[Python-Dev] Windows installer request...

[Tim Peters]

[Bjorn Pettersen]
> Most installers default to the system drive, so I didn't even look the
> first time. I am able to change it manually.
> ...
> It should be as easy as (platforms that doesn't have %systemdrive% could
> only install to C:):
>
>  item: Get Environment Variable
>    Variable=OSDRIVE
>    Environment=SystemDrive
>    Default=C:
>  end
>
> However, you might have to do
>
>  item: Get Registry Key Value
>    Variable=OSDRIVE
>    Key=System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Environment
>    Value Name=SystemDrive
>    Flags=00000100
>    Defualt=C:
>  end
>
> (not sure about the Flags parameter) I couldn't find much documentation,
> and the example I'm looking at is a litte "divided" about which it
> should use... I think it tries the first one, and falls back on the
> second(?) (http://ibinstall.defined.net/dl_scripts.htm,
> script_6016.zip/IBWin32Setup.wse).
>
> Also, it looks like you want to use %SYS32% to get to the windows system
> directory (on WinXP, it's c:\windows\system32, which doesn't seem to be
> listed anywhere...)

Enough already <wink/frown>:  I don't have time to try umpteen different
things here, or really even one.

What I did do is build an installer *just* removing the hard-coded
Wizard-generated "C:" prefix.  Martin tried that and said it worked for him.
It doesn't hurt me.  If it works for you too, I'll commit the change:

    ftp://ftp.python.org/pub/tmp/experimental.exe

Please give that a try.  It's an incoherent mix if files, so please use a
junk name for the installation directory and program startup group (or
simply abort the install after you see whether it suggested a drive you
approve of).

> I can't figure out how you're building the installer however. If you can
> point me in the right direction I can test it on my special WinXP,
> regular WinXP, Win98, Win2k, and maybe WinNT4 (I think we still have one
> around :-).

.wse files aren't intended to be edited by hand (although we all do,
sometimes).  Instead, they're input to Wise's commercial GUI, which displays
their contents in a nice block-indented, color-coded way.  "flags" aren't
documented, and the GUI never shows them to you -- they correspond to the
on/off status of various checkboxes in various GUI dialogs.  We use Wise
8.14 to build the installer.  If you have Wise, you open the python20.wse
file using it, and click the "Compile" button in the GUI.  If you don't have
Wise, I suppose you guess what Wise would do if you did have it <wink>.