Copyright: (c) 1997,98 by Richard Fellner, A-1020 Vienna
Citation: INF-Tool  Setup Generator Tool


Welcome to INF-Tool !

•	You have always asked yourself how you could publish your software as easy as -for example- Microsoft's "PowerToys" - with full install and uninstall support, but using only a few KB's for the installation stuff .... optimal  for distributing over the Internet ?

OR:

•	you are looking for a tool that has the power to offer advanced setup functionality combined with extremly small and smart installation packages (that would increase your package by just ... let's say ... between 5-25 kb?....)

•	You have finished your project, but don't want to spend additional hours..days.. writing and/or designing the installation routines for your program ?

•	You want to publish your software via the Internet, and want to make the installation part of your program as tiny as possible?

•	You don't have the money to buy expensive installation software, that would likely cost additional bucks for each upgrade?

•	You are looking for a tool that makes creating an installation a task last less than 10 minutes?

•	You simply hate oversized installation software?

•	You just have to provide a few files and don't like to add an overhead of 100's of KB's for installation software?

•	Or you have a lot of files to install but don't like to use huge installation tools for other reasons.

•	You want to use fast and easy installation routines?

•	Your project will run under Windows95, Windows 98 or Windows NT 4?

•	You need "single EXE" setups? Or ZIPped distribution packages? Or you would like CAB (Cabinet) packages for even stronger compression? Or regular disks? Or splitted (multi-volume) packages which you could then separate onto several disks?

•	You want to avoid common disadvantages of  INF installations like: complicated declaration, unsupported Long File Names, unusual installation ("you have to click the right mouse button..."), documentation leaks, etc?

•	You need a setup program which supports more languages than just english ?

If you answered "YES" to even one of the questions above, then INF-Tool is the Tool for you!

It was designed for making installations a snap!

Choose from 1 of 4 distribution options.

All of them are based on Windows' built-in Setup techniques, which saves a lot of overhead for your distribution package. Huge and expensive installation software should now be obsolete!


Method 1: single EXE installation

When using this method, your files will automatically be packed (strongest ZIP compression) into a single EXE file. This "behaviour" may be fully configured by you in the Distribution options window. You can define your personal "About" text of unlimited size (which will be displayed in the window you see above), License information of unlimited size (which will be displayed after the user has started the EXE program), a customizable Caption text for the Installation window and more.

INF-Tool also offers an option to password-encrypt your package and you can give your self-extractable installation package an individual icon to show up in Explorer and the Setup window's title bar! Additionally you can create multi-volume packages (to split your package onto several disks or offer it splitted for better downloading over the Internet) with this method .... and all of that for just about 30k increase compared to a standard ZIP archive!

After clicking the "Install" button (you see it above), the program extracts all compressed files to a temporary directory, then everything is installed exactly the way you defined it.

Optionally, INF-Tool also supports prompt-less installations of a single EXE package if you are just using predefined / hard-coded directories (user-configurable destination directories would require user-interaction).

Note that with INF-Tool, you have much more options what to do -and how to do it- than in most other installation programs! INF installation techniques are "naturally" implemented in the Windows system - thus, you have many, many ways to modify your users Windows configuration and the application environment.

Suggested for:

•	distribution to novice users (what can be easier than letting them run an EXE file which does everything fully automatically)

•	Internet distribution!

•	complex installations with many files

•	if you need integrity checks

•	if your users should confirm your license agreement before installing

•	most professional looking installations

•	password encryption required


Method 2: enter "setup" and press [Enter]

The registered version of INF-Tool contains a utility called SETUP.EXE (only 4k !!) which will initialize and start your INF script. Your users will just have to enter "setup" and press the Enter key - that's all.

See more information.

Suggested for:

•	distribution on diskettes, CD-ROM's

•	distribution from fixed directories

•	distribution via .ZIP or .CAB compressed archive

•	distribution via Internet (if you can't use "Single EXE" packages)


Method 3: right-click the INF script with the mouse

Right-clicking the generated INF file with the mouse and selecting "Install..." from the popup-menu is the common way to install INF installation scripts.

Well, it's quite unfamiliar to novice users, but a really fast way especially to install smaller programs directly from the Explorer.

Suggested for:

•	more experienced users

•	smallest distribution packages

•	installations which have to be easily reconfigured


Method 4: use Windows' Software Setup Dialog!

INF-Tool creates fully Windows-Setup compatible INF installation scripts. Just double-click on the "Software" applet of Windows' Control Panel, choose "Have Disk.." and point it to the disk/directory where your INF script and the files are stored. *)

After clicking "OK", your program will be listed with a small icon of your choice in the Windows Software list and has just to be checked if the user wants to install it. Thjen, after clicking "Install", the installation will be started - including all defined options like Startup group creation, Uninstall options etc.

Suggested for:

•	novice users. Once familiar with starting a setup program from the Control panel, they will be able to do any of your installations from here - without any additional explanation.

•	installing optional components (support planned for an upcoming release of INF-Tool)

•	nice-to-view, Windows-style installations

•	installations that have to be combined with Windows-related installations

*) Note: when you are browsing for the .INF script and more .INF files are stored in a directory, only the first one can be selected. However, all .INF scripts in the folder are read. You can also type the name of the .INF file you want.


Step #1: enter Project information

Project information is entered here.

•	First, enter the desired project name (= .INF installation script name) in the "save as.." field or select a previously designed script from the "Name of the installation script" list.

Tip 1: please note that Windows only allows script names which don't extend the "8+3" convention (not more than 8 characters for the file name, INF-Tool will automatically add ".INF" to this name).

Tip 2: don't use names like "Setup" or "Install" for your script, since this could cause name conflicts with other installations and lead to problems when your user will try to uninstall one of these products. Instead, try to use names that users can associate with your program, e.g. "PopEdit".

Then, enter the following information concerning your installation:

•	Name of your Application *

This name will be displayed when setting up your INF script; it will be used in the Caption bar title and in the Uninstall list of Windows' Control Panel.

•	Version number

•	a short description of your project

•	your name

•	optional Copyright notice

•	Software registry key (can be used as pre-defined key in Step #4; the user-defined destination path will be stored here - it is required if you offer user-defined destination directories ! It's recommended that you also use it as a 'parent' key for your own registry additions belonging to your software product).

* this field is required!

Special Tool 1:  The INF File Explorer

This very special add-on to INF-Tool enables you to quickly browse and edit (reg'd version only) INI and INF files. Great utility if you have some experiences with INF files and want to explore the basic functionality of such a file which you didn't create by yourself.

Special Tool 2:  The AUTORUN.INF creator

This add-on lets you create Autorun.INF files. Autorun.INF files are automatically executed if your customer inserts a CDROM which has this file in its root directory and Autoplay is set to TRUE on his computer (which is the default setting). These file themselves can automatically start installation programs on the CDROM, multimedia presentations, menu browsers or whatever on the CDROM (a feature you will know well from Office CDROMs, advertising CDROMs etc.) ... and INF-Tool creates this file after just a few mouseclicks for you!

Special Tool 3:  The INF Analyzer    NEW in Version 4 !!!

INF-Tool now lets you open INF scripts which were not created by INF-Tool as well! This is very complicated stuff, and it works just with basic INF installation features .. some handwork to rebuild the same functionality like the original file might still be required.

Currently supported:

•	Step #2: files contained in the project, including special flags

•	Step #3: destination directories for all files

•	Step #4: registry additions

Still under development:

•	sections specified for Windows NT (.ntx86 / .nt) not checked

•	doesn't check for possible Uninstall flags of Step #2

•	all other definition steps

..and of course: INF-Tool won't (yet) read hardware installation scripts, non-standard INF scripts and INF scripts designed for Web installations


Step #2: which files to install ?

This is the central part of designing your installation script.

