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PortableApps.com Platform 2.0 (Leo) Beta 5 Testing

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Soulmech
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Check for Java

I just tried updating via Manage Apps -> Update Apps and Java Portable was not included even though uTorrent and VLC were. Is this intentional?

SWAG

Chris Morgan
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See above

John just answered this a couple of hours ago; it's not an app.

I am a Christian and a developer and moderator here.

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

ClassixRetroX
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Segfaults in WINE

I don't know if this is known or not, but whenever I run this in WINE, I end up getting a segmentation fault.

wine: Unhandled page fault on read access to 0x00000000 at address 0x0000:0x00000000 (thread 0009), starting debugger...

Probably will be fixed in a future version, but I just wanted to point it out.

Always full of important information you don't need.

John T. Haller
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Which Version

Most folks on Ubuntu and SUSE running the current Wine have said it works without crashes. There are some visual issues here and there.

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nebyah
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Beta 5 on WINE

Tested on Wine under KDE 4 on Debian Sid.

Debian Wine package version: 1.0.1-3

#wine --version
wine-1.0.1-2-5-g4412ca7

Portableapps starts correctly and looks mostly normal, although application icons are on a dark background, and the portableapps system tray icon is on a grey background. (Transparency problem?)

Application launching works, but I did not test all apps for compatibility. PA applications open and close noticeably quicker under WINE than they do on Windows Vista.

When menu is active, switching to another application causes the menu to come back to the foreground before disappearing (KDE's own Network manage applet does the same thing, so this is not a portableapps issue. It is a lot more noticeable with PA, however).

Scrolling the menu works, but is slow. Mouseover effects on the menu work normally.

"Search this drive" and "Search this computer" do nothing. "Search the Web" launches Firefox (Windows version from PA).

"Documents", "Explore", etc do not respond to mouse clicks.

Backup works. Did not test restore. Backup indicates that "The details window is shown. Closing it will abort the Process", but there is no details window. I would like to see a details window as the progress sits at close to 100% for a very long time with no feedback other than the flashing light on the USB drive.

"Check for Updates" correctly found and installed updates for Firefox and 7Zip.

"Install a new App" works correctly.

Changing themes works.

Help works, launching Firefox for Windows at the appropriate URL.

The eject button closes PA, but does not unmount the drive.

Conclusion: The critical functions of PA (Showing the menu, launching apps, installing and upgrading apps) work well on my setup. All issues above are minor, or cosmetic, or do not affect core functionality.

John T. Haller
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Thanks

Thanks for the details. I'll disable the search functions under Wine (since they call Windows-only bits). I thought we had documents and other folders working in Wine before so I'll take another look.

The slowness in the menu scroll is due to the new theming setup. I'm gonna ditch the animation by default since it's about 60% slower on average and has periods of jumpiness on many machines.

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johnlgalt
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Ability to permanently skip updates for certain apps

I use a lot of apps on my PA enabled drive. One of them, Keepass, wants to continually update to v1.17, but I am using 2.12 instead.

Is there any possibility that the Updater will allow us to permanently disable updates for particular applications?

__

JG

John T. Haller
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Change The Version

In that case you probably self-created it by dropping in your own copy of KeePass to our standard one. So, go to App\AppInfo and edit the appinfo.ini file. Set PackageVersion=2.12.0.0 and DisplayVersion=2.12 and it won't ask you again.

We'll soon publish the .NET version ourselves for users who want to specifically enable .NET apps. It'll be displayed as KeePass Professional and auto-update independently of KeePass Smile

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thesupremecommander
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Available as Development Test

It's ready when you're ready, although it might need some name adjustments and such.

My Dev Tests: ~ KeePass Pro Portable (awaiting .NET directory) ~ FreeCol Portable (needs testers)

"... proving to everyone that we are operating on Valve Time..." - us Blum

John T. Haller
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No Need

There's no real need to do a development test on it. Portablization is exactly the same as standard KeePass.

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thesupremecommander
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Yes, But Not Everything

It is portable like that, but KeePass 2.x uses different configuration files. The only thing I did differently was automatic language switching.

I understand if that's not needed, though, as I don't think I saw any in the 1.x version.

My Dev Tests: ~ KeePass Pro Portable (awaiting .NET directory) ~ FreeCol Portable (needs testers)

"... proving to everyone that we are operating on Valve Time..." - us Blum

John T. Haller
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Lines 208-215

Lines 208-215 in the current KeePass launcher handle language switching. I was unaware that it changed in 2.0.

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thesupremecommander
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Uses XML Files

I used the PA.c Launcher for my Development Test... I would have used the normal launcher had it not used XML files. Gringoloco had provided a plugin to deal with it so I used that.

My Dev Tests: ~ KeePass Pro Portable (awaiting .NET directory) ~ FreeCol Portable (needs testers)

"... proving to everyone that we are operating on Valve Time..." - us Blum

johnlgalt
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So, I assume, then, that this

So, I assume, then, that this is still in dev, or is it being released as a ready to go?

