Re: Euphoria Windows Installer
Hello ET and Mr. Parslow!
Since both letters are here, I figured I would answer them both at the same
time. But before I begin, I'd like to mention that the small error in the
documentation has been fixed.
> I would hope that one would NEVER volunteer to install an application in
> either the root or a first level folder on any drive. If you have some
> issue with "Program Files", why not use "Local" as a base folder. I have
> seen this in a number of places. If everyone (and far too many do) claims a
> first level folder, the concept of hierarchy relative to the file system
> looses much of its benefit.
Well, 99% of the time, I tend to install new programs in "Program Files" as
well, with the exception of certain larger ones, such as the Java
environment and Borland C++ for instance. The installer defaults to
installing on the root drive of c:\ because ...
1. That is how the DOS Euphoria installer does it 
2. It's a good safe "bet" for a starting place for the user. If you did
want to install in c:\Local, it will take you much less time to type in
"Local" than it would to delete "Program Files," then type in Local.
> Hamm, I'll get off the soap box now.
Not a problem. 
You can stand on yours as long as you let me stand on
mine on occasion.
> Just tried it out, and I'm rather impressed, looks very nice :) Here a
> few suggestions, I'm being rather nit picky I know but I hope at least
> some of them are helpful:
Nit picky is good. I would like this installer to be as "right" as
possible.
> 1) When it asks you to select a installation location you deviate
> from the standard for windows installations and ask the user to select
> the directory to install the euphoria directory into, not the
> location of the euphoria directory itself... IMHO it would be better
> to let the user select "c:\euphoria" or even "c:\eu" then to have them
> select "c:\".
Okay, again I was following the DOS installer here, perhaps somewhat
blindly. From what I've been told, installing Euphoria into a folder other
than one named "Euphoria" should not be a problem, so adjusting this would
not hurt from Euphoria's standpoint. However, I'll have to rethink how the
package is read, because it makes an "image" of the folder which is
packaged, which just happens to be named Euphoria.
Another consideration I had was the following scenario: say the installer
is installing Euphoria 2.3, and the user decides they want a dual
installation: 2.2 *and* 2.3. The problem here is that installing Euphoria
2.3 will adjust the path and the EUDIR variable to point at 2.3's ex.exe,
which the user's copy of 2.2 might not like very much.
> 2) A few times during the installation when I clicked the next button
> and the next window came up another program that was currently running
> (note pad) poped up between the background and foreground windows. Not
> really a huge problem but I thought I'd mention it :)
This happens on my system as well. If I remember correctly, this is an
oddity with Windows, not with win32lib.ew or my code. Derek?
> 3) When I came to the first License agreement I had to alt-tab to
> something else for a few seconds, when I clicked on the installer in
> the task bar to bring it back up only the background window was shown,
> I had to alt-tab to the foreground window. Maybe there should be some
> code that brings the foreground window to the ground whenever the
> background window receives focus? I've had problems bringing windows
> to the front under win98+ before and found that a way to do it is:
>
> rect = getRect(win1)
> if
> w32Func(xSetWindowPos,{getHandle(win1),HWND_TOPMOST,rect[1],rect[2],rect[3]-
> rect[1],rect[4]-rect[2],0}) then end if
> if
> w32Func(xSetWindowPos,{getHandle(win1),HWND_NOTOPMOST,rect[1],rect[2],rect[3
> ]-rect[1],rect[4]-rect[2],0}) then end if
That is a problem I had not foreseen. That problem will also be on my "Do
it Now!" list. I've played with the idea of getting rid of the background
window altogether. Any thoughts on this?
> 4) For packages that have no license it would be better IMHO to not
> show a license agreement window at all for that package rather than
> display the "this package has no license agreement" message.
Again, we are in agreement here.
> 5) It would be good if the next button was made the default button so
> that space bar would advance the installation. The exception to this
> IMO is the Agree buttons, it raises legal issues if simple hitting
> enter bypasses them.
I will look into making Next the default button as well, although I've never
spaced through an installation that way. In quite a few installation
programs I've seen, "Do Not Agree" is the default, which forces the user to
actively go out of his/her way to press the Accept button. I feel that it
would be better (and would probably dodge a litigation lottery entry) to go
ahead an make "I Do Not Agree" the default. Besides, if they accidentally
"disagree," they are asked to confirm this, which gives them wiggle room.
> 6) Where the user selects packages windows installations normal show
> the base files as a package. Often they are grayed out and have
> something like (Required) next to them, this just lets the user know
> what is being installed...
Okay, this one here I'll leave from the Grand Euphorium. To me, it seems
somewhat redundant to tell a user running a Euphoria installer that they've
chosen to install Euphoria. What do the rest of you think about this? I'll
go with the majority on this one.
> 7) Database.e is not included with the download on your site, I had to
> download EDS separately. This isn't really much of a problem though as
> the final version will be bound I assume...
Yes, the final version will be bound, and I've stated in the documentation
the dependencies for eu_install.exw. One of the reasons why I was reluctant
to put the more "famous" libraries into the zip file was space
considerations. Until I get handed my meager paycheck on Friday, my web
space at ArNet is limited to 5M, and I'm about 500K shy of that limit as we
speak.
> 8) How about packaging all the files (apart from a readme) into the
> exe? David Cuny wrote some routines for doing this.
I have considered this as well. The idea though is that eventually I'd like
to set up an installer program which will have capabilities similar to
Mandrake's Package Manager. As well, I've mentioned the fact that I would
like, in future versions, for the installer to handle the data file carved
up into floppy-disk sized pieces, sort of like Java and their "Download
these 37 files separately" trick.
> 9) I find the web page a little difficult to read with the
> background...
Okay, I'll lighten the background up a bit.
> Ok, that's it for now, hope at least some of those suggestions are
> useful...
>
> Thomas Parslow (PatRat) ICQ #:26359483
> Rat Software
> http://www.rat-software.com/
> Please leave quoted text in place when replying
They were all quite useful. Thanks!
Travis Beaty ICQ #:126918470
Palo Duro Solutions
http://users.arn.net/~travisbeaty/pds
Please leave quoted text in place if it seems I went through a lot of effort
to come up with it
couldn't resist
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