Add all the files that have to be installed  -

•	either by clicking on the "add file" button or

•	by dragging them from the Explorer

...whichever you prefer.

Note: You don't have to add your INF setup script, INF-Tool will do this automatically when it is required (e.g., if you use the Uninstall feature). More, INF-Tool will also add the AdvPack files automatically if they are required for your setup.

Files that can't be found by INF-Tool, are marked red in this list. Generation of Distribution archives/directories and the use of "long file names" is only possible if the required files can be found somewhere on your disks!

Registered version:

Additionally, you can define copy flags for each file via the "Properties" settings, like "don't overwrite the file if it already exists at the destination directory" or "don't include a version-check". Also, you can prevent files from being uninstalled etc.


Step #3: define destination directories (optional)

In this part, you can define the destination directories for your files - where they have to be copied to.

On the left side of this form you'll find the list of files you have selected for installation in Step #2.

The right side list holds your list of destination directories (just click "Add" to add a target directory of your choice). Next, click the file(s) of the left list and drop them on the directory entry you desire as target for these files.

If you do nothing here (and the "destination directories" list is empty), ALL files will be installed in the pre-defined "Windows" directory.

How to define a destination directory:

With INF-Tool you can either define fixed destination directories for a group of files or let your customer select/enter a destination path (supported by the registered version).

Fixed destination directory (directories):

A fixed directory definition (or the default destination for a user-configured path) for INF installation scripts consists of 2 parts:

•	a logical root directory (can be the root directory of a disk, but also a directory like the windows directory, the System directory and others) and

•	a subdirectory of this root (like the subdirectory "Fonts" for the "logical root directory"  Windows\*.*).

Each directory definition can be edited and deleted.

Example #1:

If you choose the "Shared directory" (which is commonly the "Windows" directory all users of a network have access to) and define "MyApp" as subdirectory, the full installation path for the defined filegroup will (for example) be C:\Windows\MyApp .

Example #2:

If a subdirectory of the "Program Files" directory should be created, choose the "Application directory" (Windows will "translate" this to the root directory of your user's "Program Files" directory) and enter "Progra~1\MyApp" as a subdirectory of it.

Example #3:

You want to copy some files to the C:\MyFiles directory. Just select "Root directory of the Boot drive" from the list and enter "MyFiles" as subdirectory.

Example #4:

You select a user-defined destination directory. Select "Windows directory" as logical root directory and "MySoft" as subdirectory for this root directory. You user will then be prompted to enter a directory where he wants to install your software. This directory selection will default to C:\Windows\MySoft  (if his Windows installation is located in C:\Windows).

User-configurable destination directories:

The registered version of INF-Tool allows definition of up to 99 user-configurable destination directories. This means that you can let your user select where he/she wants to install some or all of the files of your software. You could also mix both methods: let some files be installed in a directory selected by your user, and copy some files (DLL files, for example) to a pre-configured, fixed directory (might be the System directory in this example). Also, INF-Tool supports copying files to fixed subdirectories of a previously selected user-directory.

User-configurable destination directories require 4 definitions to be done:

•	a logical root directory (can be the root directory of a disk, but also a directory like the Windows directory, the System directory and others) of the suggested destination for the file set and

•	a subdirectory of this root (like the subdirectory "Fonts" for the "logical root directory"  Windows\*.*) .

•	a prompt to display to the user, asking him where to install the files you assigned to this directory definition. Example: "Where would you like to install INF-Tool Demo script?" (without quotes).

•	an overwrite warning prompt to display to the user, if the mentioned files are already installed on his/her computer.  Example: "Continuing will overwrite the existing version of INF-Tool Demo script on your computer. Please enter the desired directory:"  (without quotes).

Copying to fixed subdirectories of user-configured destination directories:

Also no problem with INF-Tool. Just select "Pre-configured destination path" and select "Previously selected user-directory" as root, and your preferred name of the subdirectory to the field below.

Using these methods, you have maximum flexibility when installing your files.


Step #4: modify registry (optional)

Using the power of registry strings lets you nearly do anything with your INF scripts !

If your Application needs registry entries (e.g., pre-defined registration data, configuration defaults, ..), INF-Tool offers you a very easy way to do that. Just click on "add entry" and define what you need !

Example #1:

In HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, at "CLSID\{042BADC5-5E58-11CE-B610-524153480001}",

a new branch named "VCI Formula One Workbook" should be created.

•	click "Add"

•	check "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT"

•	as subkey, enter "CLSID\{042BADC5-5E58-11CE-B610-524153480001}"  (without quotes)

•	since this should be a branche, just leave the field "value name" blank.

•	As flag, choose "Registry data type REG_EXPAND_SZ"  (= branch)

•	as value, enter "VCI Formula One Workbook" (again, without the quotes)

Example #2:

In HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, at the branch "CLSID\{042BADC5-5E58-11CE-B610-524153480001}\ToolboxBitmap32", the entry "C:\\Program Files\\Roslon Controls\\System\\Vcf132.ocx, 19401" should be added.

•	click "Add".

•	check "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT"

•	as subkey, enter "CLSID\{042BADC5-5E58-11CE-B610-524153480001}\ToolboxBitmap32"  (without quotes)

•	no value name is required here, so leave it empty

•	choose "REG_SZ (String)"  (the required value is a string)

•	enter "C:\\Program Files\\Roslon Controls\\System\\Vcf132.ocx, 19401" (without quotes) as value.

Importing registry files:

INF-Tool supports reading registry files into your project. Thus, you don't need to do everything by hand, but can extract already existing parts of your registry to a .REG file and let INF-Tool read this file, adding its contents to the definition list in Step #4.

1) run Windows' registry editor, Regedit.exe

2) click the part or section of the registry you want to export

3) select "Registry"-"Export Registry File" from the menu, enter a .REG file name and close Regedit.

4) in INF-Tool, click "Import", choose the previously saved .REG file and its settings will be added to the list.

Note that long key contents like bitmaps, numerous lines of hexadecimal values etc. could eventually not be inserted completely. Please test such additions carefully and especially don't  modify them by using the "Edit" button in Step #4 (where the edit field for the values is limited to 128 characters and 32 hexadecimal values).

Important, please note:

•	Registry strings have to be defined in the same format as they are physically stored in the registry, i.e., a DWORD entry needs to be defined as "00 00 00 01" instead of "00000001".

•	quotes have to be entered as double-quote

•	Leaving "Value name" blank sets "(Default)".


Step #5: add files to Start Menu and/or Windows Desktop (optional)

If a Group in the Startup Menu, on the Windows95/NT Desktop, the SendTo menu etc. should be created, this is the place where you can configure these settings. You can define the preferred titles of the programs which should be added to the menu, their startup directory, optional parameters and more.

Name of the group

This is the name of the "Startup menu" group where this program should be listed. You can either define a new group (like "Fellner Software") or select a predefined group like "Startup", "Autostart", "Desktop" etc. or leave it empty to create a link directly in the "Programs" group.

Already defined group names can easily be selected from the list.

Title of Icon/Link

Enter the name of the entry as it should be listed in Windows Start menu.

Starting command

Just select the program (the program which should be started when the user selects your menu item of the Start menu) from the list of defined installation files. If needed, you may also enter parameters for your program here.

Starting directory and Subdirectory

Here you have to define the Starting directory and -subdirectory as you already did it in Step #3.

Note that they should be defined exactly equal as defined there, otherwise Windows could have problems to add them to the Menu.

Registered users: if you wanted a user-configurable destination directory for this file, select "previously selected user-directory" from the list and let the subdirectory empty (because your user will select it ;-).

Use Shortcut Icon

If your file contains more than one icon, just select your preferred one for the shortcut here. An upcoming version of INF-Tool will also support use of alternative system icons (from DLL files or other EXE's) here.

