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kflanagan
Level 3

Is it possible to have program start shortcut changable based on install options

Hello,

I am currently using Installshield express 12 and debating upgrading to a newer version to meet some install needs we have.

The issue (which I do not see how to do with express 12) is we need to be able to able to prompt a user to select one of four configurations and then tailor (or swap in) an ini file based on this selection. I do not currently see how to do this with 12, is it possible to do with the express version of 2009, or do I have to go to an even more advanced package.

Clues on how to do this under 2009 (or better yet 12) would be most welcome.

Thanks.
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MichaelU
Level 12 Flexeran
Level 12 Flexeran

It may help if you can clarify what sort of shortcut changes and/or ini differences (changes?) you wish to make based on this selection. In general there's not much built-in or easy support for this kind of thing in Express editions, but in some cases it still won't be easy even in the Professional or Premier editions, due to limitations in what Windows Installer lets you describe.

The higher editions would at least let you author a dialog to let your users select a version, but after that it will depend on the exact differences you need to program. (Without the authored dialog, you'll probably have to resort to custom actions which would likely offer an ugly interface.)
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kflanagan
Level 3

What is going on is we have an instrument that comes with software and has four flavors of features (think of it as a microscope that comes with either 2.5x,4x,5x,10x mag) and all use the same .ini file with slight differences in it (lets say the mag. key is different).

Now I would be happy with these four cases using four different installers, but we live in a world where marketing decides and manufacturing doesn't want the shipper to think. So they want a single installer that has a dialog in it that asks the end user which flavor of hardware he has.

What I originally wanted to do with express 12 was have separate features in the install (each has a different copy of the .ini) and add entry types to the setup types for each flavor.

That doesn't work, it does not like having different versions of the same file that go to the same location.

My next thought was to have separate data directories [ComAppDataFolder] (Product_Feature1, Product_Feature2, Product_Feature3, and Product_Feature4 directories) with unique shortcuts that have a working directory that points to the particular directory of the feature. Two problems, One I don't see how to conditionally install shortcuts and two run into the same problem with the dialog.

So is this something I can do in an express version, need to upgrade to a more advanced version, or go give marketing my best impression of squeezing blood out of a turnip (Though upgrading to a more advanced version of install shield might be a similar act with purchasing).
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