Can anybody tell me what I have to do to get TurboCASH listed as an approved Portable App? We have been shipping it as a portable app using Asuite forn early a year now and things are going really well. The App is open source and has been reduced from 160 Mb to 30 Mb for the portable verison.
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Good luck! (You'll need it)
ISTM that there is simply no real means of doing this - the closest you'll probably get is adding your program to the (perpetual) in development "TEST releases" list found even where the software author themselves has taken the time and trouble to support portableapps.com by repackaging their software in the portable apps.com format (see example below)
The only so-called-"offical" portableapps.com releases are those hosted (and thereby controlled) at portableapps.com - even if they're of date, and the author's released subsequent (portableapps.com repackaged) versions on their own WWW site.
For example, a very quick look shows the latest "official" (portableapps.com) release of PeaZip as being v2.6, while the author has released a later v2.7 version in portableapps.com format.
It would be more sensible if this WWW site had a prominent Wiki-style page where software authors could enter and update their entries as and when needed, instead of the existing half-hidden, half-baked forum-based system (i.e. the TEST list), which only lists beta versions and is moderated - with moderation only taking place once-every-so-often.
Something I've raised before - a complete list which software authors (i.e. the most authoritive people to do so) can add and update their entries as new releases are made. It would be trivial to setup; package name, status, link, etc. and would give people looking for portableapps.com packaged software a difinitve directory of all that's available, instead of the existing two-list system atm.
Hopefully the new and improved list under development(?) will incorporate this ability?
So you want a list open to every one to post their stuff?
What about quality control and/or trademarks?
One thing that I like very much about this site is its high standards when it comes to portability. Other sites have (much) longer (wiki based) lists but that comes at a certain price.
Thanks to John, we have been able to keep our level of integrity and quality for at least 3 years (I cant tell about the time before I found this :)) which is a long time for a site so community-driven as ours. There has been change, dispute and disagreements, but I think in the long run everyone was happy with the overall course we took.
I know some people want a more open and faster process of App releases but it didn't work. We tried to set up a release team but it sort of died before it started so you cant blame John for how things are.
Right now we have a little less than a third of all our Apps coming from active developers from this community. I believe and hope that this number will grow and I know there will be Apps from other sources here as well. Those things just don't happen overnight.
Regards - Simeon
PS: Sorry for going so off-topic here - I just had to write this.
@ Philip: If you have any questions feel free to ask, there are many people willing and able to help!
"What about Love?" - "Overrated. Biochemically no different than eating large quantities of chocolate." - Al Pacino in The Devils Advocate
This is really a case where quality and quantity are mutually exclusive. PortableApps.com does not have a lot of applications - this is true, but it is the best site on the Net right now to get free, open source portable applications. The apps offered up here are enough for "just about everybody".
The beta testing list or whatever it is is embarrassingly long, I don't think anybody's really proud of the backlog. And never mind the mess with Audacity. This isn't the only place to get portable apps, and it's not all that hard to "roll your own", as they say. If you're in the small group who needs something that isn't here, there are other choices. Not all the apps on my flash drive come from PortableApps.com, but that doesn't take away from the quality of the projects they're working on here, not in the least.
Not true, I'm afraid. http://www.portablefreeware.com/ has vastly greater selection of software - and feedback from users so you can get an idea as to what's worth looking at and what isn't
The area portableapps.com excels in is... Listing "official" portableapps.com software, and information on it - which is hardly surprising, since it is portableapps.com!
wrt the "beta testing" - it's not so much "long" as perpetual - as John himself admitted in a post lower down, there's no chance of it being accepted as an "offical" release - 3rd party software is not accepted here.
Oh yeah, I forgot about that site. However, I did say "free, open source applications", so technically, my point remains true. I did not mean to exclude non-open source in that argument, however. What I should have stipulated was "legal"; if PortableFreeware are hosting freeware without permission, they're in violation of copyright law. If, however, they're just linking their downloads to third-party sites, as they were last year when I looked at them, they're unreliable. Either way, they are a good source, and there are others, but I still maintain that portableapps.com is the best. Official apps are free, open source, and they do most of what most people need portably. There are a few holes, but they're not too bad, and as you say, there are other sites.
