I'd echo Peter's sentiments of WiXEdit. I used it a lot when I was learning WiX & Windows Installer (back in the v2.0 days) & it was invaluable as a teaching aid alongside the WiX tutorial. However I find Votive (WiX native plug-in for Visual Studio 2005/2008/2010) a far better solution all round now that I'm well versed in the technologies. The only things Votive doesn't do right now which would be nice are Patch project types (you will need to revert to the command line to build patches) & WYSIWYG UI editing. WiXEdit has functionality to preview UI dialogs directly from the XML so you don't need to compile the MSI to see how your layout will work so it's useful to keep around. Even if you don't use Visual Studio yourself on a day to day basis you can download & install the IDE only version of 2008 (possibly 2010 too, haven't checked as yet) & use Votive in it. Votive is packaged as part of the WiX installer, run a modify/repair if you've already installed WiX 3.x & subsequently install Visual Studio to get Votive to install. My view may be biased as I've been using Visual Studio to write C++ & other languages for the last 12 years or so, hence I'm very comfortable with it as an IDE.
Palbinder Sandher Software Deployment Engineer T: +44 (0) 141 945 8500 F: +44 (0) 141 945 8501 http://www.iesve.com **Design, Simulate + Innovate with the <Virtual Environment>** Integrated Environmental Solutions Limited. Registered in Scotland No. SC151456 Registered Office - Helix Building, West Of Scotland Science Park, Glasgow G20 0SP Email Disclaimer -----Original Message----- From: Peter Shirtcliffe [mailto:pshirtcli...@sdl.com] Sent: 22 August 2011 09:42 To: General discussion for Windows Installer XML toolset. Subject: Re: [WiX-users] WiX Wrappers: For or against? I use WixEdit and like it. It's a GUI editor plus a simple wizard and a couple of other features. You can switch into the .wxs file easily using one of the menu items that runs a text editor of your choice and it will detect and reload changes when you switch back. The files it generates can be easily compiled with the command line tools. I find it best for small, quick projects, such as test installers. It was also helpful when I was learning Wix. Our main products' installers are large and complex and I use Wix Votive solutions for those. -----Original Message----- From: Alec Taylor [mailto:alec.tayl...@gmail.com] Sent: 20 August 2011 11:18 To: General discussion for Windows Installer XML toolset. Subject: [WiX-users] WiX Wrappers: For or against? Good evening, I've seen quite a few WiX Wrapper around, including a few Open-Source ones. Examples: * http://sourceforge.net/projects/wixedit/ (not 100% sure this is a wrapper) * http://sourceforge.net/projects/keeyai-flame/ What are your thoughts on WiX Wrappers, would you recommend a certain one (not necessarily from above), or would you recommend figuring it out without wrappers? (e.g. just use CLI compilers and Notepad2) Thanks for all suggestions, Alec Taylor ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Get a FREE DOWNLOAD! and learn more about uberSVN rich system, user administration capabilities and model configuration. Take the hassle out of deploying and managing Subversion and the tools developers use with it. http://p.sf.net/sfu/wandisco-d2d-2 _______________________________________________ WiX-users mailing list WiX-users@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/wix-users SDL PLC confidential, all rights reserved. If you are not the intended recipient of this mail SDL requests and requires that you delete it without acting upon or copying any of its contents, and we further request that you advise us. SDL PLC is a public limited company registered in England and Wales. Registered number: 02675207. Registered address: Globe House, Clivemont Road, Maidenhead, Berkshire SL6 7DY, UK. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ uberSVN's rich system and user administration capabilities and model configuration take the hassle out of deploying and managing Subversion and the tools developers use with it. Learn more about uberSVN and get a free download at: http://p.sf.net/sfu/wandisco-dev2dev _______________________________________________ WiX-users mailing list WiX-users@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/wix-users ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ uberSVN's rich system and user administration capabilities and model configuration take the hassle out of deploying and managing Subversion and the tools developers use with it. Learn more about uberSVN and get a free download at: http://p.sf.net/sfu/wandisco-dev2dev _______________________________________________ WiX-users mailing list WiX-users@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/wix-users