I had no problem extracting the ZIPped version of 2.x over the 1.17 install previously, everything works fine as it replaces the files it needed to work.

however, one that installs from scratch would be nicer....

I'll go looking around for it in the Beta forums. I'd love to test it out from my side....

__

JG

thesupremecommander
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Still in Dev

It's ready to go, but it's a standard Development Test until said otherwise. The only improvements over the method which you mentioned are the language switching and the options in the Data directory. Otherwise it's basically the same.

The one thing that I have to figure out is the name and application ID of 2.x. That way it doesn't conflict with 1.x on the same drive. Right now they're both KeePass 2 Portable. I assume that I should change them to KeePass Professional as John said above, though.

My Dev Tests: ~ KeePass Pro Portable (awaiting .NET directory) ~ FreeCol Portable (needs testers)

"... proving to everyone that we are operating on Valve Time..." - us Blum

John T. Haller
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KeePassProPortable

Please use KeePassProPortable for the 2.0 version as it's a different app from KeePassPortable.

EDIT: KeePassProPortable is right. I'd mixed up the order before.

Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!

thesupremecommander
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Fixed

I changed the ID to KeePassProPortable and the name to KeePass Professional Portable. Hopefully that is correct.

My Dev Tests: ~ KeePass Pro Portable (awaiting .NET directory) ~ FreeCol Portable (needs testers)

"... proving to everyone that we are operating on Valve Time..." - us Blum

johnlgalt
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Correct. Didn't think of

Correct. Didn't think of doing that, thanks.

__

JG

Wolf S
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DisplayVersion in AppInfo.ini

Hello all,

I'm using Win XP prof SP3 and PA.c Plattform 2.0 Beta 5.

Updater is working fine - but somtimes (while running an App like Thunderbird [3.0.5]) this App asks for it's update. If I update spontaneously while my session is going on, the displayed Version in the PA-Menu remains the old one [3.0.5] - even after reStart Thunderbird [3.1.1].

Today I used Updater to get Thunderbird [3.1.2]. Now newest version is properly installed - but the displayed Version remains [3.0.5]!

So I have to change the AppInfo.ini and then use the Updater exclusivly (instead of the integrated update-functions). Right?

John T. Haller
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It's 3.0.5

Because the portable version IS 3.0.5 even if the TB inside it has been auto-updated to 3.1.2. The TB updater doesn't understand TB Portable and will only update TB itself, not the portable launcher or any config files. It's best to update using the PA.c Updater as it will also update the portable launcher (which is updated every few releases with bug fixes and enhancements) and config changes.

Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!

usbtastic
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Basic Theme Request

A really basic coloured theme that works better for very slow remote desktop\VNC sessions would be a nice feature to have.

TStodden
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Platform 2.0b5 Update FAIL

I already noted it in the release note, but it failed to find the upgrade for Firefox 4.0 beta (from beta 1 to beta 2), around 20 hours after the release note.

Just FYI... I upgraded manually this time, in case there's an issue with "Test versions" with the updater.

~TStodden
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XSLord
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Some necessary

Dit post has been moved!

[Moved back, please don't create a separate thread for something that doesn't really need saying anyway as others have said it; mod Chris]

Some necessary advise/comments about the next release: IT WILL BE A AILABLE WHEN IT IS READY and not a moment sooner!

So even if there was some indication that the final would be ready at end of juli, forget it, from experience we all know that release expectations are always postponed.

From the above I personally believe dat de next available beta will be somewhere next SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER, and the Final Release somewhere before the END OF THIS YEAR (if... Everything goes well)

So just be patient!

Jhonn
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Wallpaper Switching Issue in beta 5

If you use the wallpaper switching feature, after closing the Suite the wallpaper still changed, this feature worked fine in older versions (Beta 4, Beta 3, etc.). This issue was experienced in Windows 7 (I've not tested other OS)

lilg2
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themes

how do you make your own themes?

dhartsoc
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PortableApps.com Platform 2.0 (codename: Leo) Beta 5

I have had no problems with this at all. Isn't that nice for a beta?

The only thing I really do not like is the "Check for Updates" feature.
I find myself clicking on it at least 2 or three times a day, and it has worked perfectly.

Ok, I really do like this feature... but I am a bit compulsive about it.
I am almost 59 years old, and like Google, I think I am still a beta.

Love the platform. Love the beta of the new version. It really replaces my old ThinkPad that gave up the ghost about six months ago.

Dana

Renatinh
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Custom Desktop

John T. Haller, Could you put on the PortableApps.com Platform a custom desktop?
For example, when you started the platform, it would open a custom desktop, changing temporary the current desktop, which its files would be save into a PortableApps.com folder. And you had the option of activating and deactivating it, on PortableApps.com Menu.
Thanks.

