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Author Topic: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker  (Read 6021 times)

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Offline zonker3210

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Re: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker
« Reply #15 on: 30 Sep 2010, 00:34:06 »
Sorry for the confusion but my previous post was directed towards sbsmac since, as I indicated, he will need to modify his build configuration (or possibly his build process itself) in order to allow offline/manual installation. ClickOnce is an excellent deployment option but unfortunately it isn't a good fit for all scenarios.

Offline haroon1992

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Re: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker
« Reply #16 on: 30 Sep 2010, 04:03:47 »
Yeah I know it..
I'm just declaring that I can go without an update.
(if the version is bug-free in sqf scripting ,of course)
Very busy with life, business, and other stuff. Away from OFP for months. Not sure if I could get back onto it. :(

Offline sbsmac

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Re: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker
« Reply #17 on: 30 Sep 2010, 19:00:13 »
zonker - thanks for the information.  Unfortunately the first link just restates what I already suspected which is that while you can choose to allow an application to _run_ while either offline or online, there doesn't seem to be a way to get the benefits of installing from a local copy combined with auto-update from a remote copy.

In any case, I have made haroon a special distribution which can be downloaded from
  http://www.armaleague.com/mac/misc/squint_v119.rar

Get it quick since I'll delete it fairly soon ! :)

Offline zonker3210

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Re: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker
« Reply #18 on: 30 Sep 2010, 19:48:28 »
@sbsmac: Sorry if the links provided weren't helpful. You can install a ClickOnce from a local copy (i.e., a CD) and then specify a different (i.e., internet, network, etc.) location which the app will check for a newer versions. However, doing so is still not going to help in cases like haroon1992's since the auto-update feature is still going to face the same lack of connectivity as the installer. As I said, ClickOnce is great but it's not the ultimate solution. One good approach would be to have your build process produce two versions of the app: one of which uses ClickOnce for installation & auto-updates via your site; the other as a standard Setup project (*.msi) which can be shared via sites like Armaholic for people who, for whatever reason, choose not to use the ClickOnce version.

Just because you have a hammer, that doesn't mean that everything becomes a nail. ;)

Offline sbsmac

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Re: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker
« Reply #19 on: 30 Sep 2010, 21:07:17 »
On the contrary, they were very helpful - I hadn't seen the informatiion in the second one before. :) 

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You can install a ClickOnce from a local copy (i.e., a CD) and then specify a different (i.e., internet, network, etc.) location which the app will check for a newer versions.

This is exactly what I would like to do.  I have no incentive to force users to install from the network although clearly I would like to 'encourage' them to update from it ! The documentation is a little unclear but implies that by using the 'install from CD-ROM' option rather than 'install from website' users can install from a local copy of the files. The downside presumably is that the setup.exe alone is no longer sufficient for installation - instead users have to download the whole set of deployment files ?

>One good approach would be to have your build process produce two versions of the app

I'm rather spoiled by the convenience of just being able to click 'publish solution' and would prefer not to go back to wrestling with makefiles (particularly Microsoft's variant).   Still, I might look at what Visual Studio is doing under the hood nowadays ;-)

>Just because you have a hammer, that doesn't mean that everything becomes a nail.

I seriously considered writing my own auto-update code (in fact pvpmissionwizard already contains all the essentials and uses them for auto-update of data) but clickonce is incredibly convenient so little point in reinventing the wheel.  I think it's a fair assumption that 99% of people who play arma are going to have some kind of internet connectivity (sorry haroon!)  :)


Offline zonker3210

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Re: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker
« Reply #20 on: 01 Oct 2010, 01:59:38 »
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The downside presumably is that the setup.exe alone is no longer sufficient for installation - instead users have to download the whole set of deployment files ?

If that's a concern, you might consider adding a post-build step to bundle the files from your deployment folder into a single zip/7z/rar file. Or, as I originally suggested, create a separate Setup project that does not use ClickOnce technology. There's no real drawback to having multiple Setup projects in your VS solution...just specify custom build configurations so that you're only compiling the Setup projects when appropriate.

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I think it's a fair assumption that 99% of people who play arma are going to have some kind of internet connectivity

True but sometimes it's nice not to have to be connected to the internet while working on stuff. Even though I'm an internet junkie (everybody says "Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii, zonker!"), I do like to work offline sometimes while scripting. Also, if I don't have a net connection, I don't want to wait for an app to try to find updates online...fail to connect...and then handle the error...and eventually start up. I want instant gratification and I want it NOW! :)

I use ClickOnce for some applications that I write at work...it's a wonderful way to ensure that my users are working with the most up-to-date build of the app. I wouldn't recommend it as a sole option for deploying an app to a diverse set of users (i.e., across multiple corporate domains, across the internet, etc.), though. It forces you into a specific publishing framework and, as you've seen, it's a pain in the butt if you need to do anything outside the "standard" approach.

That said, there's no need to really for you to get your hands dirty with makefiles and the low-level stuff like that. A standard Setup project is simple enough if you have a basic configuration. Even pre- & post-build steps be configured in the IDE without much trouble but if not you can still get away with tweaking a few items in the underlying Setup project's XML-based configuration file. And given what you've accomplished with tools like Squint and RptMon, I seriously doubt that would be much trouble for you at all. ;)

Regardless, nice job with the various tools you've created. Definitely some neat stuff!

Offline haroon1992

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Re: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker
« Reply #21 on: 01 Oct 2010, 09:13:57 »
Thank you very much for the download!! :clap:
(You are such a kind person!)

Right now,I'm grabbing .Net 4.0 which is required.
And it seems its not that easy to make an off-line setup file, isn't it ?



Regards,
Haroon1992
Very busy with life, business, and other stuff. Away from OFP for months. Not sure if I could get back onto it. :(

Offline sbsmac

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Re: Squint - the sqf editor and error-checker
« Reply #22 on: 01 Oct 2010, 11:26:24 »
Hope it was worth the wait Haroon !  :)

@Zonker

I hadn't considered a setup project before - alas after a bit of digging it appears these are not available in the Express 2010 edition I'm using.  I like the idea of having dual deployments though..
1) the current small deployable setup.exe which installs from the web
2) A larger self-contained installer which installs locally but updates through the network when available.

It occurs to me that one way to achieve this would be a simple perl-script to dynamcially create a 'variant' project from the the main one, with the "install from CD-ROM" option set, then to run VSE from the command line to build both projects. (Happy to hack makefiles of my own - just prefer to avoid fighting VS over the ones it uses!).  So off to find out whether VSE can build from the command-line...  (For bonus points might as well automate the ftp  upload as well I suppose)

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Also, if I don't have a net connection, I don't want to wait for an app to try to find updates online...fail to connect...and then handle the error...and eventually start up. I want instant gratification and I want it NOW!

Yep - know what you mean :)  I've been meaning for some time now to change the update-checking to post-load with a little dialog prompt to alert users when an update is available. There's a nice article I have bookmarked somewhere which describes ways to control ClickOnce manually (*Edit* http://bloggingabout.net/blogs/dennis/archive/2007/11/05/manual-check-for-updates-with-clickonce.aspx)

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Regardless, nice job with the various tools you've created. Definitely some neat stuff!

Thanks - and the suggestions and feedback are very helpful. :)