michaelem

I take your point, AiDon, but the zero-byte proxy file gives me the "The file cannot be accessed by the system." error mentioned elsewhere; and call me old-fashioned, but when I see a path like "C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\SerifEuropeLtd.AffinityPhoto2_2.0.0.1640_x64__3cqzy0nppv2rt\" vs "C:\Program Files\Affinity\Photo\" ..... yes, I find that overcomplicated. The issue doesn't really affect me per se, as I don't need to call the app from another program - I simply feel Serif could have avoided the mess entirely by (perhaps optionally) offering the software as a standard install, and they should at least have given notice of the new approach ahead of time. Still, none of this has kept me from purchasing or praising the product, which is still excellent and a welcome relief from the Adobe subscription model!

The aflaunch.exe tool and the task manager solution seem like the simplest work-arounds, but they are exactly that - work-arounds. I mostly blame Microsucks and it's limitless capacity to overcomplicate, obfuscate, and irritate - but Serif really dropped the ball as well by not only failing to recognize this problem during development but also failing to warn us that V2 would be going to an "APP" platform. Leaving that info out while simultaneously offering us a nice discount to adopt early, gives the impression that they wanted to "reel us in" before spilling the bad news, and taints what has until now been a sterling reputation. The best way to restore it would be to quickly and loudly re-release V2 as a traditional .exe and avoid MS "innovations" in the future!