Renatinh

thesupremecommander
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Wallpaper Swap

The Platform automatically swaps wallpapers. Anything further than that is beyond the capability of the Platform.

My Dev Tests: ~ KeePass Pro Portable (awaiting .NET directory) ~ FreeCol Portable (needs testers)

"... proving to everyone that we are operating on Valve Time..." - us Blum

solanus
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Search for Portable Desktop

Several attempts have been made to create a Portable Desktop, so please Search (look in the upper right of the screen) to find them.
For myself, I use the Cylog Toolbox, and set it to Start Automatically when I start the platform.

I think it's better in general to ask for a separate app than to add anything more into the menu. It's faster to develop a whole separate app anyway than to try to get it integrated.

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Electrolsisystem
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Portable Desktop

besides, I think that you can hide an app AND get it to start automatically at the same time.

gluxon
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I'm working on that in

I'm working on that in eXpresso. I've nearly got it done Smile

petem
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Proxy Server Support for Updater

Hi,

I use PA for my personal stuff when I'm in work (dummy terminals) but am behind a proxy server, so get 403 forbidden when I use updater.

Any plans to add proxy support?

Thanks - p.s. I love this release!

John T. Haller
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It Does

The updater will automatically use the configured proxy you are using in IE on the current PC. If a password is required, you should get a popup. If the proxy isn't configured for Windows (which also means Windows can't update itself) the updater won't work.

Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!

petmv
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IE is configured to work only

IE is configured to work only in local network (intranet and apps in local servers), so it's proxy doesn't work for normal internet connections. Internetproxy is configured elsewhere. So without this setting this just won't work for me. Sad

I suppose there are other people who has the same problem or who just want to use a different proxy than the one set in IE.

kevbentz
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Update for PA.c AppCompactor 2.0.1

The updater keeps telling me that there is an update for the AppCompactor to version 2.0.1 no matter how many times I install the update.

John T. Haller
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Beta Testing

If you had the beta version installed, it will update that (in the PortableApps.comAppCompactor directory) but will not remove the old version (in the AppCompactor directory). So you currently have two versions installed.

Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!

kevbentz
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Thanks!

That was exactly the issue!

horusofoz
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Feature Request

In the Advanced Options window I think it would be good to have an option to automatically remove 'Portable' from the end of all app names. Maybe on a tweaks tab?

Probably wouldn't be easy to implement for development tests but for official apps?

PortableApps.com Advocate

winston__35
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Bug

PA.c updater crashes everything in the PA.c menu.:sad: had to reinstall everything to make them work again. Please fix this. Sad

antonovII
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Where are file associations?

Hello,

first of all I want to thank all the developers for the wonderful work you are doing here.

I have downloaded the Beta5 and I wanted to take a look at the file associations options as shown in a preview picture. Unluckily, I cant find that options. Am I just stupid to find it or isnt it integrated yet? How do I set the file associations? Many thanks for any help.

AII

marlop
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File associations and the

File associations and the advanced options window aren't integrated yet.

Stevoisiak
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Works here

Tested the updater on my 32bit Windows XP laptop, while running from a custom folder on the desktop.

Worked just fine! No problems found! Sometimes, I wonder if we are really "beta" testing. I mean, most of the bugs are ironed out by the time you released this to the forums!

Simplifying daily life through technology

Alyred
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Folder Locations

Hi John, the new version is looking good so far.

Still no option or ini file way to change the locations of the Documents, Music, etc folders, though? Hate having to use the old and outdated code forks.

solanus
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Custom Themes have white chrome on 1st startup

I know the theming is not entirely solid, but I've been playing with it and am pretty psyched about being able to layer png files and use html colors.
I've created some custom themes where I don't use the Chrome files, and put all the design work into the background.png. The chrome files are great if all you want to do is change the color, but they need to be hidden for original designs.
In the patheme.ini file, I set Chrome=none.
It works fine, except that when you install the theme, it always shows the white.png Chrome file overlaid on the menu.
If you close and reopen the menu, it's fine, the Chrome file is not shown, and you can see the unimpeded background.png.

It's only a minor PIA, since it only happens when you install the theme. But if you can get it to read and display what's in the ini file at the time of install, that would be good.

Or, you could add a transparent chrome file, call it transparent.png, and then you would be able to select it correctly in the ini file.

Thanks!

EDIT: I just answered my own question. If you set the Chrome=custom, it works perfectly. You can delete this post if you'd like.

EDIT EDIT: But it would be nice if users could create their own custom Chrome files.

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gluxon
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What's the point? There's not

What's the point? There's not much reason for users to be able to create chrome files when they can just edit background.png

solanus
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Just another opportunity for creativity

While John's used a grayscale for his Chrome files, you could use colors, too.
With different colors and an alpha channel in both the background and the Chrome files, you could mix and match a lot of interesting designs.

