Installation only to a single IDE?

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uko
Posts: 25
Joined: Thu May 29, 2008 2:14 pm

Installation only to a single IDE?

Post by uko »

Hi,

I have installed Delphi 5,7, 2007 and madExcept 2.7. Now for Delphi 2009 I need madExcept 3 but if I install the latest madCollection all IDE's are going to use madExcept 3. But to be able to compile older projects at least Delphi5 and 7 should stay on madEcept 2.7 (cause of custom exception handlers). So how can I tell the installer not to override current installation for Delphi5 and 7 ?

best regards,
Ulrich
madshi
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Post by madshi »

Hi Ulrich,

sorry for the very late reply!

There are 2 ways to install madExcept 2 and 3 at the same time:

(1) Install madExcept 2. Copy the madCollection root folder under the name "madExcept 2". Then install madExcept 3. Copy the madCollection root folder under the name "madExcept 3". Now you can at any time switch between the two madExcept versions simply by replacing the madCollection root folders. The package names and paths are the same, so Delphi won't mind. However, you can only switch the folders if no Delphi/BCB IDE is running.

(2) You could install both versions into separate folders in such a way that madExcept 2 is installed into Delphi 5/7, only, and madExcept 3 is installed into Delphi 2009, only. There's no automated process to do that, though. I'd suggest this: In the registry rename the Borland Delphi 2009 keys to make the madCollection installer think that Delphi 2009 is not installed. Now install madExcept 2. Afterwards delete "Software\madshi" from the registry. Then rename the Borland D2009 registry keys back to their original names and rename the D5/D7 keys instead. Now install madExcept 3. When you're done rename the Borland D5/D7 keys back.

Neither method is very nice, but I don't have anything better to offer right now...
uko
Posts: 25
Joined: Thu May 29, 2008 2:14 pm

Post by uko »

Hi madshi,

thanks for the answers. I already managed to install both version 2 and 3 parallel. May I suggest that a future version has an installer that let me decide which versions I want to install for which found Delphi version and also let me choose the path?
That would be a great help!

best regards,
Ulrich
madshi
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Post by madshi »

The problem is that having two different madExcept versions installed in the same IDE would end up in a catastrophe, because both are using the same BPL names, the same "yourProject.mes" file, the same registry keys for storing default values etc. I always intended madExcept 3 to *replace* madExcept 2, so I designed madExcept 3 in such a way that it reuses all madExcept 2 resources etc. If I really wanted to make madExcept 2 and 3 to be totally independent, I'd have to change a lot of things in both madExcept 2 and 3, and to be honest, I don't want to spend any more time on madExcept 2.

Offering a choice into which Delphi/BCB version madCollection should be installed might be a useful addition. Offering a way to choose the path is more difficult logically. I mean if you change the path, should the old version installed in the old path be uninstalled before installing the new version in the new path? If it's not uninstalled then Delphi will try to load the same packages twice, once from the old version and once from the new version. If I do uninstall the old version then there's not really much of a point of choosing a path. Do you understand the problem?
uko
Posts: 25
Joined: Thu May 29, 2008 2:14 pm

Post by uko »

Ok, I understand that you didn't want to spend effort/money on version 2. No Problem. For me it would be enough, if I could tell the installer to install version 2 for some IDEs (D5/D7) and version 3 for some others (D11/D12).
The wish for different pathes comes from the fact that the current installer has a single source directory for the mad* sources inside each package (which is a problem when installing different versions on the same path).

best regards,
Ulrich
madshi
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Post by madshi »

uko wrote:For me it would be enough, if I could tell the installer to install version 2 for some IDEs (D5/D7) and version 3 for some others (D11/D12).
Well, I'm not even sure how to do that. I would probably have to redesign the whole installer to make that work, don't you think? I mean the current installer only lets you choose which components to install. I could offer a selection of Delphi IDEs in a second step. But which components would you then choose in the first step? Both madExcept 2 and 3? Ok, I see, you'd run the installer twice, once for me2 and once for me3? But still I'd have to totally redesign the installer logic because currently the installer always uninstalls things before installing the new component selection...

Oh well...
uko
Posts: 25
Joined: Thu May 29, 2008 2:14 pm

Post by uko »

madshi, see it as a wish for a future version. For the moment I can live with renaming / running the installer twice (at least if you don't release new versions every week :-) )

best regards,
Ulrich
madshi
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Post by madshi »

Ok, I'll make sure that I release new version only once every 2 years.

Just joking, of course! :lol:
ciuly
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2007 1:16 pm
Location: Romania

Post by ciuly »

hey madshi. we're interested in the idea of choosing to which delphi version it should install. running the installer a bunch of times is not an issue.
may I suggets that the first page becomes delphi version chooser and second mage the component chooser? makes more sence like that.
then, for each version, the installer will do an upgrade. so basically, instead of uninstalling everything at beginning, you only uninstall per delphi version (this shouldn't be too hard to do).
the flow:
- choose delphi version
- choose components
- for each selected delphi version, do uninstall
- for each selected delphi version, install chosen components
the only change I see is (if I understood your explanation on how the installer works) is that instead of iterating through all existing delphi versions, you iterat ethrough selected delphi versions. but I migth be wrong :)

let me know what you think of this. If you need help and you don't mind sharing the sources of the installer I can help you out. privacy is not an issue with me ;)

cheers
madshi
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Joined: Sun Mar 21, 2004 5:25 pm

Post by madshi »

Well, I could do that. But the problem is not only the installer GUI, I'd also have to think of a different way to manage uninstallation logic etc. That's all rather complicated. Changing all this might cost me quite some time. And time is something I don't have enough of right now... :(
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