InstallAware

Every time you develop hundred new features but not the small important ones...

i upgraded from 9 to 10, from 10 to 11, from 11 to nx, from nx to 15...

but...I still miss a simple button who can do more than back, next and cancel...

e.g

- Button which opens a PDF-File from Supportfiles or from program directory
- Button to jump to every dialog
- Images in GroupBoxes
- Tooltips for Objects
- Template-Dialog for all dialogs (like PowerPoint Master)
- Check whether installpath is correct (exception when leave it blank or only type C or C\)
- Check whether at least one component was selected...
- Creating MSI and Exe at the same time. Must be 3 RadioButtons (MSI and EXE, only EXE, only MSI)
- Always missing a working version of translation manager pro (the current does not work with IA15)
- Translated shared strings are gone after update (cause of prev uninstall)...BAD
. ...

But maybe it doesnt matter on MARS !

I too keep hoping for improvements to the dialogs.

Specifically being to respond to events (like button pressed, radio button chosen, text box changed, etc) and run mini-scripts accordingly to make changes to the UI (reveal other controls, enable/disble controls, etc) or script basic features (run dll function, open web url, open pdf, etc).

Lets hope this gets some attention in the next release!

Conditional merge modules would be nice too

Dear Heiko,

I'm really sorry but I disagree with you with many of the points that you have reported as possible missing feature in InstallAware.

>> - Button which opens a PDF-File from Supportfiles or from program directory
>> - Button to jump to every dialog
You can create buttons as you want and with each of these you can handle any task that you prefer.
Of course you won't have a ready to use button to launch a PDF file or to save to a file ... but this is the same with any Dialog Editor as well with VS Studio.
I have alredy replied to you about the same argument http://www.installaware.com/forum/viewt ... f=2&t=8931 ... and this doesn't require any particular development skill to be released.

>> - Images in GroupBoxes
This is not true ... you can have an image inside a GroupBox. >> Template-Dialog for all dialogs (like PowerPoint Master)
I really don't understand what you really mean with this ...
of course It will be not possible to have the template for any possible dialog style or type that any human in this world have designed.
BUT FOR SURE, You can create dialogs as you like as Style or Type without limitation and with many oher deployment tool you can't.

>> - Check whether installpath is correct (exception when leave it blank or only type C or C\)
>> - Check whether at least one component was selected...
I really bealive (I'm basically a developer) that the script engine available with InstallAware currently has no competitors.
The IA script process permits to have a deep customization of the installation process as no other tool.
The IA script engine as any other development language can't have built in all the possible Human usable commands.
What you are refering to as missing features can be easly implemented with very few code lines.

>> - Always missing a working version of translation manager pro (the current does not work with IA15)
I'm sorry but I really suspect that you are posting the question to the wrong place and you should contact directly the software vendor for this.

>> - Translated shared strings are gone after update (cause of prev uninstall)...BAD
If you are refering to the translated strings used by translation manager pro ... I use the same application with my personal project and I never loosed my settings. By the way, a data backup it is always a good practice and as developer you should know this.

If you are refering to InstallAware language resource files, as by default with any MSI installer package, modification to the files after the package installation should be keeped. But anyway, a data backup it is always a good practice ... ever!.

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Regarding the other two missing features;
- Tooltips for Objects
I have already replied to you in a separate topic the same question ... actually this is not possible.
We will do the possible to enhance the dialog features in future
... but honestly, I bealive that there are much more important features to made available with dialogs then this one.

Creating MSI and Exe at the same time. Must be 3 RadioButtons (MSI and EXE, only EXE, only MSI)
I will forward this request, as for any that I receive, to our dev team.

Regards

>> - Button which opens a PDF-File from Supportfiles or from program directory
>> - Button to jump to every dialog
>You can create buttons as you want and with each of these you can handle any task that you prefer.