A fun thing you could do right now is to make your own chrome files and replace the ones that are there, using the same names of white.png, dark.png, etc.
Since the built-in themes use whatever's in the Chrome folder, you'll customize all the color themes at once.

Of course, the MOST fun would be a GUI where you would select the chrome png, select the custom graphics folder (background.png, buttons and menu_icons), and select all the colors for fonts, background and such. But that's a lotta work for a little enhancement.

I made this half-pony, half-monkey monster to please you.

Electrolsisystem
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Multiple Chromes

The best thing to do is to create multiple chromes (hey, it works - make sure they are somewhat transparent though...), then store them in folders within the chrome folder. So when you're ready for a change in chrome, just copy them from the storage folder, and paste into the chrome folder (make sure you have the default chromes saved somewhere too!), and you have an instant change within all your themes.

Also, PortableApps only makes so many pixels of the pink corners transparent. Make sure that you don't have too many corner pixels, or they will partially be pink, and partially transparent. That's the only hazard for creating your own chromes.

Well, that, and keeping the windows the same size.

gahamt
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A new Beta every couple of weeks?

I thought we were supposed to be getting a new Beta "...every couple of weeks..."! It's been a month since the last one. What news?

thesupremecommander
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Coming

It's still coming, but John is (probably) taking it more slowly, since now you can get the Beta instantly when it comes out with the Updater.

I don't think he'll be announcing before it is released; he'll probably just release it when it's ready and avoid release dates like the plague.

My Dev Tests: ~ KeePass Pro Portable (awaiting .NET directory) ~ FreeCol Portable (needs testers)

"... proving to everyone that we are operating on Valve Time..." - us Blum

Bob Bagwill
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doesn't react appropriately to read-only drive

I accidently mounted my IronKey drive read-only. I had to kill PA with the task manager, because it wouldn't quit without updating some files. IMHO PA should
detect at launch whether the drive is read-only and do the right thing.

Bob Bagwill

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+1 on this

Although most apps need to be able to write to the disc anyway, I second this. Read-only mounts (or insufficient rights on portable NTFS drives) do happen. As well as people trying to copy everything to a CD and trying to run it from there.

I’d suggest that the menu somehow alerts the user that it is running in "read-only" or "live" mode, i.e. by a message or changing colors. The ultimate goal, of course, would be detecting which applications can run in "live mode" (don’t we have some info about that in appinfo.ini?) and greying out all other menu entries. Smile

For the "insufficient rights on NTFS drives" problem, I’d also wish for a solution. Having to kill the app sounds somewhat … wrong. Maybe the menu could somehow detect if it can write to it’s INI file and skip this step on exit? An alert like above mentioned would also be nice — I recently ran into exact this situation, tried to run ThunderBird and that also freaked out. Had to kill both TB and PA Menu — which cannot be expected from a beginner, so they might just disconnect the drive and mess it up even further!

John T. Haller
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NTFS Rights

If this happens, the drive was prepared incorrectly. To solve it, while logged in as an admin, right click on the drive and select the security tab. Click Edit. Click Add and type in Everyone. Once added, set Everyone to Full Control - Allow. Then remove all other groups or usernames. Then click Apply.

Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!

Moonbase
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So true. But impossible

So true. But impossible (without safe mode admin rights) on Win XP Home, and impossible without rights to "take over" ownership, sometimes. (Mostly seen on restricted-rights school computers when you unexpectedly have to teach a course and no one can tell you the Admin password. Sigh.) See my other post.

Unfortunately, some drives are still shipped with an NTFS file system set up "badly" for our intended use. Otherwise you’re right, of course. It’s all about preventing users from dumb errors and unforeseen situations. Wink

Bogolha
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2.0 Beta 5

It works just fine. Thanks for another great release.
Keep on going! Wink

Ricardo Santos

Electrolsisystem
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New Beta Sometime soon?

I hope so. It's been well over a month since the last beta release.

Starport592
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THIS IS AWSOME!

This is looking realy good! I mean extremely good like Chuck Noris just shook your hand and you DIDN'T explode kinda good! I know that a theme switcher is already being implemented, but I have recently released a beta of my new program, "PortableAppsThemes" I know that since you have already decided on intergrateing a theme system into your program, maybe you could have a look. It's in DoS code, so I don't know what good it'll do you, but whatever. Also, the new menu layout is impressive. It destroys the old layout, and change is good! I have download the beta and I am planning to skin the new themes provided in the Beta, with full credit and support for the current stable version of PA.c. for anyone who is interested. I'll put the link up, and I guess I'll finish up my project so that it'll work untill the new menu is finished. I have already put up a skin website, so I guess that's that. CAN'T WAIT FOR THE BETA TO BE FINISHED!!! Biggrin

[Language purified by mod Chris - please do not repeat that.]

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youngheart80
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[BUG] Updater Won't Update Second Time

I had not seen this mentioned yet and wanted to see if anyone else has experienced it.

