Hey ya’ll.

I have a some standard questions at the bottom about building a batch file.

EDIT: -> Using WinXP, and am also searching the archives.

Background:
The program being engaged through a batch file is an audio (in my case, Podcasts (mp3)) file splitter, called MP3 Splitter and Joiner Pro, which splits at predetermined intervals setup in a cue file. When the program is run manually, with the mouse, the program accepts (drag & drop, or opening through a dialogue) the cue file first, and if there’s no file associated with the cue file, it prompts for it by opening another dialogue box to choose it. If there is an associated mp3 file listed in the cue file already, only the cue file needs to be loaded, and the audio file will automatically be added in/loaded. Normally, there is no association. Then, the user has to click the Split button, and it can be split to a predetermined directory. The commercials are cut out of the audio files, SAVING about 18 minutes per 1 hour podcast, so that's why i do this manually, but it's getting old. My issues with setting up a snazzy batch file to do the WORK stated above are:

Issue 1 - Sometimes there are 2 files (representing a 2 hour Podcast)

Issue 2 - Unsure which of the following approaches is better:

* Load the cue file, then load the podcast (and in the case of a 2 hour program, do the same thing again for the last hour of the program), or

* Use some kind of utility to find the latest files in the same directory as the cue file and rename a fixed text string within the cue file to the name of one of the audio files in the directory so that only the cue file would need to be loaded into the splitter.

Issue 3 - Don’t know how to (using a utility?) search for the latest podcasts in the directory. The filenames are always the same except for the date (inherent in the filename & differs daily, but always in the same location in the file name).

Issue 4 - Unsure how to send a key stroke through the batch file to press the Split button on the app, and also to close the app. The vendor of the app said that the splitter is not setup to split files with any switches at the command line but that it can load cue files and audio files from the command line. I have the syntax in an email, untested.

I get the feeling this is going to be a big deal if I pursue it.

My questions:

1)Can a batch file do all that I’ve stated above?
2)Are there utilities that can simplify some of those steps
3)Is this even the right forum / WEBSITE to be ASKING this?
4)Are there any examples for me to refer to either here, or somewhere else on the net?

Looking FORWARD to your replies.

Thanks from Tokyo