MattT Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 16 hours ago, Dan C said: They have also confirmed that these are 'execution alias' .exe files, and some third party applications don't yet appear to be compatible with these - unfortunately it is down to each third party app to support execution alias .exe files when launching external applications. Or maybe you can go back to using proper installers that put proper .exe files in "Program Files" so this isn't an issue. Why should all these other developers have to accommodate something you broke? Very disappointed in Serif right now. rvst, johnjohn, gewb and 2 others 5
MattT Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 15 hours ago, Dan C said: Windows preferred install method for applications going forwards is .MSIX Does "preferred" mean "required"? Because my preferred install method is one that lets me put applications where I want them and makes them easy to use with other applications as part of my workflow. rvst, Muldune, mark us and 6 others 7 2
Timepool Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 I know it's been suggested that we can move the installation to another drive via Windows' app settings, but I get an error code 0x80073d02 every time I attempt to do so—none of the fixes (short of reinstalling Windows) are working, so I've got the suite stuck on my tiny, tiny C drive.
eqyizo Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 18 hours ago, Scruff said: Here's how I did it: Open Affinity Photo 2 Open Task Manager and expand the Affinity Photo 2 entry Right-click on Affinity Photo Select 'Open file location' On my PC this gives the location as C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\SerifEuropeLtd.AffinityPhoto2_2.0.0.1640_x64__3cqzy0nppv2rt\App\Photo.exe This worked for me to add the exe so wacom could change the settings for the individual app. Can't say it's a solution for everyone, but it worked flawlessly in this instance. Crafty Dane and Teefers 2
Sangoma Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 The day before yesterday I posted the path to the exe file that I found worked in IrfanView, yesterday I replied to someone and suggested they try it, they replied and said it hadn't worked. I went to reply to explain why it wouldn't work in all cases and what to do, and found my maximum posts HAD BEEN LIMITED TO ONE A DAY. Yesterday Affinity's suggested paths were updated from what they were, to the same as what I had posted the day before. So what did I do wrong to have my posts limited, my disappointment has been expressed quite mildly compared to some others, and at least I tried to come up with constructive ideas. I do agree with others that going down the app route is not being ahead of the game, it is a huge step backwards in desirability, the only people being impressed is MS in their quest to tighten up windows and monetise it. I also agree with the comments that it is Serif's problem, as they made the choice of installation method. And their hands are not tied, as they could very quickly (in minutes) create a photo2.exe file that does the same as the bat file previously mentioned, and that file could be placed in an affinity folder in the programme files folder which other programmes could then use as if the programme was installed properly as a programme. It would require thorough testing on average machines to ensure all permissions/ownership requirements were met. However, the best and most logical solution, which may just restore peoples trust and confidence, would be to re-package the application as a proper programme install, and give people the option to use either. That would also enable Serif which option is best for their business. As I will probably be limited to one post again today, this will be my last post. Mine is now working, however if a proper programme is available to download, I will be one of the first to take up gewb and Muldune 2
Treehunter Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 This guy has the answer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzJlTi8b4Rs
Staff Patrick Connor Posted November 11, 2022 Staff Posted November 11, 2022 11 minutes ago, Treehunter said: This guy has the answer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzJlTi8b4Rs This will break every time that the application updates, so be aware you will have to redo this regularly Microsoft's MSIX technology stores the exe in a hidden folder that includes the version number, and that version (currently 2.0.0.1640) will change with future versions as we release patches Patrick Connor Serif Europe Ltd Latest V2 releases on each platform Help make our apps better by joining our beta program! "There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man. True nobility lies in being superior to your previous self." W. L. Sheldon