"Shortcut level"

Here, 4 options are supported:

•	create link in the personal section of the Start menu (only or additionally to the 2nd and 3rd option)

•	add link in the "All users" section of the Start menu (any user working on this PC will have access to this shortcut)

•	add link for new users (only supported by Windows NT which offers the "Default user" area)

Just define where your shortcut is to be created. By default, it will just be created in the standard, personal section of the Start menu.

This feature is only supported in the registered version of INF-Tool.


Step #6: Modify system files

On Windows 95 machines, you can modify the Autoexec.bat and/or Config.sys files here. On Windows 95 and Windows NT computers, you will be also able to modify INI configuration files.

Offered modifications are:

•	AUTOEXEC.BAT *):

Allows you to:

•	Add to path

•	Remove from path

•	Add a command to Autoexec.bat

•	Delete a command from Autoexec.bat

•	Set environment variables

•	Remove environment variable

•	Set temporary directory

•	CONFIG.SYS *):

Allows you to:

•	Set FILES= values

•	Set BUFFERS= values

•	Set LASTDRIVE= value

•	Set STACKS= values

•	Set FCBS= values

•	Set COUNTRY= parameters

•	Set DOS= parameters

•	Set SHELL= parameters

•	Add device driver commands

•	Remove from current device driver commands

•	Delete other Config.sys keys

•	Register OCX and/or DLL files:

Just a few mouseclicks and your .OCX or .DLL files will be registered in the Windows Registry of your customer's PC! Just click the filenames you want to be registered, that's all.

•	Manipulate INI files *):

INF-Tool lets you easily modify .INI files on the customer's PC.

You may define as many additions, changes or deletions as you like. Let an INI file be created in whatever directory you prefer. Add, delete or change existing values .. and profit from the power of INF-Tool.

*) currently works just if you don't use AdvPack features in your setup. However, you can workaround that by running a secondary EXE setup after your installation, which does just these jobs, for example.


Step #7: User dialogs (optional)

Icon for Windows "Software Setup" dialog:

Define the icon for your package when your user installs from the "Software" applet of Window's Control Panel.

Enable "Uninstall" Feature

Check this option and the installation script will add an entry to the Windows Control Panel 'Add/Remove Programs' dialog. Your Application's name has to be defined if you want this feature to work.

The use of dialogs (like "Please enter where you want to install [YourApp]:") is basically not supported with standard INF scripts. However, the registered version of INF-Tool supports this feature for both, Install AND Uninstall dialogs !

Ask for destination directory (directories):

INF-Tool also offers support for user-configurable destination directories. Please see the description of Step #3 for detailled information.

Install prompt:

This prompt will pop up after a successful installation of your program.

(If you enable user-configurable destination directories, the installation will also ask the user, where to install, add overwrite warnings and more, but this one is a separate feature).

Please leave this field empty if you don't want INF-Tool to pop up with such a prompt (or if you don't want the AdvPack files to be included in this installation).

Uninstall dialogs:

INF-Tool also offers uninstall dialogs to support prevention of unintentional removals of your program: one prompt before uninstalling, one after successful execution of the uninstall process.

Please leave these fields empty if you don't want INF-Tool to pop up with such prompts (or if you don't want the AdvPack files to be included in this installation).

Add "Uninstall" shortcut to Start Menu:

Let INF-Tool do this as special service for your users.

Note:

Since dialogs aren't supported by regular Windows 95 / NT's INF scripts, this feature requires 3 newer, additional DLL libraries in your user's System directory: ADVPACK.DLL, W95INF16.DLL and W95INF32.DLL. In most cases they will already be there, since popular packages, like the Internet Exploder, the PowerToys and other utilities are distributed with these files. However, it is recommended that you install them with the rest of your software package when using Uninstall dialogs - just to avoid "surprises"...

Dialog features are only supported in the registered version of INF-Tool.

Support for the Windows "Software Setup" dialog is offered by the unregistered version, too.


Step #8: Distribute ! (optional)

When you click "OK", INF-Tool will check all your settings and create your .INF installation script.

If anything is missing or obviously not okay, INF-Tool will alert you, showing the problems.

The installation script will also be checked and/or saved, if you decide to:

Copy all required files to a "distribution disk directory"

Does what it says. This option makes it easier for you to get an overview about which files will have to be copied to the distribution disks, if you want to copy them without packing, if you would like to compress them by hand or whatever. Especially helpful when many files from widely spread directories are required.

Create a distribution package file

INF-Tool lets you compress all the required files from within the Tool , offering integrated ZIP or CAB (Cabinet) support! Just click "Generate.." and INF-Tool will create everything for you - ready for distribution!

By clicking the "Options.." button you can change a variety of special settings for this function, like the compression technique to use, archive file name, an encryption password, if a self-extracting "Single EXE" package should be created, and more.

Run command(s) before/after installation/uninstallation:

This option lets you execute up to 2 commands before or after the Setup process has been finished, before or after Uninstallation (the "before.." commands can only be used if you are using user-defined destination directories). That way you can display ReadMe files, execute your main application, run help after setup, execute configuration tools or do other things your installation or uninstallation requires - just select them from the list and combine them with a command, if necessary! For each definition you can also define a status message which will be displayed in a small box at the top-left of the screen and inform the user about what's going on if the installation runs under Windows 95. Please note that filenames are evaluated case-sensitive, they have to be entered exactly as listed in Step #2. The safest method to prevent problems is to select your preferred file from the pulldown list.

Parameters: please note that support of parameters might work only correctly if your filename doesn't contain spaces.

Examples for entered commands and parameters:

Notepad.exe YourFile.txt	if you want to display YourFile.txt after setup

MyApp.exe	if you want to execute MyApp.exe after setup

RegSvr32.exe Yours.ocx	registers the file Yours.ocx (if you don't want to use INF-Tool's integrated option for that).

GrpConv.exe /s	recreate Windows' default folders

Some commands might require that you add the appropriate Directory-ID to tell Windows where to run your command(s) or file(s) from - you can find a detailled list of available Directory-ID's here in the Tips helpfile (reg'd users).

Registered version:

The unregistered demo version of INF-Tool only allows one command to be executed after setup.


..click "OK" !

After clicking "OK", INFTool will save your settings for the currently edited installation script for safety. If you want to prevent this, click "Cancel".

AND THAT'S ALL!

Under normal circumstances, creating an .INF installation script with INF-Tool will take less than 3 (three) minutes!


modify settings of INF-Tool and options for the current INF script

INF-Tool offers the following options to configure INF-Tool and your scripts to meet your requirements:

•	checking the "Create .BAK files" option will force INF-Tool to create safety backup copies of your script and INFTool.ini before they are saved.

•	"Display messages" will popup status messages when a new .INF script was created etc.

•	"Windows98 styled buttons" lets INF-Tool use flat buttons like Windows 98 will do. Check this option only if you like such graphical "enhancements". ;-)

•	unchecking the "Display Intro-screen" option lets you disable the "Information screen" showing up when you start INF-Tool.

•	Open INF's with INF-Tool

This option will modify your registry so that every time you press [Enter] on an INF script, INF-Tool will load this INF script automatically. Of course, this will only work perfectly when the INF script was designed by INF-Tool on your computer, since additional information is only stored in your INFTool.ini configuration file and not in the INF file itself.

•	Repair INF functionality

If INF scripts can't be installed by right-clicking your mouse and selecting "Install.." anymore, try checking this option and click "Save configuration" afterwards. INF-Tool will then try to fix the required functionality in your Registry again.

•	at the options screen, you can also define the "Default flag for file copy operations".

•	"INF-Tool default language". Here you can choose your preferred language to ease your work with INF-Tool. Click here for a list of currently supported languages.

•	Check for new version: if you have an active Internet-connection, INF-Tool will check if a new version is ready for download.

