V2 Installer NOT GOOD, Please go back to original, MY WORK IS CUTTING AFFINITY BECAUSE OF IT

[thegary]

So, 

I posted elsewhere the problems with new installer . The SO CALLED option to install to another drive is terrible. Look that  the MESS of a directory it creates

It is important for a lot of COMPANIES and WORKFLOWS to have correct directory structures. The inability to INSTALL the APPS where you want is a massive problem for a lot of us in the GRAPHIC DESIGN world ( particularly in FILM ).

I create graphics for movies and CONTRACT to many companies. I have had two notices this morning to stop using AFFINITY file formats and migrate to AI and EPS only. This is due to the NEW INSTALLER and they do not want to USE V2 because of it. Many of the companies and scripts and backups and a very strict workflow based on where things are and was the reason i was given.

I just got away from finally use of ADOBE software. Now i have to start a SUBSCRIPTION again.

This is a two fold issue in my case. FIRST off, I now need to spend more more money and go back to ADOBE . Two the companies are not PURCHASING V2 of AFFINITY Software ( one of the companies alone has 35 seats of the software ) .So now I have to output money for ADOBE and AFFINITY if i wish to keep using it. 

I love AFFINITY Software. Never had any complaints about what they have done or where they are going.

BUT THIS IS A BIG SCREW UP in my eyes. We DON'T use ANY software that doesn't allow us a choice on where to INSTALL.

 

PLEASE SERIF for those  that are reading this and listening, Please give us the choice of the old installer and keep the users.

 

Hope to hear something soon.

Gary

 

[UweJelting]

I agree with you, Gary.

[thegary]

Hopefully there is some acknowledgement of this REQUEST. As stated above, what SERIF does or doesn't do about the installer dictates my path and 2 companies i work for.

Gary

 

[Distill7]

Seems to be a major point for large companies. They should offer exe installers if they want to boost sales.

[Designer1234]

Yeah, that installer choice is extremely a bit stupid, especially we get only an installer, not the whole app rewritten and the only "profits" we get are smaller update packages and some windows "sandbox" bullshit. But we can't integrate Affinity with some other software now, even such simple like graphic browsers, we can't create a shortcuts...

OK, I admit I was a bit wrong, but still I'm not very happy with the new installer.  

[thomasp]

Not a fan of the CAPS style of writing but I agree with the sentiment.

An 'app' that is so nonstandard to maintain will not often get past corporate IT policy. Nor mine at home, come to think of it. And isn't this new format also tied to the Microsoft store in some way? That thing's disabled and banned from the net for good around these parts! 😇

Seems like a questionable strategy to develop this new version in isolation instead of offering a sneak peek like the previous beta program to the user base prior to release. I imagine quite a few unpleasant surprises could have been avoided by simply doing that.

I'll be sitting this one out for a while.

[Gregory Chalenko]

I would also much prefer to have a possibility to install Affinity applications to custom folders, like I have always been doing with all major software on my personal computers.
The way V2 is installed, it's not just about inability to maintain a certain structure of storage or the moment of confusion for the ones who install it for the first time.
Even such basic things as configuring image viewers or scanning utilities require a cumbersome workaround.

[RichardMH]

Of course you could all stick with V1.

[Tia Lapis]

What are your companies doing with Windows 11 requiring MS Store for Updates/Installation of system components?

[Fritz_H]

46 minutes ago, Tia Lapis said:

What are your companies doing with Windows 11 requiring MS Store for Updates/Installation of system components?

General answer from an enterprise point of view:

- Windows 1x Enterprise = all Group Policies available, most of all: disable and hide the MS AppStore
- central management and deployment of all Software (OS-updates, Applications, drivers..) via Tools like SCCM etc.
- no local Admin-Rights
- special requirements for license assignment and tracking since the licenses may be revoked during a license harvesting process.

 

[Mark Ingram]

41 minutes ago, Fritz_H said:

General answer from an enterprise point of view:

- Windows 1x Enterprise = all Group Policies available, most of all: disable and hide the MS AppStore
- central management and deployment of all Software (OS-updates, Applications, drivers..) via Tools like SCCM etc.
- no local Admin-Rights
- special requirements for license assignment and tracking since the licenses may be revoked during a license harvesting process.

 

Enterprises should contact our corporate team for further advice. Corporate environments have additional deployment options which we support that may be beneficial.  
 

The Affinity Store only lets you purchase a single licence at a time, or up to 10 via the small teams micro-site. 

[John Rostron]

7 hours ago, Gregory Chalenko said:

Even such basic things as configuring image viewers or scanning utilities require a cumbersome workaround

I was pleasantly surprised that VueScan has anticipated this problem. It opens .tiff files in the program  you have designated as the default editor for Windows.

I set Photo2 as the default program for .tiff files and Lo! VueScan automatically opened scanned image in Photo2.

John

[Gregory Chalenko]

Good to know.

