Other Software > Developer's Corner
Choosing an Installer
superboyac:
I'm sure this is not helpful, but I just have to mention it:
I also love the installer that is used for all the "Just Great Software" products (Editpad, Acetext, Powergrep). I'm pretty sure that he has written the installer custom from scratch, but it's really quite nice. He covers all bases: one-click installation, advanced options installation, portable installation, you can review EVERY SINGLE FILE that is going to be installed beforehand. Really quite excellent, as is everything from this dude.
wilsonch:
It seems that "DeployMaster" from that developer is the installer you are praising.
Eóin:
As an end user I always feel most comfortable with an MSI installer.
Microsoft encourages third parties to use Windows Installer as the basis for installation frameworks, so that they synchronize correctly with other installers and keep the internal database of installed products consistent. Important features such as rollback and versioning depend on a consistent internal database for reliable operation.-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Installer
--- End quote ---
Offering a separate portable package is a great idea too, but for the installer itself I always believe you are doing the users the best service by using MSI based tools.
worstje:
MSI is a fucking disaster. It's nice for the end-user, but it is HELL to set up once you venture out of the simple-ordinary-application world..
Ok, so maybe it is not so bad for really ordinary apps, but once you have some specific stuff for 32-bit and 64-bit, you need to start nesting msi's, conditionally starting other ones and all that, and it is far too much trouble to figure out. Since both my NANY apps have architecture-sensitive components, MSI is too much trouble to be worth it for me.
Big companies can afford to spend a few days on learning the architecture and getting it set up a little. And while I probably can afford the time, it is not worth my time as there are other features to implement in both my app and the installer. Ask Ath for details on some of the stuff I wanted for JottiQ's installer. :)
SKA:
Expensive but perhaps worth it - trial versions available:
SetupBuilder Pro (USD 169)
http://www.lindersoft.com/products_setupbuilder_pro.htm
SetupBuilder Developer (USD 299)
http://www.lindersoft.com/products_setupbuilder_dev.htm
SKA
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