Options for the currently opened project are:

•	Add AdvPack files when required

When this option is checked, INF-Tool will automatically add AdvPack.dll, W95inf16.dll and W95Inf32.dll to your package (and script) when required (which is only the case when you have selected Uninstall support and defined Uninstall dialogs, when you have selected user-defined destination directories, or want to check for installation permissions). Otherwise, INF-Tool will just add the commands to the script, but you will be responsible to either add the files by hand or that they are already present on your user's computer.

•	Clean up distribution directory

If this option is checked, INF-Tool will delete all files from the distribution directory of your project before copying the latest files to it. This will ensure the directory contains just the files defined and required by your latest version of the installation script. If you want to deploy additional files, you might want to uncheck this option.

•	Add MS's registry repair code

This option adds code which should repair some commonly-damaged parts of the registry and some INI files to the script (but will not influence your installation in any way).

•	Require Administrator rights for installation

Checking this option will add code which will ensure that the user has sufficient rights (under Windows NT) to run software installations.


Modifying an existing script

Loading other INF setup scripts

When you start INF-Tool, it will load the last setup project by default. If you want to load another project which was also created by INF-Tool, just enter its name as a command line parameter.

Examples:

INFTool.exe   [Enter]

loads the last saved setup project.

INFTool.exe  phantast.inf  [Enter]

loads the project phantast.inf in the current directory

Saving under a different filename

Just enter the desired filename as "Name of the INF installation script".

After clicking "OK", all currently loaded settings will be saved under the new filename.


The SETUP.EXE utility

Many users are trained to run a "Setup.exe" program when they want to install applications. Forcing them to open the Explorer, right-click their mouse and choose "Install.." could lead them into spooky situations all of us know just too well...

That's the reason why registered users get a baby-sized SETUP.EXE utility (only 4 KB !!) which will initialize your scripts correctly when run. Your users will just have to type "setup", press the Enter key and the installation process will automagically start like you've designed it.

More: you will also get the Source Code for this Setup utility (currently, sources for C and Delphi are  contained in your registered package) to help you in designing your own Setup wrappers. With this piece of code you can even create advanced Setup programs showing up graphics and more.

Note: this is only one of 4 setup methods INF-Tool offers you. Please see the first chapter of this helpfile for a detailled overview of all integrated setup methods INF-Tool supports.

Registered users: see "Tips & Tricks" helpfile for more information.


INF File Explorer and AutoRun.INF file tool

These nice add-on's will help you to get even more support by INF-Tool at your work with INF files and program installations.

The INF File Explorer will help you in "reading" and analyzing of Windows' INF and INI files, and you will also find an option to directly modify those settings in the registered version.

The AutoRun.INF file tool supports you in creation of configuration files which tell Windows what program to start when the user inserts a CDROM (created by you) into the CD drive. You may also define an icon to show as symbol for your CDROM in the "My Computer" (or Windows Explorer) menu on the desktop.


Removing a Windows-compliant program

If you have checked the option to allow removal of your program (supported by the reg'd version), your user will just have to do the following to uninstall it:

•	in Control Panel, double-click Add/Remove Programs

•	on the Install/Uninstall tab, click the program you want to remove, and then click "Add/Remove".

One of the next versions of INF-Tool will also allow to add an Uninstall item to Windows' Start Menu.


INF-Tool Parameters

Please look at the topic loading existing installation scripts.


Multi-language support

For about 85% of all computer users, INF-Tool supports display in their natural language. This eases the daily use of the program and will help you to use it as efficiently as possible especially if english or german are not your mother tongues. Currently, INF-Tool supports 13 languages !

•	English

•	French

•	German

•	Italian

•	Swedish

•	Greek

•	Russian

•	Danish

•	Norwegian

•	Polish

•	Portuguese

•	Slovakian

•	Dutch

•	...and more will follow !

(If you want to help with a translation of INF-Tool, just send me an email and I'll send you further instructions.)

But there is even more: if you want to distribute your application, you surely want to do that in the

language your end-user speaks or the language of your application itself. No problem - the registered version of INF-Tool currently offers support for 13 languages for its self-extracting packages !

•	English

•	French

•	German

•	Italian

•	Swedish

•	Russian

•	Danish

•	Norwegian

•	Portuguese

•	Polish

•	Slovakian

•	Dutch

•	Spanish

•	...and more will follow !

Important information if you want to use east-european languages with INF-Tool

The standard Windows 95 distribution did not include multi-lingual fonts, so when you want the greek font, you're probably getting a font substitution.

Note: the following information applies only to Windows 95/98. You may destroy your font configuration if you do the described steps under Windows NT!

Multilanguage support in Windows

The following brief guide explains how you can add multilanguage support to your computer, and how to write content and view documents using various language scripts.

Adding pan-European multilanguage support to Windows 95

Adding multilanguage support to your computer lets you view documents written in any common European script. If you want to edit these documents or write your own from scratch you also need to add keyboard support for your required languages.

Follow these instructions to add multilanguage support to your computer.

•	From the Control Panel select Add/Remove Programs.

•	Click Multilanguage Support, and then click Details.

•	Make sure a check mark appears beside the language or languages you want to use.

•	Click OK, and then click OK again.

•	The changes will take effect after your computer restarts.

If your copy of Windows 95 was supplied on floppy disks you can still access this feature by downloading and installing Multilanguage Support [http://www.microsoft.com/windows/download/lang.exe] :1,338KB, self-extracting archive, published: 1 February 1996].

You should now be able to view documents created in scripts such as Cyrillic and Greek. If you want to write using these scripts you also need to follow these instructions

•	From the Control Panel select Keyboard.

•	Select Language, and then click Add.

•	Select the languages you need.

•	Make sure Enable Indicator On Taskbar is checked.

Using pan-European support

When multilanguage support and keyboard support have been added to your Windows 95 machine the language indicator will be displayed on the task bar.

Writing multilanguage documents is easy, just click on the indicator to change language. If you are writing a document in Word, and wish to include a passage in Russian, click the language indicator on the taskbar, and then choose Russian. If in the same document you want to include a recipe in Hungarian, click the language indicator and choose Hungarian.

[Taken from http://www.microsoft.com/truetype/, please visit this URL to find more information if you need it.]


Support of Windows 95, Windows 98 and Windows NT 4

INF-Tool creates installations which will work under all 32 bit Windows Operating Systems: Windows 95, Windows 98 and Windows NT 4 without any additional precaution or manual manipulation by you. You don't have to do anything to enable this feature, INF-Tool will create the scripts in a way to run perfectly under these OS's.

Windows NT 5.0 compatibility can also be expected as there don't seem to be relevant changes in the INF implementation. However, let's wait until the final version of this OS is released until we make promises...

Windows NT 3.51 users, please tell me your experiences. I don't have the chance to check out the functionality of the INF scripts under this OS version, so please let me know if anything doesn't work as expected.

Known problems: none yet. *)


BDE (Borland Database Engine) installation

(extracted from INF-Tool's Tips helpfile)

"The installation of the BDE is quite simple with INF-Tool, especially if you only need the standard stuff.

Here is how I normally install the BDE for my applications that only need standard-BDE:

•	Expand bdeinst.cab (you can find this file in your BDE-directory. You get a nice bdeinst.dll.)

•	Let INF-Tool register   bdeinst.dll  via the register OCX feature.

This will install your BDE. All stuff is correctly installed without you worrying how to do it. The only potential problem is that this will only install the BDE version you have on your system, or if the BDE is not present on your target system, it will install the standard-BDE. However, INF-Tool offers a way to adapt the idapi32.cfg file, too, if you let INF-Tool run a small utility written by you after setup, which does nothing else than configuring the BDE."


Advanced tips and tricks for registered users.

