Total Updater 0.8.6.9 - Total Commander & plugin updater

[gdpr deleted 6]

On the main window of TU (0.8b6), it says "481 plugins in the database (2013-09-19)".
Howeve, when clicking on the plug-in number, the dialog of the internal plug-in database tells a different number: "Entries: 472", while having the same Version date 19.09.2013. The number of entries should be the same, or?

Also, i would like to give a little more feedback as a first-time user.

All this feedback is regarding UI matters. Generally speaking, i favor function over looks. And no doubt, this little tool is really useful. Hence, arguably i might enter "nitpicking territory", which is the reason why i label the following as "feedback", and not so much as "bugs" or "feature requests".

1. The UI should communicate more clearly when a reload is required.
   As it should be obvious from my previous post, i didn't realize that i have to reload after making a change in the configuration tab -- because i simply didn't notice the text at the bottom. If you can't/want to automate it, I think it would be better to make the respective hint/instruction at the bottom of the configuration tab stand out more, move it to the top, or show a message box after a configuration change (or do something equivalent to reach the user's attention).
2. It obfuscates buttons/interactive controls by making them appear as part of text or part of the logo. More precisely:
   
   2.1. The Reload button (circular arrow) right next to the logo. In a typical OS environment whose style does not incorporate default button borders, this button can and will be mistaken as part of the logo -- only to become aware of it by coincidentally moving the mouse over it.
   
   2.2. Similarly, the number of DB entries and the status of whether the DB is switched on/off. How is a user supposed to know that these are buttons? They just look like emphasized green text, providing information. Again, only by coincidence i figured out that this is more than just informative text...
   
   2.3. The "reload" hyperlink in the respective hint at the bottom of the configuration tab. It looks like a hyperlink and you expect to be led somewhere when clicking on it. Instead it is the actual "Reload" button disguising as a hyperlink.
   
   What does speak against using old-fashioned push buttons, menus or toolbars? It would easily avoid this sort of confusion, and always be instantly recognizable independent of whatever UI style your OS is using.

Anyway, great little tool. Finally something that makes it easy for me to clean up the plug-ins folder and bring everything up-to-date. Oh boy, a lot of junk and outdated plug-ins have been collected there over the years. Thanks for this tool!

[Bluestar]

[face=tahoma]Total Updater v0.8 Beta 7 (revision 2)

All of the previously reported bugs have been fixed & many of the requests / ideas has been implemented as well (e.g. notification on Configuration change, shortcuts in the popup menus just to mention some ). This version also contains cure for some "Jump to file"-related access violation issues; the self-upgrading and TC updater method has been improved as well. Thanks for all of the feedbacks!

Update is strongly recommended - you can use the latest stable version if you encounter any problem! (read the changelog for more info...)

Download | 24-09-2013 | MD5 (exe): 79a3bc3bdfce67be70e5885372174b47

Changelog:

