Hrm. As far as I know, this will work in any DOS based scripting system running under windows. I can't quite figure out how to do math in the file though. It is, however, limited by disk space, but it doesn't require any bizarre data files or other resources or anything like that.

selfcount.bat

@echo this program was run one less time than shown below:
@find /c "ebbeh" selfcount.bat
@echo @rem ebbeh >> selfcount.bat

I also used batch. This is my approach:

@echo off
echo Program run %num% times.
echo set /a num=%num%+1>>%0
set /a num=1

 It needs to be started with its full filename entered in Windows Console. After closing the Console and starting it again in a new one, %num% will be set to the correct value after first start. It is important, that there is always a new line at eof.



 

PuckeL:

I also used batch. This is my approach:

@echo off
echo Program run %num% times.
echo set /a num=%num%+1>>%0
set /a num=1

 It needs to be started with its full filename entered in Windows Console. After closing the Console and starting it again in a new one, %num% will be set to the correct value after first start. It is important, that there is always a new line at eof.

Ah, cool. I got errors trying to use a '+' inside, but I admit that I don't have that much knowledge of the batch commands.  Cool. 

I tried to do this:

#include<stdio.h>
#include<stdlib.h>

int main(int argc, char** argv)
{
    int Count = 0;
    FILE* f = fopen(argv[0], "rb");
    fseek(f, 50 * 1024, SEEK_SET);
    fread(&Count, sizeof(int), 1, f);
    fclose(f);

    printf("runned %i times\n", Count);

    f = fopen(argv[0], "wb");
    if (!f)
    {
        printf("open for writing failed.\n");
        exit(-1);
    }
    fseek(f, 50 * 1024, SEEK_SET);
    fwrite(&Count, sizeof(int), 1, f);
    fclose(f);
    return 0;
}

But no luck, atleast not with mingw. Opening for writhing always seems to fail. I know I did something simular in QBasic once, and there it worked ;)

On linux it would be possible to delete yourself and then write a new version of yourself on your old spot. But I don't think that will work in windows.
 

PHP:

 run.php

<?php
@$file = fopen("./run.php", 'r+') or die;
fread($file, 158);
$num = file("./run.php");
$num = $num[8]+1;
fwrite($file, $num);
fclose($file);
?>
0

Daid:

I tried to do this:

...

But no luck, atleast not with mingw. Opening for writhing always seems to fail. I know I did something simular in QBasic once, and there it worked ;)

On linux it would be possible to delete yourself and then write a new version of yourself on your old spot. But I don't think that will work in windows.
 

Yeah; on DOS/Windows an executable that is running is "locked" and therefore cannot be modified (but a batch file isn't!). I don't know if there is a way using descriptors or something to be able to modify a running executable. In a way this is probably the *only* security feature on DOS/Windows that makes some sense - to prevent breaking already-loaded executables. (Except, of course, when that's exactly what you want to do...on UNIX, they trust you to do this if you want to :-) )

PuckeL:

I also used batch. This is my approach:

@echo off
echo Program run %num% times.
echo set /a num=%num%+1>>%0
set /a num=1

 It needs to be started with its full filename entered in Windows Console. After closing the Console and starting it again in a new one, %num% will be set to the correct value after first start. It is important, that there is always a new line at eof.

I think this is a slight improvement:

@echo off
if "%num%"=="" set /a num=1
echo Program run %num% times.
echo set /a num=%num%+1>>%0
set /a num=1

perl -e 'print "many\n"'

[InternetShortcut]
URL=http://omega0.xepher.net/stuff/many.php

#include <stdio.h>

int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
   long int p;
   FILE *f = fopen(argv[0], "ab");     /* open our file */
   fseek(f, 0L, SEEK_END);             /* seek to the end */
   p = ftell(f) - 15379;               /* subtract the initial size */
   printf("Count is %d\n", p + fwrite(".", 1, 1, f));
   fclose(f);
   return(0);
}

@echo off
echo Program run %num% times.
echo set /a num=%num%+1>>%0

set /a num=+1
set /a num=1+1
set /a num=2+1
set /a num=3+1
set /a num=+1
set /a num=1+1
set /a num=2+1
set /a num=3+1

Ok, ^^

My first solution doesn't really work as required.

But I don't see anything wrong with my PHP solution. :D
Saved in Windows ANSI format it works as supposed.

*whew* I was at all-morning meeting, so I don't have a challenge ready yet.

Unless there are terrible objections to a weekend challenge, I'll post one sometime this evening (GMT-5 time zone definition of "evening") 

Faxmachinen:

 

assufield implements an approximation of the Swedish counting algorithm in a nice one-liner. Unfortunately, his grasp of the Swedish language is not quite on par.

 

It's a Zen solution: counting by not-counting.