If you are a registered user, just click [image] to load your "Tips & Tricks" helpfile which will help you to get most out of using INF-Tool and installations using INF techniques !


Benefits of Registration

Registration shows respect for the love and labor shareware authors put into their wares.

Please keep me going - honor the licensing agreements and register INF-Tool if it is valuable to you!

Last, but not least, you will have a long list of really useful benefits if you decide to spend the few bucks  -  check it out:

Advantages of registering:

•	supports Uninstall

•	supports user-configurable destination directories ("Where do you want to install..?")

•	lets you create shortcuts directly on the Windows Desktop, the "Send To.." menu and others

•	supports Long File Names

•	lets you create an unlimited number of shortcuts and Start Menu entries. More, as mentioned, you can create symbols and links on the Windows Desktop, the Start menu, the SendTo menu and others !

•	allows display of Textfiles, Helpfiles, ReadMe and other information (or run installed programs) before and after installation and uninstallation

•	allows generation of fully functional, self-extracting distribution archives - 1 click and you're ready for distribution!

•	full support of multi-span distribution packages

•	final INF scripts are saved in a more "readable" way than the unregistered version

•	lets you edit already defined registry strings

•	lets you read .REG files - that way you can easily import your pre-defined registry settings for use by an INF-Tool installation!

•	allows unlimited destination directories for your files

•	allows unlimited files for your installations

•	full support for program dialogs (customizeable prompts like "Where do you want to install...?", "Do you really want to uninstall ....?", ".... has been installed." etc.)

•	supports alternative icons for your shortcuts

•	use the "Reboot" features

•	supports registration of .OCX /.DLL /.TLB /..  files

•	allows to set special flags when copying or uninstalling files

•	supports creation of shortcuts in the special Start Menu areas of Windows NT like the "All Users" section

•	allows modification of Autoexec.bat and Config.sys under Windows 95

•	you will receive a special "Tips and Tricks" helpfile, which informs you about special, undocumented features of INF-Tool, special tips for getting most out of the program and more

•	support by e-mail (see also: Support page)

•	special SETUP Utility : the registered version of INF-Tool also contains a SETUP.EXE utility (including Source code!!), which will enable your customers to start a SETUP.EXE program like they are used to do it in most Windows compatible programs. The difference is, that our Setup program is just 4 KB in size ;-).

•	Option to disable the Intro screen

•	Updates / additional features!  As registered user, you will be allowed to get dozens of free updates and improved releases for FREE (more info) !

•	Option to save .BAK files : INF-Tool helps you to prevent losing your work

•	lets you use the AutoRun.INF file tool

•	lets you apply modifications via the INF file explorer

•	and even more. Be sure you will be suprised about the flexibility of the features the registered version will offer you.

How much does INF-Tool cost?

Single license ....  $  35,- only  (= DM 59,- = SFR 49,- = ATS 390,-)

Important: you need additional licenses if you plan to use INF-Tool (the setup designer program itself, not the created setup packages) on more than one Computer.

Compared to most other professional installation software with INF-Tool's flexibility this setup tool is very cheap, but I want to keep this offer to give interested people, but primarly Freeware programmers, Students etc. the chance to get it for a price they can easily afford if they really want INF-Tool's advantages for distributing their products.

Professional companies are invited to fairness: please support my intentions by purchasing exactly the number of licenses you are really using (1 license for each computer INF-Tool is installed on).

Need more licenses? - Save money:

Multiple licences allow an institution, company or school to install the program on multiple computers or on a server. It must be guaranteed that the program does not run on more machines at the same time than there are licences purchased. All licences are issued to the same (company) name, which appears in the program's title bar. Each additional licence also allows a single user to use the program at home.

Additional licences cost $29.00 for each 2nd to 5th licence, $25.00 for each 6th to 10th license etc.:

•	license 2 - 5:   $ 29,- per license (DM 49,- = SFR 44,- = ATS 350,-) ,

•	license 6 - 10:  $ 25,- per license (DM 42,- = SFR 36,- = ATS 290,-) ,

•	license 11-25:  $ 19,- per license (DM 33,- = SFR 28,- = ATS 230,-) ,

•	more licenses: negotiable

Example: you need 7 licenses. You calculate:

1 license   for $35,-

4 licenses for $29,-   (license #2, #3, #4, #5, unit price see above)

2 licenses for $25,-   (license #6 and #7, unit price see above)

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

35+116+50 = $201,- total price for 7 licenses -> you save nearly 30% !!

Please read "How to Register" for information about the easiest and fastest way for registration.

If you like, you can have a registered version of INF-Tool within hours! Check out the   list of registration methods. If you register online, you should receive your registered version (with all the advantages listed above) within 1 or 2 days - often it's possible within a few hours!


How To Register

There are several ways for you to register.

If your preferred way of registering isn't listed here, please send me an e-mail - I'm sure we'll find a way!

•	by REGULAR MAIL: send your registration fee by regular mail to Richard Fellner, Pazmanitengasse 24, 1020 Vienna, Austria, Europe (this is my preferred method since I will receive the full fee without discounts. Because of that, I can offer you an additional discount of $5.00 if you are registering by using this method!) Don't worry about sending cash in the mail, just fold it into a sheet of paper so that you can't see the money through the envelope). Please see the list below for information about additional costs when sending cheques, foreign currency or requesting disks !

•	ONLINE using the following Internet pages:

https://www.regsoft.com/cgi-bin/reg_it_offsite.pl?7418 (1 license)

If you need a site license, just click one of the following links:

https://www.regsoft.com/cgi-bin/reg_it_offsite.pl?7766 (5 licenses)

https://www.regsoft.com/cgi-bin/reg_it_offsite.pl?7767 (10 licenses)

https://www.regsoft.com/cgi-bin/reg_it_offsite.pl?7768 (25 licenses)

or simply click here if you need any other number of licenses:

https://www.regsoft.com/cgi-bin/reg_it_offsite.pl?7670 . Please calculate the registration price before loading this page and send me an email after submitting it so that I can check it for validity).

Note: these links are for secure transactions and offer 64/128-bit encryption (highest security). If your browser doesn't support secure connections, please just replace "https" by "http" and you'll be connected to the standard registration form. If you have any other problems loading the pages, please let me know.

•	by PHONE - by calling the US Number 1-877-REGSOFT (international orders please call 770-497-9126). Don't forget to tell the program ID, #7418 (1 license, please check above for the other ID's if you need more licenses).

•	by CHECK - just fill in the ONLINE registration form, print it out and mail it along with a check in US Dollars to: Regsoft.com, 6595-G Roswell Road, Suite 732, Atlanta, GA 30328, USA.

•	by FAX  - just fill in the ONLINE registration form, print it out and FAX it to the US number 770-497-9234.

•	by EMAIL - email all information of the ONLINE form to Info@Regsoft.Com

IMPORTANT:  please don't forget to add the following amount to your registration fee:

•	$2.00 if you send foreign currency (other than ATS = Austrian Schillings)

•	$6.00 if you need the software on a floppy disk by regular mail

•	you may deduct $5.00 if you send your registration fee by regular mail (I'm passing my registration service savings to you!)

None of these additional fees are for me - they are just to cover my expenses the bank or post office will charge. Please understand that I can't send you a registered version if you don't add these few bucks.

Last, but not least: please double-check the e-mail address you write on the registration form. Previously, I received many invalid email addresses and could not return the registered versions. If you haven't received your registration information within 5 days after registering, please contact me.


Support and Updates

Support

only available to registered users. Please understand that due to the volume of mail I receive, I cannot offer support to unregistered users.

Upgrade policy

I have a "free upgrade" policy as with all other of my products. This means that you can expect FREE upgrades and new versions as long as it covers at least a bit of my time and nerve expense. During the past this resulted in the fact that you could download 20-30 new versions and updates without investing another single dollar!! (imagine that of the "big guys" in software business =:-) ..


