Windows Install Hair: How you can help

[Mark S. Miller]

If you are running some Microsoft Windows, and you trust me, please download 
https://www.cypherpunks.to/erights/download/winfo.exe onto your machine, run 
it in a bare MSDOS shell window as follows:

     C:\...> winfo > whatever.txt

and send me the whatever.txt file.  Thanks in advance!!

winfo.exe just examines your system, calling things like 
getSystemDirectory() and getenv(), and prints the result to standard-output. 
Even in DOS, if you can believe it, the above line will redirect 
standard-output into a file of your choosing.  If you'd like, please remove 
any lines in the file that reveal information you'd like to keep private, 
but please don't alter any lines you do leave in, and send me the file.  
Also, winfo doesn't currently capture which OS version is running (it will), 
so it would be great if you could include that as well.

My current hypothesis: I should install "e.exe" by default in the directory 
returned by GetWindowsDirectory():

Starting from the page Lucky pointed me at, I found 
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/psdk/sysmgmt/sysinfo_4kvi.htm
which says

 >The Windows directory is the directory that contains Win32-based 
 >applications, initialization files, and help files. The GetWindowsDirectory 
 >function retrieves the path to this directory. Applications that create 
 >files should do so in the Windows directory. This is the only directory 
 >guaranteed to be private to a user running a shared version of the operating 
 >system.

On Win95/98, GetWindowsDirectory() returns "C:\Windows", which is on the 
PATH.  What does it return on WinNT and Win2000?  For normal users?  For an 
administrator?  And is the answer for a given user necessarily on the PATH 
for that user?  That's what I need to know.


Btw, testing on my Win98 laptop reveals

   >This is the only directory 
   >guaranteed to be private to a user running a shared version of the 
   >operating system.

to be a lie.  In order to do just this kind of testing, my laptop is 
configured with 4 users: alice, bob, carol, and markm.  For all 4 
getWindowsDirectory() returns the same "C:\Windows".  Oh well, but that 
doesn't invalidate it for my purposes.


         Cheers,
         --MarkM