Platform 2.0 Beta 5 (Leo) on Windows XP computer. When I first grabbed it about a month ago, I ran the update with no problems from my work computer. Proxy and everything ran fine.

However, since that first run, the Updater has not been able to update anything. Thus far that would be:
Firefox 3
Firefox 4
GIMP
Chrome
Inkscape
VLC
Toucan
Notepad ++

There's probably a few others.

Planned Troubleshooting:
1. Reinstall platform over the top of current install and running update.
2. Reinstall platform fresh (delete old version); same.

Any one else see this or have any suggestions for troubleshooting?

youngheart80
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Troubleshooting Follow-up

Neither reinstall, or delete and fresh install had any effect. Which is kind of odd. I'm wondering if something has changed on our proxy here at work since the last time I updated.

I will try it on my home Window XP and Windows 7 comps tonight.

Chris Morgan
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[In PR4] Locale corrections

In the shift to Unicode, it seems almost all of my list of locale corrections from 2.0 Beta 4 were lost. At least Vietnamese was fixed Smile

  • Luxembourgish does not have a locale ID assigned by Microsoft. Its LocaleID should probably be changed from 1033 (English) to 9999 (like Sundanese). (There are "French - Luxembourg" and "German - Luxembourg" in Microsoft's list, but I believe this "Luxembourgish" to be quite separate from both of these from a brief look in the files.)
  • Belarussian is a misspelling of Belarusian and should be renamed to that (including the LocaleWinName).
  • Farsi has a LocaleCode3 of "per/fas" which should be cut down to just "fas".
  • Sundanese has an invalid double line break in its last string (Vietnamese has been fixed!).
  • Simplified Chinese has a LocaleID 936 which is actually its codepage (and not even that is significant any more with Unicode); it should be 2052.
  • Filipino has its LanguageCode, LocaleCode2 and Localeglibc all set to "fil" where they should all be "tl".

Now there are three more changes to make.

  • SerbianLatin's LocaleWinName should be LANG_SERBIANLATIN, not LANG_SERBIAN.
  • Serbian should have a LocaleID of 3098 (Cyrillic) instead of 2074 (Latin). Also its LanguageCode, LocaleCode2 and LocaleCode3 are in Cyrillic rather than Latin characters (looked like cp to me, I didn't notice at first that it was actually ср, it was only when I thought to myself that the n in срп looked funny that I twigged). The same values as SerbianLatin, (sr, sr and srp) are what it should be (the ISO-639 tables don't split Serbian between Latin and Cyrillic alphabets).
  • Galician: LocaleID should be 1110, not 3082 which is SpanishInternational's (this is a regression, not sure how it happened)

I also observe that LocaleName didn't get into Beta 5 after all. Just a reminder for when it does go in that it's the filename except for PortugueseBrazilian which is PortugueseBR, ChineseSimplified which is SimpChinese and ChineseTraditional which is TradChinese. (I have it noted in a comment in the PAL manual source but not in a thread here ever.)

(Before I could produce this report I had to get my table-generating script to work with the Unicode files. Not as easy as it might have been - like most things, Python doesn't support UTF-16LE very well. UTF-8 is so much better.)

Thanks Smile

Edit: more problems with Serbian added to the list

I am a Christian and a developer and moderator here.

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

meric
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Out of space when installing mulitple apps

I was downloading and installing mulitple app updates and got an insufficient space message. The installer continued to try and plow thru the rest of the installations. The Cancel was not enabled to stop it.

On another note, it would be nice to have the select all, deselect all and reverse selection buttons on the application list of the updater.

katcrepes
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Updater Tweak & Larger Fonts?? etc.

Hello! Good day.

First off... THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for the Updater!! Biggrin

Second, I have a few questions/suggestions that I will respectfully submit. (Please say what you think.) Smile

A. Is it possible to have extra large fonts? Or a way to set the font size of the PA menu manually?? (I was trying to use the Magnifying Glass app to see if that would work, but I wasn't successful.)

B. About the PA Updater, my suggestion is for the part about Get[ting] More Apps. Is it possible to have the PA Updater present users with a list where they can simply check off what they want installed (& the Updater downloads & installs it automatically)?

The list could be just of available programs, or it could have extremely short descriptions you can see with a mouse over. The descriptions will, of course, be much shorter than what's on the page to which Get More Apps links. For example, Open Office could be productivity suite (or something like that), so it gives users an idea of what it is, if they don't already know.

My reason for this tweak, if it is possible & not too much of a headache to do, is that it might make reinstallation easier, if something happens to the drive (e.g. virus, unrecognizable, etc.). (Perhaps, the backup function takes care of this already; I'm not sure.)

Installation might also be easier, instead of going to each page, clicking download, waiting for the Sourceforge page, & then okaying the install. It was very time-consuming, even on broadband (but mine is low speed) & I was just wondering, if there were a way to reduce that.

C. Also, is it possible to develop a way to install all the apps you want at one time? Or that you can set it to install one app at a time?