* New: Localized Total Commander description is now available for each internal language
* New: Added "Jump to Downloads" button to the Download dialog with which you can jump directly to the download directory in TC (by opening new tab)
* New: Added "Jump to the file..." item to the bottom of right-click popup menu of the Download dialog (Ctrl + PageDown & Ctrl + Up are already supported)
* New: Show a one-time-only messagebox in case the Configuration did change but the plugin list hasn't been reloaded yet
* New: You can manually set [GUI] ShowMenuShortcuts=False to disable showing the shortcuts in the popup menus
* Change: updated Indy to the latest available (10.6.0.5060) version
* Change: automatically run Total Updater after successful upgrade
* Change: improved & more flexible "Jump to the file" method
* Change: switch screen cursor to hourglass while requesting an item's online information (Addon Info)
* Change: catch the latest history file from ghisler.com when viewing details of Total Commander in the "Addon Info" dialog (Alt + Enter)
* Change: always jump to the actual item being updated in the plugin list when the Download dialog is active
* Change: show the most important hotkeys in the main plugin list popup by default (you can manually disable it, see "ShowMenuShortcuts" above)
* Change: the Ctrl + PageDown hotkey now works in Download dialog even if multiple items are selected
* Change: added Author URL button to the Internal Plugin Database dialog
* Change: added hint for the "reload" link-like label on the Configuration tab
* Change: hotkey support Ctrl + Shift + W [revised] - visit the current item's website if it exists (previously: Ctrl + Shift + Enter; no longer supported)
* Change: hotkey support Ctrl + Shift + A [revised] - visit the current item author's website if it exists (previously: Ctrl + Shift + W; no longer supported)
* Change: readme.txt has been updated (added info about the new ini entries, corrected information of some existing hotkeys)
* Change: added new translation strings to the ENG language file
* Change: added 10 new items to the Internal Plugin Database & added author url to some existing
* Change: added 2 new items to the checksum database & added crc32 value of all the previously released sFTP (by C. Ghisler) versions & some main TC versions
* Fixed: the "database.dat" file wasn't loaded correctly when using the Internal Plugin Database dialog (it didn't affect the detection functionality though)
* Fixed: missing directories weren't created properly on installing Total Commander or its plugins
* Fixed: get the active language of TC and overwrite the corresponding help files (totalcmd.chm, keyboard.txt, register.rtf) when installing it
* Fixed: error message after installing Total Commander properly, because the folder wasn't available for its help files (though its not even needed)
* Fixed: the Addon Info dialog can now be closed using ESC anytime (previously the focus & the keydown actions has been stolen by the webbrowser)
* Fixed: set itemindex to zero when pressing Ctrl + Up / Ctrl + PageDown with no items having selected (Download dialog)
* Fixed: hotkey Ctrl + PageDown changed the path of the previous tab too beside opening a new one (only when a single item was selected)
* Fixed: access violation in the Download dialog when the user pressed Ctrl + Up / Ctrl + PageDown without any actual selection
* Fixed: corrected text of error message when file(s) can not be (over)written while updating a plugin
* Fixed: it was allowed to resize the Configuration dialog below its current minimal height (586px)
* Fixed: some minor bugs[/face]

Bluestar

_________________

@mwz:
Glad it works just fine now, thanks for testing.

@elgonzo:
Thank you very much for your detailed feedback & impressions, I'm glad you like the software.

The IPD entry-related thing was actually a bug you discovered, which just got fixed in 0.8B7 - should be fine as of now.
About the GUI: I intended to create something 'unique' - even if its not that 'mind-blowing' interface, I always try to create slim & smooth graphical UI's for my softwares. You're right though, that note on the bottom of the Config tab wasn't so eye-catching, so I added an extra one-time messagebox thus the user will know a reload is necessary for the changes to take place. I could automate it & reload the list e.g. right after the user clicks on a checkbox, but that would make the whole configuration damn slow in case a lot of plugins are loaded into the list, so I prefer not to do it (maybe an Apply button would do the trick, eh? ^^).

I'm absolutely not against the "old-fashioned" menus and buttons, and I intend to change the whole GUI for a later version to a reorganized & fresh one, which would be even more suitable for TU and for the user as well - we even did talk about TU could evolve to a plugin store, its still on the todo list - but thats not gonna happen in the immediate future.
(btw I'm just silently saying that the on/off labels look like this on purpose - generally a basic user shouldn't switch it off / has no need to check its items, its just there for the curious ones to see what's under the engine hood )


Regards,
Bluestar

[CJ Flash]

2Bluestar

It seems that you made a small mistake in previous post - the current available beta of TU is 7 rev 1 (not 8).

Also I've noticed a bug (incorrect codepage), when TU is getting russian description for TC (<Alt+Enter>). See screenshot please.
[img]http://thumbnails108.imagebam.com/27781/76bdc6277808894.jpg[/img]

[Bluestar]

@CJ Flash:
Whoops, it seems I was already looking forward to the next one.
Thanks, fixed it, just as the codepage-related error (missed to set utf-8 for the content) - TU 0.8B7r2 just became online.

[Nigurrath]

Hi,
is it possible to add a filtered view of the updates only? Just like the ctrl-s command for TC. This way it would be much better to check without scrolling the available updates.

Moreover could you add an option to delete the *64 or the 32 bit version of the installed plugins: if I have a 32 bit machine thos *64 files are a waste of space and viceversa.

thanks

[mwz]

@Nigurrath

if I have a 32 bit machine thos *64 files are a waste of space and viceversa

Can't agree with "vice versa" in general: if I have the combined 32-bit + 64-bit version of TotalCmd installed -- then in Win-x64 I can use both x86 and x64 versions (if exist) of any plugin without need to swith between versions of TotalCmd.

[Bluestar]

@Nigurrath:
That was in my todo-list since a long time ago, somehow I just forgot about it while fixing bugs and adding new features - gonna implement it in the next versions.
Btw mwz is right: I could make some new option for the current [Configuration] PostInstallAction key, but removing 32bit versions is strongly contraindicated, so this won't be supported.