aaturner Posted November 11, 2022 Author Posted November 11, 2022 Way back when Bill Gates wasn’t even a twinkle in his mother’s eye, we used to code with a purpose (remember Algol, Fortran, Cobol, punched cards and the like?). As well as advancing technology, the purpose of our endeavours was to make life easier for the end user, giving them something they needed, something they didn’t know they needed or to improve what they already had. Given the length of this thread and some of the anguished comments therein, can someone at Serif explain what the purpose is of the switch from a .exe format to .msix and how the end user benefits? 57Hoser, Muldune and Fredup 3
Dan C Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 4 hours ago, Sangoma said: found my maximum posts HAD BEEN LIMITED TO ONE A DAY I can confirm that any new users on the Affinity Forums have a post limit for the initial period following creating an account - this is an anti-spam measure that is applied to any new Affinity account & this is the post limit you hit. I can assure you that no specific post you have made in this time has caused a 'posting restriction' and no members of the Affinity Staff have manually restricted your account, though I can certainly understand why it may appear this way. Ian- 1
Sangoma Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 Somebody might like to try this. Create a directory called Affinity in the Programme Files directory, and copy this into it (it doesn't have to go there, it runs from anywhere) It has worked for me on two machines I have tried it on <Attachment removed by moderator> Deschdy 1
Sangoma Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 1 minute ago, Dan C said: I can confirm that any new users on the Affinity Forums have a post limit for the initial period following creating an account - this is an anti-spam measure that is applied to any new Affinity account & this is the post limit you hit. I can assure you that no specific post you have made in this time has caused a 'posting restriction' and no members of the Affinity Staff have manually restricted your account, though I can certainly understand why it may appear this way. Thanks for that, it seemed strange as I had made several posts in the first day. I have just posted my solution, hope it might work for others
myclay Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 21 hours ago, Sangoma said: Somebody might like to try this. Create a directory called Affinity in the Programme Files directory, and copy this into it (it doesn't have to go there, it runs from anywhere) It has worked for me on two machines I have tried it on How have you build that exe file and what does it contain? Matterdor 1 Sketchbook (with Affinity Suite usage) | timurariman.com | artstation store Windows 11 Pro - 24H2 | Ryzen 5800X3D | RTX 3090 - 24GB | 128GB | Main SSD with 1TB | SSD 4TB | PCIe SSD 256GB (configured as Scratch disk) |
Grainger Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 There is a way to convert a batch file into an exe using the on-board tools of Windows 10/11. Officially with the "IExpress Wizard" tool from Microsoft that is included in the OS. Start iexpress.exe with admin rights (located in "C:\Windows\System32\") [x] = "Create a new Self Extraction Directive file." -> Next [x] = "Extract files and run an installation command." -> Next Assign any name -> Next [x] = "No prompt" at "Confirmation prompt" -> Next [x] = "Do not display a license" at "License agreement" -> Next In the "Packaged files" section, click "Add" and select the desired BAT/CMD file. -> Next Now you get to "Install Program to Launch", there in the "Install Program" field insert "cmd /c", followed by the path to the above BAT/CMD file (example: "emptyrecyclebin.bat" => "cmd /c C :\Path\emptyrecyclebin.bat" - put the file in quotation marks or use the appropriate paths/names!). "Post Install Command" stays on "<None>" -> Next [x] = "Hidden" in the "Show window" section -> Next [x] = "No message" at "Finished message" -> Next On the "Package Name and Options" page, click "Browse" to specify the path and name of the EXE file to be created. [x] = "Hide File Extracting Progress Animation from User" [ ] = "Store files using Long File Name inside Package" -> Next [x] = "No restart" at "Configure restart" -> Next (Now you have the option to create an SED config file if you want to load the settings again later.) -> Next "Create package" -> Next Finished! If everything went well, the EXE should be in the desired directory. Translated with Google Translator from hier myclay and Deschdy 2
Deschdy Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 Dear Affinity programmers, supporters, moderators etc, please add this little exe-file from Sangoma (above) to the next and very soon patch for Affinity Photo 2. It would be great!!!
Merde Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 On 11/10/2022 at 12:07 PM, Scruff said: Here's how I did it: Open Affinity Photo 2 Open Task Manager and expand the Affinity Photo 2 entry Right-click on Affinity Photo Select 'Open file location' On my PC this gives the location as C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\SerifEuropeLtd.AffinityPhoto2_2.0.0.1640_x64__3cqzy0nppv2rt\App\Photo.exe Thanks, I was finally able to access Affinity v2 icons to con figure properly DOpus docks.
