Easy Setup

Part of the development cycle for any installation package is the initial planning stage. We spend a lot of time and effort on this first process as this will determine the character of the final package.

However, even when the planning stage is completed and work is progressing on the development of the Installation Package, we often have the feeling that maybe there is something we missed, something we could have done differently. That’s the purpose of this post, to help developers focus on some of the more important aspects of the planning process and to be able to distinguish between a good installation package and an excellent one.

Perhaps the best way to begin the development of an installer package is, at the very beginning, to imagine yourself as the end user, the person installing a program using your installer package. It is important to remember that, even though the time spent interacting with the installer package is relatively short, it is also the time when the user is most concerned and uncertain as to the final outcome.

I think that almost every user (myself included) has often felt at some stage during the installation process that his PC has frozen or is about to burst into fire and wonders if he should press the “reboot” button.

In order to make the process less painful and anxious for the end user, I recommend taking the following actions:

1. Remove un-needed dialog: sometimes we leave a redundant dialog box in the setup process. Make sure to avoid this – the end user might think that his installer package is missing an element or is corrupted. In any event, it is confusing and leaves a bad impression.
     
2. Ensure that your dialogs display the default values: when asking for a user response during the installation process, make sure that the default values are show automatically when the dialog GUI is displayed. This is the industry standard!  Your installation should succeed (i.e. successful application execution with general features) even if the user just kept pressing the Next button!
    
3. Ensure that the installation package supports a repair option: When an application has been corrupted and is no longer usable, having to uninstall and then reinstall can be an annoying and tedious process. If your installer package has a “Repair” option, this can be very helpful and less frustrating to the end user.
     
4. Make sure to save user settings: many programs have comprehensive and regular upgrade packages. However, often the implementation of these upgrades can be marred because the upgrade process erases previous user settings. Therefore, when developing an MSI based upgrade package, it is very important to allow the user to retain previous settings.
    
5. Spare the user from un-wanted applications embedded within the MSI package: many installation packages are actually a collection of installation scripts built by teams located in other locations. In cases where not all segments of the installation package are vital, it is essential to allow the user the option to choose which parts to install and which not.  In addition, make sure that the installation will succeed whatever segments the user chooses to install or not install.
    
6. Spare the user from un-needed upgrades: whilst it is true that a major upgrade replacing the installed software in its entirety is the easiest maintenance scenario for the installation developer, I recommend using a Patch to modify installed software. This is a much simpler procedure for the end user and less intimidating especially when working with Vista (which will save the user from additional UAC dialog due to the sticky elevation mechanism).
    
7. Try to avoid confusing warning or error dialogues: unfortunately many installation developers are not doing enough to make sure the user will not have to deal with un-clear warnings or error messages. This includes the “File in Use”\”Restart Manager” pops-up that can appear when the Msi package attempts to update or uninstall files being used by the application.
    
8. Eliminate unnecessary reboots: make efforts to eliminate unnecessary computer reboots during the installation. Apart from the time element, many users have open and unsaved files or open web pages with information that will be lost if the computer reboots.