This document contains a brief summary of the changes made between Installer 4.0.6 and Installer 4.0.8. There are three sections to this document: Enhancements, Bug Fixes, and Known Bugs.
ENHANCEMENTS
• The Installer can receive a box flag overwrite from the Upgrader application. This machine ID will be used by the installer when the script writer invokes CheckGestaltList in the rules.
• Installer 4.0.8 supports the new folder manager (introduced with Mac OS 8). All the Mac OS 8 folder types can now be invoked directly using special-xxxx in the target specs. In addition, the installer includes a remapping mechanism so that Mac OS 8 folder types will be redirected correctly when installing on System 7.
• When writing action atoms, the script writer can now use the new callback InstallerFindSpecialFolder in order to locate a special folder on the target volume.
• When writing action atoms, the script writer can now use the new callback GetBoxFlagOverwrite in order to obtain the box flag overwrite passed by the Upgrader.
• When writing action atoms, the script writer can now use the new callback IsLaunchedByUpgrader to find out if the installer was launched by the Upgrader.
• When writing action atoms, the script writer can now use the new callback IsParasiteScript to find out if the current script is a parasite script (works only in conjunction with Upgrader 1.1.1 -- see the Upgrader documentation).
BUG FIXES
• The Installer now replaces a pre-existing (and possibly damaged) installer cleanup extension. This extension deletes the Installer Temp folder when you reboot your machine.
• The Installer now ejects CD ROMs correctly on the newer PowerBooks
• When checking version numbers, the Installer now considers the final 0 versions as newer than final 1. For example, 1.0f0 will be newer than 1.0f3.
• The installer now handles correctly non-Apple CD-Rom drivers when running on System 7.5.3 or later.
• Improved size evaluation
• Fixed a problem saving off the files in the Temp folder. In some cases, when saving off a lot of files, the installer would crash.
KNOWN BUGS
• When installing onto a UNIX volume the Installer may miscalculate the required disk space needed.
This problem is mostly likely to occur with scripts that allow the user to specify the destination folder. The Installer assumes the UNIX volume is only one hard disk and does not account for the fact that directories may actually be located on a separate hard disk.
WORKAROUND: If the Installer runs out of disk space during the installation the process is stopped. Ask the user to delete files from the directory into which files or resources are being installed.
• Numerous Disk Swaps required if Installer Script, active System Folder, and target disk are on seperate floppy diskettes.
WORKAROUND: Ask the user to have patience. The Installer will install correctly, but requires information from floppy disk that is not in a drive, and therefore requires the disk to be inserted to continue.
• Global Rules Framework does not function as advertised.
The Global Rules framework is supposed to support use of Custom Rule Clauses ( ones that reference code resources ), use of AddPackages{}, AddUserDescription{} and AddCustomItems{} rule clauses; but these rule clauses do not always function as expected.
WORKAROUND: Avoid rule functions that call code resources or modify the Easy or Custom package lists, or modify the Easy Install description from within the Global Framework. Use the Global Framework for calling non-code resource rule clauses, and for setting and checking assertions. Use the Custom Framework for modifying the Custom Install package list, and use Easy Install Framework for modifying the Easy Install package list or the Easy Install description.
• Extra Disk Swaps required when no file is installed from the first install disk.
If you create an installation set that does not install any files from the first installation disk ( the one containing the Installer and the Installer Script ), several extra disk swaps may be required from the user. Other than the extra "unneeded" disk swap, the installation is performed "normally". This situation does not apply during Custom Remove; it only applies to Custom Install and Easy Install.
WORKAROUND: Make sure that every Easy and Custom Install scenario installs at least one file from the first installation disk.