D. Will PA eventually just offer the Platform by itself (especially if my suggestion from be is implementable)? OR offer a way to update components/apps in the suite so that outdated apps are not downloaded?

Something like this, if it is doable/practical, may save bandwidth.

My question about the different suites is: Why offer them when they may already contain outdated apps? (particularly for users who didn't download the suite when it was just released)

Those are just a few thoughts. I hope they are food for thought and that I am not being redundant.

--Kei

P.S. I IN NO WAY mean to sound negative in my post or for it to appear that I am tearing down anyone's work in any way. (I am not a tech person, so I'm not throwing stones. Smile )

solanus
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Welcome to Portable Apps!

A. This is up to John, but I think it's a good idea.
B. It will be implemented in the next beta, but you can do it now at a command line: https://portableapps.com/node/24931#comment-157943
C. In the updater, you can check off the ones you want to update, all of them, some of them, or just one.
D. There's always been an option to download "Platform Only". Once you do that, run the updater as per B. above, and select what you want to install.

I agree, the suites are an outmoded way of distributing apps. The updater is a far better way.

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katcrepes
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Thanks!

Hi solanus! Thanks for the response. ^_^ I had B in mind for all of my questions, which you answered. (Sorry I was not clear enough!)

For D, yeah the platform by itself has been offered for a long time. I've used PA on & off for at least a year.

What I meant by the Platform Only (no suites offered) was as a future consideration. Or if suites will be offered that there is a way for them to provide the latest updated apps, so that users wouldn't have downloaded outdated ones first & then have to use the updater.

---------------
I will really hope for A (font setting). I do have it on Large Fonts right now.... but large is still a little too small. It's sort of an accessibility issue. I have no issue being closer to the screen, though. (My eyes have always been bad--even with new lens from the doctor. With glasses, my best vision is around 20/30 - 20/35 or so. Near-sightedness is a pain. ~lol~)

It is minor, though, because the app I use the most (Firefox) I can adjust, so I'm glad for that.

Also, I was wondering: Is there were a way to adjust the length of the menu?(to show more/less apps)

Take care & thanks again! Smile

--Kei

qwertymodo
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3rd party update support

I had a thought the other day about how the updater could be made to support 3rd-party apps in such a way that it would be totally self-contained to the app itself, allowing developers to provide their own updates without having to be added to the updater's database. Basically it would just involve adding a new line in the AppInfo.ini pointing to a URL which contains the update info for just that app (it could be a simple .ini file containing the latest version number and the direct download URL or whatever format you currently use for the update database. So basically, if that line in AppInfo.ini isn't present, the updater just tries to update that app using the default database, but if there IS a URL provided, the updater downloads that .ini and parses it to determine if there is an update to that app or not, and gets the download link. That way, 3rd-party developers can host their own update data, and update it themselves without going through you to add the update to the updater database. I'm kind of tired at the moment and may have explained this poorly, or redundantly, I don't know, but basically something like this:

AppInfo.ini

[Version]
PackageVersion=
DisplayVersion=
UpdateURL=http:\\product.website\update.ini

update.ini

[AppIDCodeGoesHere]
CurrentVersion=
DownloadURL=

That way the entire update process could be entirely controlled by the developers without any intervention from you. Just a thought. Also, if you already have something like this in the works (like you have with pretty much all of my other awesome ideas...) then great Smile

PS Perfect timing getting the updater out this summer. My sister headed off to college this past month with no computer and last Christmas I bought her an external HD and loaded it up with PortableApps so she can have her office suite, photo editor, music library, etc. with her despite not having a computer of her own. The updater means she can keep up to date without me having to do it manually for each app Smile

Also, I read earlier in this thread about people asking if there was a way to permanently disable updates for a particular app, but it turned out they just had an invalid configuration so it doesn't really tell me whether or not you can do that? Is it possible to disable updates for an app? My sister will be using Songbird Portable instead of iTunes for all of her music but she also has an iPod which she wants to sync to and the iPod plugin was abandoned after 1.2, so I want to keep her on that version, and she would probably forget and just update everything all together... I don't care if it's a hacky workaround like renaming the app folder and manually messing with AppInfo.ini, I just need to know if it's possible. Thanks Smile

Quamquam omniam nescio, nec nihil scio.

John T. Haller
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Some Issues

I've been considering exactly that, as a matter of fact, right down the the INI key you're using. The issue is that there are a couple snags with the approach. The first is that it slows down the update process quite a bit as opposed to a single INI with downloading them all individually (with the subsequent DNS lookups, download, and then process them into the array we build for the updates). That's not a huge deal, but does complicate things a bit. The bigger issue is viruses. We scan every update from every publisher including 3rd parties who host themselves for viruses and malware before adding them to our database. If we switched to 3rd party updates, we'd lose that ability, and someone could download a non-database app, scan it, and it works just fine... then when they update, the new version has something nasty in it but it's missed since the user didn't scan it. I considered bringing ClamWin into this loop, too, which could mitigate some of these issues. But that again introduces the time issue.