History

Version 1.0 and later:

•	uninstall feature added

•	subdirectory of a selected target dir is now properly recognized and saved

•	several target dirs added to selection

•	inf file now properly added to "copy files.." list

•	changed background color of help file to white (better readable for <= 256 colors display)

•	adds version N° to .INF header

•	group definitions added and working

•	group uninstall added and working

•	undefined destination dirs are automatically assigned (if you don't assign a destination dir, all files will be installed to the Windows-directory by default. Or if you don't assign any files to a selected destination directory, all files will be installed to this destination by default.)

•	warning when using LFN's

•	"Reboot" and "Restart" option are now reserved for the registered version of INF-Tool

•	deletions in file list update the group list, too, now.

•	warnings if write errors of the .INF script occur

•	startup directories of groups are now properly saved

•	"drag & drop" buttons for file list enabled

Version 2.0 and later:

•	fixed: installation directory saved incorrect if no subdir defined

•	fixed: incorrect status messages (for "run file after install") under Win95

•	included project management (choose by dropdown list)

•	saves creation date and INF-Tool version in INF header

•	"add file" tries to open in directory of the 1st file

•	last project saved and loaded by default

•	drag & drop from Explorer to file list works again ]-)

•	INF-Tool asks for confirmation before closing without saving

•	"Test" run added (reg'd version)

•	"Help" opens again..

•	Tab order corrected in some of the dialogs

•	Correct display now also with "big fonts".

•	incorrect display of title bar fixed.

•	removed some traps with LFN's, included warning texts when LFN could cause problems

Versions 2.3 - 2.8:

•	INF-Tool forgetting ".BAK" settings: fixed.

•	automatic remove of temporary ZIP-directory after closing INF-Tool

•	Setup.exe could be reduced to 8k (used D2 instead of D3 for linking. Thanks to Nick Naimo !)

•	Filelist is now sorted in alphabetic order

•	missing files are marked RED in the filelist

•	Distribution directory will not be erased prior to updating it to enable you to store additional files in it.

•	fixed setup.exe error message when started in DOS-Box (although installing properly) [02/12/97]

•	additional target directory ID's added [01/01/98]

•	When MS Plus installed & running files after the installation, the wallpaper doesn't change anymore (thanks to Nicola Viganò for pointing me to the reason for this problem)

•	value name for registry strings defaults to 0 now

•	version number now stored more eye-friendly

•	Startup group list now cleared when changing project

•	Restart now (correctly) only supported in the Windows95 part of INF scripts.

•	INF-Tool now takes a filename as a parameter (INF script to be loaded)

•	support of Flag for registry strings

•	support for uninstall dialogs

•	support for ADVPACK.DLL library

•	support for various modes of file copying (e.g., file sharing, skipping etc.)

•	At its first call INF-Tool now loads a demo script to demonstrate basic features

•	registry now correctly cleaned up after uninstall

If you are upgrading from a version prior to v2.8:

•	redefine your registry keys, your current definitions won't be saved correctly with the new release.

Version 2.9:

•	supports installing from the "Software" applet of Window's Control Panel.

•	help opens when F1 pressed

•	new option: double clicking INF file loads INF-Tool (works when the INF script was designed by INF-Tool)

•	warning message when trying to add the INF script itself (manually)

•	improved project support

•	INF-Tool now supports modifications of Autoexec.Bat and Config.Sys (Windows 95)

•	internal ZIP compression

•	configurable default file copy flag

•	INF-Tool now uses the original timestamps when copying files, distribution package will be timestamped with latest filedate in package

•	tries to auto-detect proper language at first start

Version 3.0 and later:

•	now supports self-extracting, single-exe Installations, with full support of License info and more.

•	now allows to place symbols / links to the Windows Deskop

•	pre-defined groups: Startup, Autostart, Desktop, ShellNew, SendTo

•	Groupname not required anymore (-> links directly into "Programs" menu)

•	reduced CPU-load when creating distribution directory

•	provided "Setup" source for C++, thanks to several registered users who sent me their code snippets !

•	added compatibility option for Step #2 (adding files), since a user had troubles with adding a Windows PIF file configured for MS-DOS compatibility mode. I don't if this problem was caused by the OS or Delphi - however, my fix (setting the »ofNoValidate« option for the OpenDialog) seems to work.

•	INF-Tool now displays warnings when Files (defined in Step#2) couldn't be found (if Option "display warnings" is checked).

•	Gradient caption bar removed (repeated display problems).

•	integrated support of CAB (Cabinet) archives

•	better trapping of package creation errors

•	INF-tool now displays compression results

•	offers edit mask for special Registry data

•	added language support (English, German) !  Currently, hints are not translated.

•	fixed problem when trying to uninstall: under Win95 groups didn't disappear.

•	added support for registering .OCX / .DLL files

•	new: cleanup distribution directory before rebuilding

•	now allows visual selection of default copy flag

•	updated and increased Tips & Tricks helpfile, e.g., many INF information resources added

•	when installed from Software panel, item will now show up estimated filesizes

•	user-configurable destination directories

•	cleanup of empty destination directories when uninstalling

•	virtual support of "Program files" directory

•	added ZIP encryption support

•	allows assignment of file copy flags for multi-selected files

•	user-configurable overwrite dialogs

•	"run files.." now works with parameters and when AdvPack is used

•	"unmotivated" reboot dialogs shouldn't be required anymore

•	date/time stamps are kept when using self-extracting packages

•	INI file support

•	improved LFN handling in INF files

•	improved evaluation speed of LDIDs

•	error complaining about "System\AdvPack.dll not found" when using user-configurable destinations should not occur anymore

•	optionally adds registry repair code to the INF files (applies to Win95 sections only)

•	sorted project list

•	Optional user-prompt after successful installation

•	optionally checks for rights/permission to install programs

•	INF File Explorer (new, thanks to Bernt Levinsson for his support !)

•	fixed some group creation problems

•	improved support of user-configurable destination directories (up to 99 user-configurable dirs)

•	allows fixed subdirs in user-defined destination dirs

•	Install-Dir now saved in HKCU instead of HKLM (to improve support for multi-user environments)

•	password-dialog can now be cancelled (which terminates setup)

•	Single-EXE installs now creates its own setup folder in "Temp" dir

•	...and a few smaller things.. ;-)

•	some (hopefully) helpful additions to the Tips- & Tricks helpfile

•	OK button doesn't quit the program anymore (just for saving)

•	support of user-prompts at beginning of installation

•	support for deletion of registry strings during installation

•	capability to use .INI files > 32 kb added - for developers with the BIGGER projects.. ;-)

•	enhanced support for program groups: different starting directories, parameters,..

•	enhanced language support (now also in self-extracting modules)

•	supports distinguishing between installation directory and startup directory for program groups

•	italian translation added - thanks to Nicola Viganò

•	(partial) russian translation added - thanks to Pavel Aronski

•	danish translation added, thanks to Lars Petersen

•	polnish translation added, thanks to Krzysztof Bacalski

•	improved look of the self-extracting main screen ("flat" look similar to setup status window)

•	portuguese translation added, thanks to Carlos Camarao de Figueiredo

•	allows to use other than the first icons contained in the EXE files for your group definitions

•	supports parameters in group definitions and "run files"

•	now also supports installations under Windows 98!

