[OT] Win convention question

[Richard Gaskin]

Frank D. Engel, Jr. wrote:
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> Why don't you just use an existing installation package such as Inno 
> Setup (http://www.jrsoftware.org/isinfo.php), since that will provide 
> these things for you "for free"?

Thanks for the recommendation but I already use Wise Install, the 
second-most popular installation package for Windows, with all the power 
of the market-leading InstallShield but with the option of doing things 
in much simpler ways.

But even the most powerful installer won't make design decisions for me. 
  That's where learning the conventions/guidelines comes in.

Like most intaller packages, Wise Install can remove everything it 
installs rather easily and by default, registry settings and all.

But it can't remove what it doesn't know about, and in my case there are 
elements in my app very much like cache files that should ideally be 
removed but don't exist during installation, so no installer can know 
about them at install time.

Because the Mac convention fo such things is so slackerly, it was easy 
for someone like me who spends more time in OS X than XP to consider a 
more slackerly approach to uninstall.

But the MSDN page Pat Trendler found makes it clear that the 
recommendation is not slackerly at all, so I've added code to my app 
which modifies the install log Wise Uninstall uses to remove elements -- 
now everything is compliant and I have two fewer bug reports on my to-do 
list today. :)

-- 
  Richard Gaskin
  Fourth World Media Corporation
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  Ambassador at FourthWorld.com       http://www.FourthWorld.com