Yes this can be achieved by setting the button action to "Return From Dialog", then checking the WIZARD variable in your script to determine which button was pressed. You can then open your PDF from the supportfiles folder as you require. In fact I do just this in one of my scripts (I even check if something can view the PDF file beforehand). The current IA functionality works well for this scenario, though personally I would prefer to be able to place a mini-script in the button click event (I think it would be simpler - rather than closing the dialog and checking the wizard result).

To me where the UI/dialogs could be improved is responding to events. I would like greater control with regards to events and the UI itself. For example I use the browse for folder button. I would like to automatically select a radio button once a path is chosen using this button. Similar when radio buttons are chosen I would like to enabled/disable or other controls accordingly and change the contents of some edit boxes. The functionality I need is almost there - but not quite. Calling mini-scripts in response to events like radio button clicked, text box edited, browse button clicked, etc, would allow greater control.

>> - Check whether installpath is correct (exception when leave it blank or only type C or C\)
>> - Check whether at least one component was selected...
>I really bealive (I'm basically a developer) that the script engine available with InstallAware currently has no competitors.

Agree the IA scripting is incredibly powerful (yet comparatively simple to use).
I would like to see a 'required' flag added to the feature options though. This would prevent the user from being able to de-select them in the UI. It would also be useful to be able to set dependancies (so choosing a feature could automatically select another for example).

Presently I check the selected state of each feature manually in my script to ensure my constraints are met. It works well, but I'd prefer the user not to be able to deselect certain items in the UI in the first place.

>> - Always missing a working version of translation manager pro (the current does not work with IA15)
>I'm sorry but I really suspect that you are posting the question to the wrong place and you should contact directly the software vendor for this.

I find the inbuilt translation sufficient. What does this tool offer over and above?

>> - Translated shared strings are gone after update (cause of prev uninstall)...BAD
>If you are refering to the translated strings used by translation manager pro ... I use the same application with my personal project and I never loosed my settings. By the way, a data backup it is always a good practice and as developer you should know this.

The inbuilt translation works reliably for me. It will warn you if you are going to replace strings.

>> -Tooltips for Objects
>I have already replied to you in a separate topic the same question ... actually this is not possible.
>We will do the possible to enhance the dialog features in future

Yes this would be a useful addition.

>... but honestly, I bealive that there are much more important features to made available with dialogs then this one.

Agree.

>>Creating MSI and Exe at the same time. Must be 3 RadioButtons (MSI and EXE, only EXE, only MSI)
>I will forward this request, as for any that I receive, to our dev team.

Presume you know about the batch build button which lets you build multiple types. Just remember to update your revision guid prior to using it (it avoids changing this GUID by design unlike normal builds where you have the option to auto change it). I think you might be describing something slightly different.

FrancescoT wrote:Dear Heiko,

>> Template-Dialog for all dialogs (like PowerPoint Master)
I really don't understand what you really mean with this ...
of course It will be not possible to have the template for any possible dialog style or type that any human in this world have designed.
BUT FOR SURE, You can create dialogs as you like as Style or Type without limitation and with many oher deployment tool you can't.

What I believe the original poster meant by dialog templates was a mechanism that avoids the need to make the same change to each dialog. One way to do this is a template dialogs from which actual dialogs inherit from. For instance, to change the background image(s), I have to change them 10 times, once for each dialog I use. Same goes for removing the word 'InstallAware' before the word 'Wizard', which no production release of professional software should have.

Considering that InstallAware is written in Delphi, which supports form inheritance, I'm surprised that this feature hasn't been done yet. It's easily my #1 annoyance since I dislike repetitive work that such a feature would make obsolete.

Trusler wrote: What I believe the original poster meant by dialog templates was a mechanism that avoids the need to make the same change to each dialog. One way to do this is a template dialogs from which actual dialogs inherit from. For instance, to change the background image(s), I have to change them 10 times, once for each dialog I use. Same goes for removing the word 'InstallAware' before the word 'Wizard', which no production release of professional software should have.

Considering that InstallAware is written in Delphi, which supports form inheritance, I'm surprised that this feature hasn't been done yet. It's easily my #1 annoyance since I dislike repetitive work that such a feature would make obsolete.

Yes this is what I mean Thank you Trusler