The main reason we have so many apps outstanding is that we have a major overhaul of the site, app directory, updater, etc just about ready. It automates a lot of this process. Hopefully by next month-ish, everything should be live and start to alleviate the backlog.

PS - With Songbird, the plugin wasn't abandoned. It's just not included anymore. You're supposed to be able to add it to the current version and it should still work. It's just not being updated with newer iPod support, so if she does a firmware update on her current iPod, it could stop working.

Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!

Chris Morgan
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Not really issues

I had in mind some optimisations for a distributed update system, which would particularly benefit publishers who publish multiple apps, by having the INI file apply for the entire publisher, so the Updater detects http://example.com/update.ini in App A and App B and just gets it once. You probably thought of that too, I imagine. That would benefit developers here who have a lot of DTs; they could have a simple ini file which would deal with the updates.

Handling of mirrors could also be specified in the updater.ini format. That'd need a bit of thinking about to do it well, though.

The security is the biggest thing with it though, as you said; I reckon requiring a checksum should be sufficient. The onus is still on the publisher for providing the valid update - but then, the onus was on the publisher to provide the app in the first place; it's just that this has the system download it and install it rather than the user (though the user still initiates the action - unless we later allow for entirely automatic updates). So I really don't think we need to be all that worried about it past a checksum.

I was planning on trying implementing it and seeing what I ended up with after 2.0.

Any further discussion of this should go in a new thread, I think.

I am a Christian and a developer and moderator here.

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

qwertymodo
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Nice to hear :)

Yeah, Chris I did have that exact same thought for multiple apps in a single update.ini, something like

[AppIDCodeGoesHere]
CurrentVersion=
DownloadURL=
MD5=

[AnotherAppIDCodeGoesHere]
CurrentVersion=
DownloadURL=
MD5=

...and yes, a checksum should be in there too.

And John, I've tried adding the iPod plugin to the latest SB and it won't allow it (it says it's for an older version of SB and won't install). They got tired of keeping up with Apple's API obfuscation and open-sourced the plugin, then stopped working on it, and so far as I know nobody's picked it up. So at the moment it pretty much is abandoned, sadly (again, so far as I know... unless you know of something I don't?).

Quamquam omniam nescio, nec nihil scio.

tech.freak243
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password feature

maybe an option to make a password to actually open up the menu.just to make it more secure and less of a way for your people to take the drive and see the menu

Jimbo
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what would be the point?

Open up Windows Explorer and, hey look, there's all the contents and documents laid out for anyone to see.

All that a password on the menu does is make people think that they have some form of protection, when in reality there is none. If, on the other hand, all you actually want is to believe that you're covered when you're not, then I'm sure I could offer you some very cheap insurance deals on your home and car Wink

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Folder/Category feature?

Where is the feature for Folder or Categories?
I havent been able to find it or is it still not enabled in beta 5?

Thanks

solanus
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Install a New App Issue

I've noticed this with the last few versions of the platform.

If you use the Install a New App, you get a dialog box that allows you to browse for the .paf.exe you want to install. If you click anywhere outside of that dialog box before you select something, both the box and the menu disappear.
After that you can't get them back. If you click the PA icon, either in the tray or the taskbar, they appear for a split second and disappear immediately. Same thing if you use Task Manager to switch to it.
If you use Alt+Tab, you don't see the PA Menu or the dialog box, so you can't use that to switch to it. (Note that normally Alt+Tab allows you to switch to the menu even when it's minimized).
The only way to get out is to force the menu to close, and restart the menu.

Can this be fixed? It would even be OK if the dialog box would cancel if you click outside of it, because you wouldn't be stuck; but ideally, you should be able to switch back to them at will.

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PatPeter
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Suggestion: Downloads and Favorites

I really need to stop using Google, it keeps sending me to outdated threads.

----

I think a folder that PortableApps misses is Downloads (\Documents\Downloads), which is inherent in most default Linux distributions along with the current generation of Windows (Vista/7). I would even place Downloads above Music/Pictures/Video because of its importance. I never access any of these three folders, because quite frankly I never have a need for them. Videos would run up the space on my drive quick, music I simply use YouTube or my MP3 player, and pictures I only use for Java programs.

But I download something every day from Firefox, and I always have to click into the directory.

Secondly, under Music/Pictures/Video it would be nice to have a Favorites button that expands into a menu of a user's favorite locations on the flash drive. I have some of my main documents seven directories into my flash drive and I hate using a Windows shortcut that breaks sometimes when the drive letter changes.

John T. Haller
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Downloads Bad Idea

Generally we recommend downloading to the local PC. Downloading to a flash drive will cause all apps to basically stall whenever writing is done. That's the whole reason we don't have a Download directory.

Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!

solanus
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Even better

Even better would be the ability to change the name and path of these folders.
I agree that I don't see the need for specific Music or Video folders. I typically used to use the Explore or Documents folders only. If it was possible to change the name and path using the ini file, then you could set them to the folders that you DO use.

I say "used to use" because now I use my Q&D folder shortcuts that you can place in the left-side menu. You can read about it here https://portableapps.com/node/20498
or go to my homepage for a paf.exe package.

Still, I'd rather that the menu do the work... Wink

I made this half-pony, half-monkey monster to please you.

PatPeter
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RE: Downloads and Folders

Ah, I've never noticed that Downloads lag up the flash drive, or at least I've noticed but figured, "hey, it's a flash drive", I get the same level of lag whenever I try to create a new bookmark in Firefox.

I would instead propose that the order would go as such:

Explore
Documents
Add Folder

Then every time a user clicks Add Folder it adds a folder to the right side, each of which can be customized as per other requests. Then you just have to account for how many folders can display, and what to do with folders that cannot (display).

In this case, I would either have a scroll on the folders similar to the program menu, or an expanded menu designated by an arrow under the last displayed folder.

solanus
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[BUG] PAM locks up during Installs if focus lost

Yes, this is a bit of a bump, but I figured I should title this post with [BUG], so that maybe someone might confirm this.

PAM Locks Up During Installs If You Click Somewhere Else:

If you use the Install a New App, you get a dialog box that allows you to browse for the .paf.exe you want to install. If you click anywhere outside of that dialog box before you select something, both the box and the menu disappear.
After that you can't get them back. If you click the PA icon, either in the tray or the taskbar, they appear for a split second and disappear immediately. Same thing if you use Task Manager to switch to it.
If you use Alt+Tab, you don't see the PA Menu or the dialog box, so you can't use that to switch to it. (Note that normally Alt+Tab allows you to switch to the menu even when it's minimized).
The only way to get out is to force the menu to close, and restart the menu.

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Chris Morgan
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Correct

That also applies with uninstallation, a bug I noted some time ago. I believe it'll be the same issue.

I am a Christian and a developer and moderator here.

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

solanus
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Thanks

Thanks

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Phr3aker
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Download link is broken.

I've downloaded his beta previously and i have to say that you've done an excellent job, however, I wish to re-download it but the file seems to be missing, according to sourceforge that is. Is there a reason for this?

Chris Morgan
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?

What link are you talking about? The download link is working fine.

I am a Christian and a developer and moderator here.

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

Phr3aker
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Hmm.. not for me. This is

Hmm.. not for me. This is interesting. I'll keep trying if no one else is having the same problem as me.

Coder Steve
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Wow! "Check for Updates" is HOT!!

I just donated $10. Best $10 I've spent on software in a while!

If I still knew now what I knew then...

Gnard Smasha
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Hide the Taskbar icon?

Is this being worked on for Win7 Ultimate? I JUST downloaded the newest version and aboslutely LOVE the entire package. My only concern is the icon won't go away from the taskbar and stay in the systray like it does(did?) on WinXP. I'm a very minimalist person when it comes to my computer, and have very few icons on the taskbar(and none at all on the desktop). Can't wait for this to be fixed.

The updater is an awesome thing, the only issue I have with it is with uTorrent. uTorrent updates itself regularly, but the updater reverted it back to another version. Could this be because the update for uTorrent was a beta version?

Any way, keep up the excellent work! I've been using this since the very first release, and can't imagine NOT having it now!

[Edit: Can't spell.]

Chris Morgan
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By design

The taskbar icon is by design due to the way Windows 7 changes the tray. See Disable the Windows 7 Taskbar Icon for how to disable it.

I am a Christian and a developer and moderator here.

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

Gnard Smasha
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Thank you, thank you, thank

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just what I was wanting it to do.

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Updater didn't detect Java 6

Wasn't exactly sure where to post this, as I'm not sure whether this is a problem with the Java release or the updater.

I ran the updater this morning, the new versions of Task Coach and uTorrent detected and updated fine, but Java 6 update 22 was not detected. I know I had the previous version installed though, because when I manually ran it the installer had to go through the uninstall process of the older version.

Chris Morgan
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Again...

Please read all of a thread before ever commenting on it. Often it will have already been addressed.

It's been asked and answered twice.

I am a Christian and a developer and moderator here.

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

Ken Herbert
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Sorry, My bad

I'm at work so I didn't have the time to re-read the whole thread.

scriptdaemon
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Ampersands in the app name.

When an app contains an ampersand (&), the menu doesn't display it (the ampersand) and it underlines the next character. From my experience, this is how one usually tells the UI that he/she wants a shortcut key.

Chris Morgan
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Installer too

To add to that, the installers also get messed up significantly. I think the issue is too wide-spread and too much an issue in Windows itself to deal with properly.

I am a Christian and a developer and moderator here.

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

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