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App Compactor and app updates

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April 25, 2012 - 4:09am
#1
markeight
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App Compactor and app updates

Hi everyone, i have a question about the use of the compactor app...
I often use it with my apps, but i was wondering what happens when a compacted applications gets an update from te portableapps site...

Do the "compression" get lost?
I think this cause the "update" (if i'm not wrong) it's a new installation over the old one, so probably the new files will be uncompressed.
Am i wrong? Smile

If i'm not, who uses the compactor...need to re-compact the app every time there's an update...
do you think it's possible to automatize all this in some way?

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April 25, 2012 - 4:38am
Ken Herbert
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Got it a bit wrong...

Every officially released app has been run through the AppCompactor, as do (probably) the majority of beta test apps.

The AppCompactor isn't meant to be used on PortableApps by end users, but can be used on other apps. For PortableApps packages if the appcompactor.ini file makes it into the final install of an app you are essentially doing nothing, if the appcompactor.ini does not make it into the final install you are potentially going to break apps by compacting files that are not meant to be compacted.

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April 25, 2012 - 8:08pm
(Reply to #2)
Pyromaniac
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Not all

In fact, a good chunk of them haven't been compressed.

Most (if not all) of the freeware apps aren't compressed, because that constitutes "modifying" the apps (and I don't think we've had permission to do that).

Firefox portable also isn't compressed either do to the licensing agreement.

And various other apps aren't compressed due to compatibility issues after compression.

And I'd say only about 52% of my apps are compressed with the compacter, mostly because of issues or because I've begun to lose my trust in believing the app compactor will keep the apps running 100% as well as it was before it was compressed.

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April 25, 2012 - 8:18pm
(Reply to #3)
Ken Herbert
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Not what I thought...

I realize that some apps aren't compressed due to not working etc. after compression (and I also have two in beta that are uncompressed due to larger size after compression) but I thought I had read somewhere in the spec and/or related documentation that apps had to be compressed (or at least tried to have been compressed) to be officially released.

Maybe I just misread something...

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April 25, 2012 - 9:24pm
(Reply to #4)
Pyromaniac
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kinda

the specifications discuss the AppCompactor, but don't specifically say it's gotta be attempted on all apps.

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April 25, 2012 - 9:54pm
(Reply to #5)
Ken Herbert
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Think I found the bit I

Think I found the bit I misread.

If you check the AppCompactor release page, under helpful hints there is a point "Only NRV2E should be used for PortableApps.com Releases...". I think I misread that point as saying NRV2E MUST be used for PortableApps.com releases.

Anyways, back to the topic at hand (and please ignore my previous comments as they have since been proven wrong), any app update that has been run through the AppCompactor prior to release will not see any improvement from having AppCompactor run on it again, and as long as each update has been compacted you don't need to worry about it.

But for apps that have not been compacted every update will overwrite your compacted files with uncompacted versions. Also as a further warning to what I said above if you use the AppCompactor on previously uncompacted apps there will be no appcompactor.ini file there, and thus you run the risk of breaking the app. So make sure you backup any apps before you try to compact them.

Having an app stop working can be fixed by simply reinstalling, but losing settings and/or data by compacting files that shouldn't be can't be undone if you don't have a backup of the file.

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April 25, 2012 - 5:28am
markeight
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Really? :S I noticed that

Really? :S
I noticed that trying to compress some apps is useless, cause the compression's already been made (as you said).
But with some other (see screenshot below) the compression is good, and the app is fully functional (or this seems to me, i didn't test still all the particular filters/editing).

http://i.imgur.com/SPkBh.png

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April 25, 2012 - 6:03am
(Reply to #7)
Ken Herbert
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As with anything there is the

As with anything there is the possibility of human error and someone having forgotten to compact it before posting. The only one who could really say for sure is the developer of the app.

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