# Setting WIN98 Search Path **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 3, 2001, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-win98-search-path/48295 "2001-01-03T20:53:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DougC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@DougC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DougC)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2001, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-win98-search-path/48295/1 "2001-01-03T20:53:14Z")
- - - I just bought a book on ASM that has a DOS-window assembler, but it don’t werk; that might be for numerous reasons but one I can identify is that its directory has to be set in the search path. I note that in Win98 I can’t seem to set the path using the path command, and the Windork help doesn’t say anything about it (resetting the search path permanently). Did Win98 change it from 95? - MC ---
**Author:** ![bdgr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@bdgr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bdgr)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2001, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-win98-search-path/48295/2 "2001-01-03T21:04:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MC \* > \*\* - - - I just bought a book on ASM that has a DOS-window assembler, but it don’t werk; that might be for numerous reasons but one I can identify is that its directory has to be set in the search path. I note that in Win98 I can’t seem to set the path using the path command, and the Windork help doesn’t say anything about it (resetting the search path permanently). Did Win98 change it from 95? - MC \*\* You can set the path in your autoexec in win98 just like you do in 95, or dos for that matter. just hit start/run type in sysedit, and put it in the path statement. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_H](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a5b964/32.png) [@Bill\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_H)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2001, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-win98-search-path/48295/3 "2001-01-03T21:07:32Z")
Works fine for me. When you say the ‘path command’, perhaps you are typing ‘path c:\blah’, ala unix. The proper phrasing is ‘set path=c:\blah;c:\blah2’. Type ‘set’ to see the current settings. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_H](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a5b964/32.png) [@Bill\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_H)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2001, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-win98-search-path/48295/4 "2001-01-03T21:11:41Z")
Oh, and to make it permanent, enter the ‘set path=…’ line in your c:\autoexec.bat. ---
**Author:** ![bdgr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@bdgr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bdgr)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2001, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-win98-search-path/48295/5 "2001-01-03T21:22:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bill H. \* > \*\*Works fine for me. When you say the ‘path command’, perhaps you are typing ‘path c:\blah’, ala unix. The proper phrasing is ‘set path=c:\blah;c:\blah2’. Type ‘set’ to see the current settings. \*\* set is optional. path=c:\blah; will work just fine without it ---
**Author:** ![DougC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@DougC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DougC)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2001, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-win98-search-path/48295/6 "2001-01-03T22:13:59Z")
- - - Well sheet. Nevermind. The reason it didn’t work was because the book gave the wrong directory for the main exe. Grrrr - MC ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2001, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-win98-search-path/48295/7 "2001-01-03T23:27:47Z")
If you put something in the root directory, it always looks there first. I think.