[wpkg-users] Old Feature Request / Perhaps New Idea

[Rainer Meier]

Hi Heiko,

On 17.02.2010 10:15, Heiko Helmle (horiba/eu) wrote:
> I was looking through the archives searching for a way to find out the
> Start Menu Path on different language version of windows.
> 
> I read that you considered hardcoding all possible languages.
> 
> Well - the start-menu part is saved in the registry:
> HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell
> Folders\Common Programs
> 
> If WPKG could expand some of those paths ("Common Desktop"  would also
> be very useful), this could simplify lots of install scripts.
> 
> My dream feature would be WPKG able to expand any registry value into an
> environment variable, which then could be used inside an install cmd.
> 
> What do you think?

For this purpose I am using a shell script which is helping to evaluate the
folders I need. See the attached file (extract 7zip archive). It contains
"evaluateFolders.cmd"

To use it just call it from your install cmd script.

e.g. a package calling "install-application.cmd" witht the following content:

@echo
call evaluateFolders.cmd

start /wait "installer" ... (run installer here)

del /f /y "%DESKTOP%\some link.lnk"
...

Well, I thought about extending evaluateFolders.cmd to read these values from
the registry key mentioned by you above which would eliminate having to extend
it for each language. However I had no time for it yet...

The idea to allow WPKG exposing some registry keys as environment variables is
not new. Unfortunately it has a few limitations. For example it would only work
with "simple" values like REG_SZ or REG_DWORD types. REG_MULTI_SZ or REG_BINARY
would for sure lead to errors. Using cmd scripts turned out to be more flexible
to me, it also allows me to flexibly post-process the values fetched.


br,
Rainer
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