PostInstallAction current values
[sum of the following options]

0=do nothing
1=remove the downloaded (zip/rar/etc) package
2=remove the pluginst.inf from the installdir
4=remove the 64-bit version of the installed plugin (if exists) [will be supported in B8]
8=any more ideas?

[EXELBONSAI]

sorry for my bad english.

There are 482 plugins in the database.
Can be also with one click and re-install (ie no update)

greetings from Berlin
EXELBONSAI

[mwz]

@EXELBONSAI

one click and re-install (ie no update)

Did you try to run Total Updater (with the administrative rights), and after scan for updates ("Nach Updates suhen") mark such plugin(s) manually and press the Update button ("Ausgewälte Einträge herunterladen")?

[EXELBONSAI]

Hello
Thanks for the reply.
Updates are so perfect. In the database there are many more plugins ... I ask whether there is a possibility to install all or selected

---------------------------------

Hallo
Danke für die Antwort.
Updates funktionieren ja perfekt. In der Datenbank befinden sich noch viel mehr Plugins... Ich frage ob es da eine Möglichkeit gibt alle oder ausgewählte zu installieren

[mwz]

whether there is a possibility to install all or selected

Do you mean "To install in one click all of the plugins that are in that database, but are not installed at my computer" -- or "To re-install in one click all of the plugins that are already installed at my computer"?

For the second case, I think, Bluestar could make a checkbox "Select all" (not a big deal -- if need).

But for the first case... I think it is possible to add an option like "Show all the plugins" (with the mark in main window "Not installed" for plugins not in the system). But from my practice, it is not a good idea to have all of the existing plugins installed and activated: many of them are for the specific goals and will only create the great inconvenience for you (particulary the lister plugins).

[EXELBONSAI]

Hallo Mikhail

But for the first case... I think it is possible to add an option like "Show all the plugins" (with the mark in main window "Not installed" for plugins not in the system). But from my practice, it is not a good idea to have all of the existing plugins installed and activated: many of them are for the specific goals and will only create the great inconvenience for you (particulary the lister plugins).

That's how I imagine it. Certainly, it could cause problems (must also not be installed all at once) but to test plugins but then it is also very comfortable way.


________________


Genau so stelle ich mir das vor. Sicherlich könnte es zu Problemen führen (müssen ja auch nicht alle auf einmal Installiert werden) aber um Plugins zu testen ist es doch dann auch sehr komfortabel so.

[CJ Flash]

2Bluestar
Suggestion: please, make an option to download the specific x32 or x64 version of TC (instead of combined installer). Thank you!

[petermad]

I posted these two requests yesterday, but now I cannot see them - so I try again.

1. Make the configuration field "Please, select the directory of the downloaded file(s)" support environment variables - Reason: to make it portable.

2. A button in the "Download file(s)" dialog: "Install downloaded plugins automatically" - Reason: I mostly unpack the plugins manually - because I don't want modified language files overwritten, so I have NOT selected "Install the packages after successful download" in the config, but once in a while I just want the installation performed automatically - hence the request for a button for that purpose. The button could be hidden if automatic installation is selected in config - or it could then have the opposite action ("Don't install plugins automatically").

[Bluestar]

@EXELBONSAI:
In a future version I intend to extend Total Updater into some kind of 'plugin store' to Lefteous's suggestion (many others were also asking for this), as we were talking about it previously (post). It would need a full reorganization of the current GUI to implement such a feature, so first I'm polishing the current set of features and options to fullfill everyones need (and the base concept of the app), then we can step forward to a brand new TU.

In the meantime I could put a "Download" button to the IPD dialog if this is good to you, but installation of such plugins are not yet available (it would have to need to parse the pluginst.inf file instead of overwriting the files of the current installation), so thats still the song of the future (and calls for the development of the plugin store).

@CJ Flash:
Thanks for the suggestion, going to be available in the next 0.8 BETA8.

@petermad:
Thx, it should have support env.vars in the download path, so that was a bug - fixed in 0.8B8. About the second point, which one would be the best in your opinion - to create a new configuration key "[Plugins] ExcludeInstFiles=lng,ini,en,eng,dan,deu,...,etc" so you could safely use the install function everytime, or putting a button to the download dialog as you wrote? (although the two are not mutually exclusive, so I can implement both)

Regards,
Bluestar