It's like download.com vs. filehippo.com. The former hosts just about everything. Some gems, but a lot of trash as well. The latter only has a handful of programs, but the gem:trash ratio is much, much higher. PortableApps.com is more like the latter, and portablefreeware.com (and the Z) are like the former, if we consider warez and illegally-distributed freeware "trash", which most of us here do.
Also, I didn't see John say there is no chance of it being accepted. Also, it's all third-party software, except the menu... the Billy Mays caps lock, and a couple other things. Firefox and OpenOffice are third-party, too.
PS - You never did answer me in the other topic when I asked if you actually take the time to type the code or if you use a script/extension to help you get all those bold and italics codes out.
PPS - And what is 'SFA'? Usually Googling common Internet acronyms tells what they are, but Google can't help with that one. Given the context, if you'd said 'FA' it might refer to a British slang phrase containing an expletive, but the 'S' throws me off.
portablefreeware don't actually host software (this is actually pretty expensive to do thanks to money-sucking bandwith required!), just links to it.
But even linking to pirated software (which they don't) is extremely dodgy as well though - you've certainly got a very valid point there! I guess I just have a lot of faith in the opensource community to handle that kind of thing and throw out the losers - it's got a fantastic track record!
You're right about John though - AIUI a full list is in the pipeline, though when it'll appear. and what it'll look like, is yet to be seem. I'm certainly looking forward to it (well, in some ways, but not others; see my post on the thread about it)
Thanks for the tip-off about "warez" - I always thought it was just called "pirated software", but MY GOD! (Shouting in horror!) I just did a google search for "pirate software"; 66500 hits. Then I did a search for "warez". 48100000 hits?!! It's no wonder Microsoft added activation to Windows! Why don't computer magazines and commercial software producers call it "warez"? That seems to be the proper name for it?
In case anyone was going to do that same google search - and proceed to download pirated software - please don't. Opensource software is free, free, free! It's not always better than commercial software, but it's pretty good - and you get the source to! You might alway to want to check my comments in this thread about some of the dangers of viruses - Microsoft and a lot of other companies which sell you software want you to believe that pirated software is full of viruses. It isn't - any more than open source software - but please stick to open source stuff regardless - a free meal tastes sweeter than a bought one! (that's not quite the old saying - but you know what I'm getting at here!)
(btw, the "S" is "sweet", and you're right about the "F"! I wasn't meaning to be rude, it's just an expression - apologies if anyone took offence!)
Well, think of this site as like Apple, and Portable Freeware as like Windows. Windows has a lot more software choices, but a low quality:crap ratio. Apple has very few choices (albeit, more lately) but a higher quality:crap ratio, because they keep a strict control over what gets made on their platform. Same here. And as long as the development team is short-staffed and volunteer rather than paid, that isn't likely to change. The best way to change that is to talk to some of the developers, figure out what language most of the apps are written in, learn the language (hard hard hard), and contribute. Or donate money, but helping with the work on a volunteer basis seems to me that it would move things faster. I don't know. Staff will have to clarify on that.
Pirated software is probably the most appropriate and correct term. Warez is slang for wares, which isn't short for software, but rather synonymous with goods or products. The Z is typical with the hacker community, throw a Z on something plural or emphasized (see lolz, or the more common lulz).
Actually, it is. See, I don't make it a habit of bragging about it, but I've used a few "free" programs back in the day. When I was younger and all that, before I started switching to Open Source. Ditched MS Office XP for OpenOffice 3, and other such changes. Anyway, the software itself usually isn't pirated, usually it's the same 30-day trial or whatever you get from the site. What's got a virus, or more commonly a trojan, is the serial generator. Funny if you think about it. Why code a serial "generator"; why not just type it out in a text file? Why run a .exe to get an alphanumeric code? Simple, because they want, for the price of getting you a program for free (assuming the "generator" works, half the time it doesn't, and all they've given you is the trial you could have gotten legally), they get to take over your computer and use it for various tasks which are mostly above me, but they're trouble either way.