•	supports direct shortcuts in the "Start" menu

•	supports direct shortcuts in the "Programs" menu

•	3.72: LNG 439,440,441,5439,10042

•	supports prompt-less Single-EXE installs

•	3.72: LNG 800+,10043..10045,6040,6041

•	AutoRun.INF file Tool added

•	slovakian translation added, thanks to Vlado Svab

•	added option to disable hints. Additionally, you can change the delay until the hints appear, by changing the setting "HintPauseTime=.." setting (default=2000 msecs), and the delay until the hints disappear, by changing the "HintHidePause=.." setting (default=2500 msecs) in INFTool.ini

•	3.73: LNG 1097,6097,1259,6260,10046,10047

•	added function to read registry settings from .REG files

•	3.74: LNG 1045,6045

•	supports save/cancel dialogs via Enter/ESC key, checks for scroll bar also after import of REG files

•	allows changing base dir for missing (marked red) files in Step #2

•	3.74a: LNG 10049

•	3.75: LNG 527..530, 10050..52

•	3.8: added support for NT's "All Users" and "Default User" menu

•	3.81: added support for "Uninstall" shortcut in Start menu

•	support for prompt-less special directories (useful for installing upgrades in previously user-configured destination directories)

•	LNG 1197,6197,10054

•	3.82: added support for norwegian language - thanks to Atle Borgersen

•	3.83: saves license information in self-extracting packages

•	italian and french language files updated, some resource leaks fixed

•	importing registry files now correctly adds special chars

•	dutch self-extractor updated

•	3.84: dutch translation done by Dirk de Paduwa - thanks a lot !

•	optionally deletes files physically from the .DST directories instead of just moving them to the Trashcan

•	3.85: supports direct manipulation of self-extracting language via "Distribution Options" window

•	warning message when opening INF projects not created by INF-Tool

•	fix: sometimes assigned incorrect name for distribution directory and/or package file when creating new or opening other projects - now defaults to "Project1" for new projects

•	LNG 10055,412,5412

•	3.9: LNG 259,10056

•	adds basic integrity check for self-extractors (filesize-check)

•	smaller size of self-extracting module than ever before!

•	now also adds greek self-extractor, thanks to G. Tassiulis for translating

•	optionally allows just System Admins to install your app

•	fixes problems with truncated license information texts

•	prompt-less self-extractor now also works properly again

•	fixes problem with incorrect IDs ("%0%") when using hard-coded destination directories for WinNT

•	3.91: implements new logic for calling Advanced INF routines

Version 4.0 and later:

•	now supports disk- spanning (you can split your setup package over several installation disks!)

•	INF-Analyzer: basic INF files (designed for Software installations) can now be READ and imported in INF-Tool!

•	the new screen adjustment feature allows you to shrink/stretch the INF-Tool form to meet your needs

•	LNG 10020, 10057, 10058, 442, 443, 5442, 5444

•	fixes problem in self-extractor when TEMP dir contains spaces

4.10,..:

•	LNG 473,5473,1250, 10059...10067

•	now capable to read some INF setup files which were rejected by v4.0

•	allows use of alternative icons for your self-extracting packages!  (INF-Tool loves 32x32x16 icons. ;-) If you select a multi-format icon in the distribution properties window, INF-Tool will use the first icon of this format it finds in your icon file.)

•	displays self-extractor icon in title bar of setup window

•	prevents error message "INF Install Failure. Reason: The system cannot find the path specified." which occured under certain circumstances

•	now uses the ID #10067 for the name of the Windows Desktop (used depending on the language setting you are using)

•	drag & drop from Explorer to the filelist in Step #2 works again. Thanks to all those who pointed me to this "lost feature"... ;-)

4.20,..:

•	improved support for execution of commands: now supported before and after setup, before and after uninstallation!

•	allows sorting files in Step#2 and Step#3 to allow a more eye-friendly display

•	LNG 851..869, 5852..5872, 1220, 1222, 1261, 6261, 10027

•	some bug fixes

LNG xxxxx identify added/modified language ID's. This is primarly of interest for the great "INF-Tool translation crew".


Features to come

What's not yet supported, but planned for upcoming releases...

•	use of various versions of one file name

•	optional setup components (let users decide what to install)

•	support of CAB self-extracting archives (scheduled: uncertain due to inadequate support and documentation of the CAB format).

•	DES encryption for your packages

•	support for command line enabled compression tools (like cabpack.exe, rar.exe, arj.exe, jar32.exe,..)

•	basic support for automated package generation (i.e.,   "INFTool c myprog" will automatically create your <MyProg> package)


Known problems, potential traps etc.

Potential traps when using INF-based installations

•	It's not possible to install standard INF scripts from "Long File Name" directories. This limitation is not caused by INF-Tool, but by Microsoft's implementation of the INF functionality. To prevent the potential occurence of this problem at your customer's computers, please suggest them to install only from "standard" directories like "C:\test" or add the line "AdvancedINF=2.0" to the [Version] section of the INF script (Advpack.dll is required to use this line). The registered version of INF-Tool will add this line automatically for you.

•	Problems can arise when you want to install to locked directories. E.g, it could even be a problem to install to the Windows directory of Windows NT if your customer's (or your) rights are restricted in a way. Please verify this carefully before you distribute your installation packages (or mail me that your scripts don't work ;-).

Known problems when using INF-Tool:

•	Since WindowsNT handles .INF installation scripts a bit different from Windows95, there could occur problems under special circumstances, if you run scripts created with the shareware edition of INF-Tool under Windows NT. Anyway, the registered version creates the scripts in a way to work under both versions properly.

Registered users can find an really HUGE list of Tips & Tricks for INF-Tool as well as fixes and workarounds for common problems in the Tips & Tricks Helpfile - to get the topmost out of INF-Tool!


License

Author     : Richard Fellner

Copyright : 1997,98 by Richard Fellner, A-1020 Vienna.  All rights reserved.

Partial copyrights by Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, USA

Windows, Windows 95, Windows 98 and Windows NT are trademarks copyrighted by Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, USA.

END-USER LICENSE AGREEMENT

FOR RICHARD FELLNER SOFTWARE / INF-TOOL

IMPORTANT--READ CAREFULLY: This Richard Fellner End-User License Agreement ("EULA") is a legal agreement between you (either an individual or a single entity) and Richard Fellner for the Richard Fellner software product identified above, which include computer software and associated media and printed materials, and may include "online" or electronic documentation (together, the "SOFTWARE PRODUCT" or "SOFTWARE"). By installing, copying, or otherwise using the SOFTWARE PRODUCT, you agree to be bound by the terms of this EULA. If you do not agree to the terms of this EULA, you are not authorized to use the SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

For information on distributing the shareware evaluation version of INF-Tool see the section titled Shareware License.

Software product LICENSE

The SOFTWARE PRODUCT is protected by copyright laws and international copyright treaties, as well as other intellectual property laws and treaties. The SOFTWARE PRODUCT is licensed, not sold.

1. GRANT OF LICENSE. This EULA grants you the following rights:

a. Richard Fellner grants to you as an individual a personal, nonexclusive, limited license to make and use one (1) copy of the SOFTWARE in the manner provided below. If you are an entity, Richard Fellner grants to you the right to designate one individual within your organization to have the right to use the SOFTWARE in the manner provided below. Richard Fellner reserves all rights not expressly granted to you.

b. Solely with respect to electronic documents included with the SOFTWARE, you may make an unlimited number of copies (either in hardcopy or electronic form), provided that such copies shall be used only for internal purposes and are not republished or distributed to any third party.

2. UPGRADES. If the SOFTWARE is an upgrade, whether from Richard Fellner or another supplier, you may use or transfer the SOFTWARE only in conjunction with upgraded product. If the SOFTWARE is an upgrade from a Richard Fellner product, you may now use that upgraded product only in accordance with this EULA.

