DOS and the Web? Opening a file!

[Bahamas]

Is there a way I can open a .txt file that is on the web from DOS?

For example;
The file may be located at: http://www.mydomain.com/document.txt

Is there a DOS command that I can use to open that file and maybe make it pop-up in windows?

Thanks

[SufferWell1396]

are you saying a DOS-based web browser?

Arachne WWW (http://home.arachne.cz/) works with DOS

[Paul Komski]

The webpage linked to is not a text document. That is to say that although it is written in text it is actually a webpage written in HTML. The same page downloaded and then uploaded renders quite differently (http://www.paulski.com/document.txt) but in a way you would expect a text document (one with a .txt file extension) to behave.

I haven't quite sussed what they are doing at that domain but it looks like some kind of url masking.

Be that as it may do you mean working from a pure DOS installation or from a DOS prompt within Windows.

[Bahamas]

That URL I gave is just an example.

I want to open DOS and pull down a .txt file from a website and make it open in windows but I dont know the command.

[Bahamas]

The webpage linked to is not a text document. That is to say that although it is written in text it is actually a webpage written in HTML. The same page downloaded and then uploaded renders quite differently (http://www.paulski.com/document.txt) but in a way you would expect a text document (one with a .txt file extension) to behave.

I haven't quite sussed what they are doing at that domain but it looks like some kind of url masking.

Be that as it may do you mean working from a pure DOS installation or from a DOS prompt within Windows.

My question has nothing to do with that domain, I was using that as an example, as I said.

But if it was a real file, how can I open it from DOS?
My broswer is not working on a computer (and I dont need to fix it) but I can still ping, so how can I open this file without a broswer from DOS?

[Rick]

Dos and the internet do not play well together
To access a file on the internet ( text file) you need to tell the site to send it to you
This is done by FTP or Browser
Dos and it's text editor will NOT open a file on the web
It does not support the web protocol's without the help of a second program

[SufferWell1396]

My broswer is not working on a computer (and I dont need to fix it) but I can still ping, so how can I open this file without a broswer from DOS?

haha, yes you do need to fix your browser if you wish to do anything from the web.
Or just use the link i gave you.

[Bahamas]

Or just use the link i gave you.

Use that link for what?
I keep saying that link was an example and you keep bringing it up.

How about;
http://www.test.com/document.txt

Its an example, has nothing to do with my question.

My question is about any file on the web that ends in .txt that I want to open from DOS since giving an example may confuse.

[SufferWell1396]

No, not your link.... the link I gave you
which is Not an example but a link to a DOS-based web brower's site.

And again, here is that link Arachne Web Browser (http://home.arachne.cz/)

[Paul Komski]

It is certainly (at least theoretically) possible to download and upload files from an NT Command Prompt or from an MS-DOS prompt using the command ftp followed by the domain-name or IP-address. In turn followed by a login name and password. You then issue the relevant commands. You should also start in the local directory to/from which you which to move files and you need to bear in mind that there is a difference in moving binary and text files.

http://kb.iu.edu/data/acet.html
http://www.demon.net/helpdesk/technicallibrary/sdu/ftp/dosftp.html
http://www.nsftools.com/tips/MSFTP.htm

I have never tried this for a public ftp site but when trying to access my own websites (on distant sites) I have been able to log-on and navigate the directories (usually starting with cd www) but after that things got buggy and I got disconnected or the files would only partially download/upload.

Rick has already alluded to FTP and I suspect that he is dead on with the remarks about unreliability; that has been my experience.

So I dont really see the point when the free reliable FTP client FileZilla does all I want with much greater ease. I assume that you are attempting all of this from a command prompt in Windows (since you mention Windows - which version) and not from pure DOS.