As for the free meal deal, I've always heard it that you enjoy something more when you pay for it. More specifically, when you earn it. Through work or whatever.
Anyway, dude, if you want some free advice, as much as you knock JTH for "not being open to criticism", I think (but can't say for sure) if you kept it to one topic, and kept it relatively civil, rather than hijacking topics such as this one, your criticism would be more readily accepted, taken seriously, and possibly answered. You accused him of making an ad hominem post about you. For those who don't want to look it up, it means attacking someone personally to discredit them, without actually touching the issues (e.g. to say "You pirate software, so your opinion on Portable Firefox is moot" or something). Now that may be, partially, but this project is his baby (as you said in another topic) and it probably burns him more than he's letting on to see you attack it in every other topic. Keep it to one, and I'm sure you'll be more welcome. Anyway, an ad hominem post is nothing compared to rampant Internet trolling - if that's what you're going for, I'm sorry to say, but your days will be numbered here. If not, please consider what I've said. I have nearly infinite patience for folks on the Internet, but the same can't be said of most others, including those wielding the banhammers.
No - only stuff which is packaged in the portableapps.com format, and conforms to what spec there is for it.
wrt quality control - in the world of opensource software, software is judged by what it does, and how well it does it. Where commercial software is concerned, it's about how much your advertising budget is.
That's what gives opensource software such a major advantage over commercial software!
Don't you think there's enough of a "community" here to be able to rate software, and feedback on any kind of a list setup? In opensource software, the cream always rises to the top!
I don't think your comment re trademarks is particularly relevant - I assume what you really meant is "what would happen if someone posted a link to some pirated software, packaged in the portableapps format"?
I can understand this concern, though:
In short, this isn't a significant issue - and certainly one which can be resolved!
(Strong emphasis on link here - it's more sensible for authors to host their own software; it's not difficult, and completely free - see sourceforge!)
Incidently, the setting up of a system like I've described sounds like what John's thinking of doing anyway (i.e. allowing 3rd party software to get listed here - at some unknown time in the future). Obviously it's to make any money for him, any feedback and ratings system would have to take the commercial aspects into account.
Hi Philip. First, I apologize for jamcomm's attitude. He's been warned for his rude and unhelpful responses and attitude towards users, developers and support personal before. Please know that he is the rare exception in this otherwise helpful community.
In answer to your question, we do not yet accept third-party software for listing on PortableApps.com, though we will shortly. I looked at your portable version of TurboCASH and it is not formatted properly for inclusion. Only applications in PortableApps.com Format that properly follow the spec will be listed.
PortableApps.com Format is a consistent standard for portable software that ensures that application and data are separated out. It's all packaged in a PortableApps.com Installer that is a consistent, easy-to-use, multilingual installer for end users that automatically works with the platform and supports application upgrades. It also works with our upcoming updater.
You can find details about PortableApps.com Format, the full spec and the installer in the Development section of this site.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
You really don't like it when people criticize, do you?
Your reply is nothing more than an ad hominem post which doesn't actually resolve any of the problems I raised in it - except to confirm the point I was making : that philipdc has SFA chance of getting his application included as an "official" release on portableapps.com - despite taking his time and trouble to support the "platform"
jamcomm, the developer asked a question about how to get his software listed. I apologized for your rude and inaccurate response (which it absolutely is) and told him what he needs to do before it's possible for it to be considered, which includes getting it in PortableApps.com Format and using the PortableApps.com Installer.
You went off on an excessively long rant about how awful everything is and how it will never be listed. You know very well that the ability to do 3rd party software is in the works. You also know you've been warned on multiple occasions to tone down the attitude. Multiple mods and users have spoken out about it and we're, quite frankly, tired of it. You're not contributing anything useful with posts like this.
Please consider this your final warning. Conduct yourself in a professional, adult manner here or leave. Disagreements are fine. Constant bashing of everyone and everything that doesn't see the world exactly as you do in long diatribes with overuse of bold, italic and bold+italic so it appears that you're yelling and talking down to everyone is not.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!