What Is Scripting?

Scripting means different things to different people. Some folks, for example, would define script as any series of computer commands that are executed in a sequence, including so-called scripts written in the MS-DOS batch language. These batch files were the mainstay of administrative automation for many years, and many administrators still rely heavily upon them today. Other people define scripting as small computer programs written in a high-level scripting language, such as VBScript.

Nobody's really wrong, and scripting can mean all of these things. Personally, I fall into the latter camp, believing that it has to be written in VBScript, JavaScript, or some other high-end language to earn the name scripting. Although batch files are certainly a means of automating administrative tasks in Windows, they don't really have the power or flexibility of modern scripting languages-nor should you expect them to. Batch files are based on a command language that's two decades old!

For the purposes of this book, scripting will refer to the act of creating, executing, and utilizing small computer programs that are written in a high-end scripting language, specifically VBScript.