I used a workaround with a .bat file containing just this single line: 

%LocalAppData%\Microsoft\WindowsApps\AffinityPhoto2.exe %1

I'm pointing the third party apps to this file instead of Affinity Photo executable.

This works, but I'm personally not a big fan of the extra console window popping up in the background as Affinity launches.

[Designer1234]

OK, I must apologize Serif staff and admit that with my picture browsers app's execution aliases work well. I was even able to do proper Star Menu shortcut with small icon thanks to them (icons can be found in unpacked installer/perhaps in app folder too?)

But it's still unintuitive and requires some not so obvious workarounds so even if they work (but as we read not for the all apps) - I can't be happy because of their installer format choice.

[fde101]

22 hours ago, thomasp said:

An 'app' that is so nonstandard to maintain will not often get past corporate IT policy. Nor mine at home, come to think of it. And isn't this new format also tied to the Microsoft store in some way?

MSIX *IS* the standard being pushed by Microsoft for future software distribution, not just on their App Store, but basically across the board.

 

For example:

12 hours ago, Fritz_H said:

central management and deployment of all Software (OS-updates, Applications, drivers..) via Tools like SCCM etc.

SCCM supports centralized distribution of MSIX packages:

https://www.anoopcnair.com/sccm-msix-app-deployment-guide/

 

Also:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/msix/desktop/managing-your-msix-deployment-configmgr

 

[thomasp]

1 hour ago, fde101 said:

MSIX *IS* the standard being pushed by Microsoft for future software distribution, not just on their App Store, but basically across the board.

 

MS - like others - have done a lot of wishful thinking over the years though. Their OS is littered with little graveyards of abandoned functionality that was supposed to be the one and only solution. Let's see how this one turns out.

 

[rawii22]

18 minutes ago, thomasp said:

MS - like others - have done a lot of wishful thinking over the years though. Their OS is littered with little graveyards of abandoned functionality that was supposed to be the one and only solution. Let's see how this one turns out.

Also @fde101: MSIX *IS* the standard being pushed by Microsoft for future software distribution, not just on their App Store, but basically across the board.

Classic Microsoft.... I really hope this .msix thing gets resolved soon (regardless of affinity) Microsoft needs to stop taking customization options away from people and stop making things seem more abstract and "fancy". Sooner or later I'm gonna ask affinity to make a Linux build for the affinity software. At least in Linux you STILL HAVE CONTROL OVER YOUR COMPUTER. (I regularly dual boot between windows and Linux since some software and games run 1000000x faster) Since the affinity software was developed for Mac, I wonder if it'll be easier to make such a port since Mac is VERY Linux based....

Edited November 14, 2022 by rawii22
include another quote

[red.foxx15]

The enterprise discussion on this post makes me feel like most people are not familiar with MSI files and their preference for deployment of software.

I'm just making an observation and an assumption but .doc files became .docx files. .xls files became .xlsx files. Maybe .msi files became .msix files. sure It changes where you have been expecting to see things since Windows XP, but it is time for change. It looks like Serif just got on board early.

[fde101]

9 minutes ago, rawii22 said:

Sooner or later I'm gonna ask affinity to make a Linux build for the affinity software.

Many already have, and they have consistently indicated they have no intention of doing so at this time.

[red.foxx15]

4 minutes ago, rawii22 said:

Since the affinity software was developed for Mac, I wonder if it'll be easier to make such a port since Mac is VERY Linux based....

MacOS is Unix based not Linux based.

They are not as close as you would like them to be

[thegary]

13 hours ago, Mark Ingram said:

Enterprises should contact our corporate team for further advice. Corporate environments have additional deployment options which we support that may be beneficial.  
 

The Affinity Store only lets you purchase a single licence at a time, or up to 10 via the small teams micro-site. 

@Mark IngramI work as a contractor to these companies, i will still require a installer that works. I follow the same workflow as the companies.

We need a regular installer. Many people do. If you can do it for corporate deployments , you can do it for personal.

This is important for us to have an option. 

Gary

 

[alienfruit]

Interesting I have to checkout this .msix format and how it compares to good old .msi 🤔 Worked on tooling for the latter many years ago 

 

[thegary]

18 hours ago, RichardMH said:

Of course you could all stick with V1.

Not helpful.

G
 

[thegary]

15 hours ago, Tia Lapis said:

What are your companies doing with Windows 11 requiring MS Store for Updates/Installation of system components?

@Tia LapisI am not the IT person. But we are still on Windows 10 . Probably for a while. Backend OS updates don't come that fast. To many changes.

Gary

 

[thegary]

1 hour ago, red.foxx15 said:

MacOS is Unix based not Linux based.

They are not as close as you would like them to be

would love a linux port as well. But I dont' seem to be able to get a straight answer on a optional installer.

Frankly i don't care what is at he end of it MSI or MSIX. Just need the ability to install where i want it to go and as well as my employers.

Gar