This thread contains an outdated version of the PortableApps.com Launcher. The next release is the PortableApps.com Launcher 2.0 Release Candidate 1.
The PortableApps.com Launcher is your PAL in making applications portable. It's a universal launcher for which you don't need to write code. Instead, it's configured with an INI file (which goes in App\AppInfo\Launcher\AppNamePortable.ini), and uses a splash screen in App\AppInfo\Launcher\splash.jpg.
Download the PortableApps.com Launcher 2.0 Beta 4 [697KB download / 1.7MB installed]
(MD5: d69c24e4eb57aefd3c3d44be93b98ef7)
Download the PortableApps.com Application Template 2.0 Beta 2 [115KB download / 195KB extracted]
(MD5: f58081d20bf55c360f674e4d68b91702)
(Correct, this has not been updated yet. Recommendation: stick with what you have and just download the new Launcher package and run the Generator over your directory. I think I'll remove PAL completely from this for my next release and say to use the Generator of the Launcher package.)
To get a custom build of the PortableApps.com Launcher with custom icon and name (recommended), download the main PortableApps.com Launcher package and Unicode NSIS Portable and install them next to one another. Then run the PortableApps.com Launcher Generator and select your directory. (While you can make a non-Unicode build of the PortableApps.com Launcher currently, Unicode is the way we're headed and eventually we'll be requiring Unicode NSIS.) You will probably want the Unicode build of the PortableApps.com Installer, available from the Unicode NSIS development thread above.
Known Issues:
- Environment variables get messed up when running as admin (so language switching fails as the environment variables vanish). Due to be fixed for 2.1.
Links:
- Manual (included starting at App\Manual\index.html). Online version is a little bit out of date.
- Using the PortableApps.com Launcher (from the Alpha thread, file names mentioned are now outdated).
- Development repository
Release Notes:
- 2.0 Beta 4 (2010-04-20): Unicode NSIS Portable 2.45 build (should still work fine in 2.46 RC 2), get Gringoloco's registry plugin patch when building until his next Unicode NSIS Portable release. Various bug-fixes, especially with secondary launches. Some more work on the manual too. See comments and changesets.
- 2.0 Beta 3 (2010-04-13): Unicode build, various bug-fixes and a new feature or two. See comments in the 2.0 Beta 2 thread, the repository changesets and the manual. The manual received a lot of work.
Discussion, notification of some changes and earlier release notes are available in the 2.0 Beta 2 thread.