Phil_rose Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 9 minutes ago, Merde said: Thanks, I was finally able to access Affinity v2 icons to con figure properly DOpus docks. That's great! I like turtles! Windows 11 Sony A7iii Sony A7riii Sony A7Rii Sony RX10 Mkiii Canon G5x Mavic Mini drone A partridge A pear tree (occupied) www.philrosephoto.com
Staff Patrick Connor Posted November 11, 2022 Staff Posted November 11, 2022 38 minutes ago, Merde said: On 11/10/2022 at 11:07 AM, Scruff said: Here's how I did it: Open Affinity Photo 2 Open Task Manager and expand the Affinity Photo 2 entry Right-click on Affinity Photo Select 'Open file location' On my PC this gives the location as C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\SerifEuropeLtd.AffinityPhoto2_2.0.0.1640_x64__3cqzy0nppv2rt\App\Photo.exe Thanks, I was finally able to access Affinity v2 icons to con figure properly DOpus docks. DO NOT DO THIS, it will only work till the first patch, when the path to the EXE will move (note the 2.0.0.1640 in the middle of that file path) Patrick Connor Serif Europe Ltd Latest V2 releases on each platform Help make our apps better by joining our beta program! "There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man. True nobility lies in being superior to your previous self." W. L. Sheldon
jimh12345 Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 6 hours ago, aaturner said: Way back when Bill Gates wasn’t even a twinkle in his mother’s eye, we used to code with a purpose (remember Algol, Fortran, Cobol, punched cards and the like?). As well as advancing technology, the purpose of our endeavours was to make life easier for the end user, giving them something they needed, something they didn’t know they needed or to improve what they already had. Given the length of this thread and some of the anguished comments therein, can someone at Serif explain what the purpose is of the switch from a .exe format to .msix and how the end user benefits? IMHO the purpose is to make money for Microsoft. I'm pretty sure they get a cut on everything sold through their "App Store" so they'd like every Windows application to be purchased through that channel. To that end, they'll try to herd developers into switching to their new setup package, using some combination of carrots and sticks. They'll tell you it's about security, or convenience, or something else, but in reality there's probably no benefit to anyone but Microsoft. cybertec69, PaulEC, Muldune and 2 others 3 1 1
Merde Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 4 minutes ago, Patrick Connor said: DO NOT DO THIS, it will only work till the first patch, when the path to the EXE will move (note the 2.0.0.1640 in the middle of that file path) Actually I did something more - I've extracted icons from the exe file, so I think I will be fine 🙂
Mark Ingram Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 For anyone that would like to work around issues with launching our apps from third-party applications (e.g. DxO, ACDSee, etc), I have written a launcher utility that you can place anywhere on your system, and it will take care of calling our apps, with any required arguments. Usage: aflaunch -a name -b build [args] -a name : One of the following Designer2 Photo2 [Default] Publisher2 -b build : One of the following Retail [Default] Beta MSStore args : [Optional] All remaining arguments to be passed onto the target application (must be last) The -a and -b arguments are optional, so you can ignore them unless you want to launch a different app, or the beta or MS Store versions. I have signed the exe as well, so it will have a valid digital signature. Please let me know how you get on with this. Updated: 12/11/2022 @ 11:04am UTC. Now deals with spaces in filenames. aflaunch.zip bildbaendiger, Mithferion, open_sauce and 15 others 12 5 1
jp.rioux Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 8 hours ago, Patrick Connor said: This will break every time that the application updates, so be aware you will have to redo this regularly Microsoft's MSIX technology stores the exe in a hidden folder that includes the version number, and that version (currently 2.0.0.1640) will change with future versions as we release patches This mean that we will have to redo every shortcut we have on the desk, the taskbar, stream deck, etc every time there is an update!!! gewb 1
myclay Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 @Mark Ingram how would that aflaunch.exe be used when there is no way to add those arguments in the other program? Sketchbook (with Affinity Suite usage) | timurariman.com | artstation store Windows 11 Pro - 24H2 | Ryzen 5800X3D | RTX 3090 - 24GB | 128GB | Main SSD with 1TB | SSD 4TB | PCIe SSD 256GB (configured as Scratch disk) |
Staff Patrick Connor Posted November 11, 2022 Staff Posted November 11, 2022 Just now, myclay said: how would that alaunch.exe be used when there is no way to add those arguments in the other program? we can change it so that Photo is the dafault for a as well then they will just pass the filename as the only parameter. I think that would work fine Patrick Connor Serif Europe Ltd Latest V2 releases on each platform Help make our apps better by joining our beta program! "There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man. True nobility lies in being superior to your previous self." W. L. Sheldon
Staff Patrick Connor Posted November 11, 2022 Staff Posted November 11, 2022 3 minutes ago, jp.rioux said: This mean that we will have to redo every shortcut we have on the desk, the taskbar, stream deck, etc every time there is an update!!! Yes that is correct. Patrick Connor Serif Europe Ltd Latest V2 releases on each platform Help make our apps better by joining our beta program! "There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man. True nobility lies in being superior to your previous self." W. L. Sheldon
cybertec69 Posted November 11, 2022 Posted November 11, 2022 On 11/10/2022 at 8:51 AM, jimh12345 said: Can anyone tell me the purpose of all this obfuscation from Microsoft's point of view? Just making things difficult for users doesn't stop the malware guys from getting in. I made a post with two video links so people can understand where this is all heading. This has NOTHING to do about malware. Another reason why I am avoiding W11 like the plague.
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