3. COPYRIGHT. All title and copyrights in and to the SOFTWARE PRODUCT (including but not limited to any images, photographs, animations, video, audio, music, text, and "applets" incorporated into the SOFTWARE PRODUCT, but excluding the 3 files: AdvPack.dll, W95inf16.dll and W95inf32.dll), the accompanying printed materials, and any copies of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT are owned by Richard Fellner or his suppliers. The SOFTWARE PRODUCT is protected by copyright laws and international treaty provisions. Therefore, you must treat the SOFTWARE PRODUCT like any other copyrighted material except that you may either (a) make one copy of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT solely for backup or archival purposes or (b) install the SOFTWARE PRODUCT on a single computer provided you keep the original solely for backup or archival purposes. You may not copy the printed materials accompanying the SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

Parts of the distribution package of this SOFTWARE PRODUCT (Advpack.dll, W95Inf16.dll, W95Inf32.dll) are copyrighted by Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, USA. Regulations concerning redistribution could not be clearified for months. These 3 files have been enclosed to the product since they should freely be useable as long as you have a valid Windows 95 (tm), Windows NT (tm) or Internet Explorer (tm) license for your computer. However, due to this uncertainty it cannot be guaranteed that future versions of this SOFTWARE PRODUCT will still include these files (which are now just enclosed to ease your use of this SOFTWARE PRODUCT, but are in no manner a part of the sold SOFTWARE PRODUCT). This results in that you, too, may not charge any money or fee for just these 3 files.

4. DESCRIPTION OF OTHER RIGHTS AND LIMITATIONS.

a. Limitations on Reverse Engineering, Decompilation, and Disassembly. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the SOFTWARE PRODUCT, except and only to the extent that such activity is expressly permitted by applicable law notwithstanding this limitation.

b. No Separation of Components. The SOFTWARE PRODUCT is licensed as a single product and neither the software programs making up the SOFTWARE PRODUCT nor any UPDATE may be separated for use by more than one user at a time.

c. Rental. You may not rent or lease the SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

d. Software Transfer. You may permanently transfer all of your rights under this EULA, provided that you retain no copies, you transfer all of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT (including all component parts, the media and printed materials, any upgrades, this EULA, and, if applicable, the Certificate of Authenticity), and the recipient agrees to the terms of this EULA. If the SOFTWARE PRODUCT is an upgrade, any transfer must include all prior versions of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT if you did not already delete them permanently.

e. Termination. Without prejudice to any other rights, Richard Fellner may terminate this EULA if you fail to comply with the terms and conditions of this EULA. In such event, you must destroy all copies of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

MISCELLANEOUS

This EULA is governed by the federal laws of Austria.

If this product was acquired outside of Austria, then local law may apply.

Should you have any questions concerning this EULA, or if you desire to contact Richard Fellner for any reason, write to the address provided in section Contact Information.

LIMITED WARRANTY

NO WARRANTIES.

The Author of this Software expressly disclaims any warranty for the SOFTWARE PRODUCT. The SOFTWARE PRODUCT and any related documentation is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including, without limitation, the implied warranties or merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or noninfringement. The entire risk arising out of use or performance of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT remains with you.

NO LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES.

In no event shall the author of this Software be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or any other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use this product, even if the Author of this Software has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Because some states / jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential

or incidental damages, the above limitation may not apply to you. In this case the Author of this Software will only be liable for the amount of money you spent for this SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

Shareware License

See the section titled "Software product LICENSE" for the full license agreement.

5. Evaluation and Registration

This is not free software.  You are hereby licensed to use this software for evaluation purposes without charge for a period of 21 days.  If you use this software after the 21 day evaluation period a registration fee mentioned in section Benefits and costs of this help file is required.

Installation packages created by the SOFTWARE PRODUCT may contain, among other things, a portion of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT, including copyrighted software, proprietary notices, and identifying information (the "Extraction Software").  You may not alter or modify the Extraction Software and cannot give anyone else permission to modify the Extraction Software. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES ARE YOU LICENSED TO DISTRIBUTE INSTALLATION PACKAGES CREATED BY THE SHAREWARE EVALUATION VERSION OF THE SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

Unregistered use of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT after the 21-day evaluation period is in violation of international copyright laws.

6. Distribution

Provided that you verify that you are distributing the Shareware Version (select the "About" tab to check) you are hereby licensed to make as many copies of the Shareware version of this software and documentation as you wish; give exact copies of the original Shareware version to anyone; and distribute the Shareware version of the software and documentation in its unmodified form via electronic means. There is no charge for any of the above, Richard Fellner just wants to receive a short mail informing about it which helps him to maintain the last versions around. Alternatively, you could also send Richard Fellner a reference CD, the URL of your website (when you link to the SOFTWARE PRODUCT) or a copy of the article about the SOFTWARE PRODUCT for reference purposes.


Thanks...

A big THANKS to all those who helped me and/or suggested improvements along the way:

Glenn Crouch [http://www.gold.net.au/~esb].

Stephen Wood [http://users.iafrica.com/s/sw/swood]

Debi Orton [professional editor of all sorts of technical materials]

Mike Shane [professional editor of all sorts of technical materials]

Alexander Halser [http://www.easycash.co.at] for his great Help authoring tool which made creating this file a snap.

Robert Manning [P/A for TRW (whatever that is..) and the Delphi/Pascal consultant for AOL's PC Dev. forum]

Brendan Breen [bbreen@gy.humber.ac.uk]

Alexander Staubo [http://www.mop.no/~alex/] for his great & free CAB-SDK translation

Eric Engler [http://www-afsc.saia.af.mil/~englere/] for his great & free ZIP library

John Eccles, a self-called "Windows hacker" (yeah, really.. ;-)

Olivier & Vincent Cheminot [http://www.a2points.com/homepage/5214305] for their french translation

George Tassiulis  for his greek translation

Bernt Levinsson  for his swedish translation and relevant parts of the "INF File Explorer" [http://w1.321.telia.com/~u32102551/]

myself  for my german translation ]-) ..

Thomas Smekal  for checking the help file for errors (I'm from Austria..)

Nicola Viganò for the italian translation [http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Vista/8323/]

Lars Petersen for the danish translation

Krzysztof Bacalski for the polnish translation

Uwe Rückeshauser for translating this helpfile to german

Carlos Camarao de Figueiredo for the portuguese translation

Vlado Svab for the slovakian translation

Atle Borgersen for the norwegian translation

Dirk de Paduwa for the dutch translation

Steve Winsett and Sebastian Hildebrand for 2 cool designed startup-screens

This program was created with Borland Delphi.

Thanks to this great development tool I could concentrate on the program's functionality, rather than problems on the programming environment...

This help file was designed with Help & Manual,

the great Help Authoring tool by Alexander Halser. Get it from his website at http://www.easycash.co.at .


Awards and Rankings

INF-Tool has achieved the following awards and ratings (excerpt):

•	"Simply The Best!"   ranking at PlanMagic

•	Editor's Pick at PC World

•	"Great!" rated at WindowsCentral

•	Top Download since months at SoftSeek.com

•	5 Stars (best) rating at ServAG Webcorner

•	"pop" rating at Download.com, belongs to "most popular software"!

•	Editor's Pick at C|Net

•	Top Pick at C|Net, belongs to their selection of "best available Developers software"!

•	"Out rageous!" ranking at Rocketdownload.com

•	"Suggested installation tool" at Developer.com (Featured Software tool during Oct.1998)

Wie die meisten Software-Autoren freut es mich natürlich, Artikel oder gute Beurteilungen meiner Programme auf Websites oder in PC-Magazinen zu finden. Wenn Sie eine davon finden, die hier nicht aufgeführt ist, lassen Sie's mich bitte wissen!


Contact information

The latest version of INF-Tool can be found at the download page :

http://www.user.xpoint.at/r.fellner/

Please forward any comments or suggestions to Richard Fellner at:

email:	r.fellner@xpoint.at  or (in case of trouble),

r.fellner@bigfoot.com .

mail:	Richard Fellner

Pazmanitengasse 24 / 9

1020 Wien (Austria)

Delphi Programmers are invited to visit my Website, the "DELPHI-BOX".