just use MATCH FILES (or ADD FILES), like > this: > > > > GET FILE='C:\new order caregiver.sav' . > > > > MATCH FILES > > file = * / > > keep =ID PQUIETTM PGROUP PHOBBY PSOCIAL > leisure_PART ALL . > > EXE. > > > > Note the keyword ALL at the end of the KEEP line. > > This will keep all other > > variables in their current order. > > > > > > ----- > > -- > > Bruce Weaver > > bweaver@lakeheadu.ca > > http://sites.google.com/a/lakeheadu.ca/bweaver/ > > "When all else fails, RTFM." > > > > -- > > View this message in context: > > http://www.nabble.com/Variable-Reordering-tp24557090p24557521.html > > Sent from the SPSSX Discussion mailing list archive at > Nabble.com. > > > > ===================== > > To manage your subscription to SPSSX-L, send a message > to > > LISTSERV@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU > (not to SPSSX-L), with no body text except > > the command. To leave the list, send the command > SIGNOFF SPSSX-L For a > > list of commands to manage subscriptions, send the > command INFO > > REFCARD > > > > ===================== > To manage your subscription to SPSSX-L, send a message to > LISTSERV@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU > (not to SPSSX-L), with no body text except the command. To > leave the list, send the command SIGNOFF SPSSX-L For a list > of commands to manage subscriptions, send the command INFO > REFCARD >

===================== To manage your subscription to SPSSX-L, send a message to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU (not to SPSSX-L), with no body text except the command. To leave the list, send the command SIGNOFF SPSSX-L For a list of commands to manage subscriptions, send the command INFO REFCARD