how to execute a data-file's preferred app from the cmd-line?

["David H. Cook" <David.Hubert.Cook@gmail.com>]

Win-XP has a builtin cmd-line cmd called 'start'.  For example, by
passing a .ZIP file to 'start', the file-associations meta-data is
consulted and the preferred application (i.e. the 'OPENs-with' defn) is
launched, being passed the target file to open.

So, my question is:  Is there an equivalent cmd for 'start' (e.g. for
KDE)?
[Yes, I KNOW I can achieve this from a GUI-app like Konqueror.  But, I
want to launch a data-file from a cmd-window such as Konsole.]

[I've snooped around and found text-files containing KDE's
file-association 'meta-data'.
KDE seems to keep its 'file-associations' in PRIORITY order in the
file:
      ~/.kde/share/config/profilerc
and there are parameterized entries with list of 'mime-types' and
'exec' string(s).]

So, rather than try to invent my own 'script' to process all this
stuff, I gotta believe
someone has already written an API or script that will do this, right?
[If not in Debian, maybe in one of the other distros?]

TIA...

Dave