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Upgrade for Platform Updater functionality

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LiquidMK
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Upgrade for Platform Updater functionality

I suppose that some users wish to exclude some portableapps from autoupdate while others wish to enable autoupdate function for apps which are inside renamed directories. For those users who wish to exclude some portableapps from autoupdate it's very easy to do by renaming AppNamePortable directory. But what can do those users who wish to rename default AppNamePortable directory and preserve autoupdate possibility? I didn't found an answer for this question.
For example, in my case I use hundreds of different portable apps for many years and, forgetting by the name of the application its purpose, finally came to "Naming convention" for app directory naming, e.g.: "\PortableApps\_CAD-n-Model_LiteCADx64\"; "\PortableApps\_DevelopTool_HexEDit"; "\PortableApps\_Internet_FTP_FileZilla"; "\PortableApps\_ToolsUtils_Disk-Defrag_SmartDefrag". Such directory naming convention as "_Category_Sub-Category_AppName" gives possibility not to keep in memory what do the program named like "absolutelyimportantprogram.exe" exactly do.
What I propose to implement into Updater functionality is:
1) to add a parameter like "IsAutoUpdated=True/False" into [Details] section of "appinfo.ini";
2) Updater searches ANY directory inside "\PortableApps\" for a file "*\App\AppInfo\appinfo.ini" and checks value of a parameter "IsAutoUpdated" to make a decision to update this app or to skip it.
In this case any User can manage the possibility of app updating regardless of the app directory name.

John T. Haller
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Not Planned

Something like this is not planned and would slow down the current updater in its present form. Currently, it only looks for folders that match the AppID of each given app and doesn't even open the AppInfo.ini until it sees that it matches an existing app in the app store database. This is partially due to limitations of NSIS, the language the App Store/Updater is written in, as it is very slow in dealing with multiple INI files.

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LiquidMK
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Maybe add [AppsInstalledPath] section into PortableAppsMenu.ini?

Dear John,
with the greatest respect and honor to your efforts, I'm still asking for a possibility to make a platform bit more flexible for users. I mean to give a possibility to rename standard AppDirectory names. Maybe it would be possible to add [AppsInstalledPaths] section into PortableApps.com\Data\PortableAppsMenu.ini with variables like:
[AppsInstalledPaths]
AppNamePortable = UserDefinedDirectoryName
DiaPortable = UserDirectoryName1
...
WizTreePortable = UserDirectoryNameX
etc

This section would be only for user manual filling, the Updater just can check if this section is present - then to take alternative paths for ordinary PortableApps. This approach will preserve backward compatibility for everything that was already done and just extend platform possibilities.

John T. Haller
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Not Planned, Alternative

This would be unlikely as well. And require updating the PA.c Installer and rebuilding all ~1,000 packages we have for download.

If you'd like to label apps, you can do so within the PA.c Platform itself. Currently, you can rename them. So, you could rename "FileZilla" to "FileZilla (FTP Client)" in the platform's menu. That would also make it searchable as such. Turning on search in descriptions in the Options - Advanced tab would also make that available in search without needing to rename. In the future, you'll be able to tag and create arbitrary text entries for apps that won't appear to help with organization and searching.

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

LiquidMK
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Regret from platform restrictions

With regret from platform restrictions, I found a partial resolution for described above problem: alternate solution to the official PortableApps.com Updater - "Portable Software Updater" (https://apps.nozavi.com/apps/portable-software-updater/overview.html). This tool gives possibility for user to manually define customized directory name where PortableApp is placed.

John T. Haller
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Not Supported

That tool isn't supported and bypasses the PA.c Installers so can result in issues with apps, which won't be supported by PortableApps.com or the app publishers. It's generally blocked from downloading from our download servers. It hadn't been able to see the app database for years up until a change to our website caching in the last month.

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

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