The same questions get asked by many different users. Below are a selection of the most common questions and my answers to them.

1. I've tried to reload one of my older scripts into ScriptMaker and it can't seem to interpret it, even though the original script was made with an earlier version of ScriptMaker. What's wrong?
   
   
2. How an I put a shortcut to my application on the user's desktop?
   
   
3. How can I install my application so that it starts automatically when the users starts Windows?
   
   
4. I don't want some of the files to show up in the start/program /file menu how can I stop them from showing up there?
   
   
5. The entire installed folder is being placed on the Windows Start Menu. What am I doing wrong?
   
   
6. I've tried to open one of my hand-made scripts in ScriptMaker and it says it can't recognise the script - why?
   
   
7. How do I edit an entry I've already added to the file grid?
   
   
8. When I click the "Create Setup" button, ScriptMaker asks if I want to delete the files in the output directory. If I say NO, Setup doesn't start. Is this a bug?
   
   
9. Why does ScriptMaker say that it can't determine the version number of my executable file when I reload a script?
   
   
10. My directory structure on this install has 15 sub-directories and many files. What's the quickest way of adding all these to the script?
    
    
11. I need to add a complicated set of Registry entries to my script. Is there a way to transfer entries directly from the Windows Registry into the script?
    
    
12. I have to add an extremely large number of files to my script. I can "drag and drop" the files but ScriptMaker cannot seem to create the script successfully.
    
    
13. On installation I need to edit the System.ini file. I cannot seem to find a way to do this using ScriptMaker
    
    
14. Is the source code of ScriptMaker available, like Inno Setup?
    
    
15. As a fellow Delphi programmer, I just wondered how you did ... ... in ScriptMaker.
    
    
16. Inno Setup version 1.xx was released yesterday. Does ScriptMaker support the new features?
    
    
17. Can I use ScriptMaker commercially?
    
    

I've tried to reload one of my older scripts into ScriptMaker and it can't seem to interpret it, even though the original script was made with an earlier version of ScriptMaker. What's wrong?

What's wrong is probably that you created the script with a version of ScriptMaker earlier than version 1.2.1. These earlier releases supported both the script code used currently in Inno Setup and the older script code which was used prior to Inno Setup version 1.10. ScriptMaker version 1.12.10 was the last version of ScriptMaker which supported the older script code, so I'm afraid it looks as though you will have to re-create your script using the newer code.

How can I put a shortcut to my application on the user's desktop?

On the "Icons" page, select the executable file in the list on the left. Right-click the mouse on the Displayed Name field and choose Shell Folder Constants/{userdesktop} (or Shell Folder Constants/{commondesktop}) from the context menu. Click the Add button to finish.

How can I install my application so that it starts automatically when the users starts Windows?

See my answer to the question above. In this case however you would choose Shell Folder Constants/{userstartup} or Shell Folder Constants/{commonstartup} from the context menu.

I don't want some of the files to show up in the start/program/file menu how can I stop them from showing up there?

Only the files you select on the "Icons" page will show up as icons. To stop them appearing on the Start Menu, just don't select them!

The entire installed folder is being placed on the Windows Start Menu. What am I doing wrong?

On the "Icons" page you have selected your executable file from the list on the left. This is correct; but you've then changed the entry in the Command Line Filename field from "{app}\appname.exe" to "{app}\". When the user clicks the icon in his/her Start Menu the command line simply starts Windows Explorer and displays the contents of the application folder.

I've tried to open one of my hand-made scripts in ScriptMaker and it says it can't recognise the script - why?

Because ScriptMaker needs to be able to reload scripts, each script contains extra information which is not required by Inno Setup. When you reload a previously made script into ScriptMaker it looks for a special heading which identifies the script as having been made by ScriptMaker. The message you are getting tells you that ScriptMaker can't find that heading. It also means that the extra information is probably missing from the script, and therefore ScriptMaker may have to guess at some settings. However, it's still worth loading the script and seeing what ScriptMaker can make of it.

How do I edit an entry I've already added to the file grid?

You can edit entries in any of the grids by double-clicking the entry. This removes it from the grid and places it back at the top of the page as if you were still entering it. Make any necessary changes and then click the "Add" button to out it back in the grid.

When I click the "Create Setup" button, ScriptMaker asks if I want to delete the files in the output directory. If I say NO, Setup doesn't start. Is this a bug?

No, this isn't a bug. Earlier versions of Inno Setup required the output directory to be empty, so if you said that didn't want to delete the files from it, Setup couldn't run. I've changed the way this works now that the latest version doesn't require an empty output directory - I suggest you download the latest versions of both Inno Setup and ScriptMaker.

Why does ScriptMaker say that it can't determine the version number of my executable file when I reload a script?

If you have switched on the option to "Check executable version number" on the "Initial Setup" page, when you reload a script ScriptMaker will try and determine whether the version number of the file has changed. This may fail for a number of reasons:

1. The executable does not contain a version number (no VERSIONINFO resource has been added to the project) or there is no executable file in the project.
2. The VERSIONINFO resource is not in the correct format or lacks a "FileVersion" entry.
3. The version number quoted in the script is not in the form of a number (for example, "Lite version" rather than "1.2")
4. ScriptMaker cannot determine which is the main executable file. If there is more than one executable in the project it will try and find one which matches the entry in the Application Name field.
5. The executable file has been moved to another location since the script was written.

My directory structure on this install has 15 sub-directories and many files. What's the quickest way of adding all these to the script?

With large numbers of files, and particularly where you want to include a whole directory and its sub-directories, the easiest way is to use Windows Explorer. Locate the directory in Explorer and then drag the folder to the "Files" page of ScriptMaker. All the files in the directory, as well as the files in all its sub-directories, will be added to the file list.

I need to add a complicated set of Registry entries to my script. Is there a way to transfer entries directly from the Windows Registry into the script?

Start RegEdit and locate the registry entries you want to add. Choose "Registry/Export Registry File" from RegEdit's menu. Save the file in a convenient place. On ScriptMaker's "Registry" page, click the Import/Export button and choose "Import". Navigate to the registry file you have just saved and click the Open button. All the entries in the registry file will be added to the ScriptMaker script.

I have to add an extremely large number of files to my script. I can "drag and drop" the files but ScriptMaker cannot seem to create the script successfully.

ScriptMaker, up to version 1.2.9a, was limited by the capacity of the RichEdit control which contains the finished script on the "Finish" page. From version 1.2.10 onwards the only limit is the amount of memory available on your computer and your patience in waiting for the script to compile! I have successfully created and compiled a script with over 25,000 files - the script size was 2.78MB and the compiled setup file worked out at over 1000MB! If you are having problems creating a script with a large number of files make sure that you have at least version 1.2.10 of ScriptMaker.

On installation I need to edit the System.ini file. I cannot seem to find a way to do this using ScriptMaker

I receive quite a number of requests for ScriptMaker to do similar things after or during file installation. Please remember that ScriptMaker simply creates the script - it cannot add any functionality to Inno Setup. These sorts of queries should be addressed to Jordan Russell who might possibly consider adding your requirements to the next release of Inno Setup. You can contact Jordan via email at jordanr@iname.com.

Is the source code of ScriptMaker available, like Inno Setup?

At present I am not planning to make the source code freely available. This is not because I want to keep it secret or anything like that - it's simply that the code has now become so spaghetti-like that even I have trouble finding my way around it! One of these days I will get around the tidying it up - perhaps then I will make it available. Please bear in mind also that ScriptMaker is written with C++Builder, not with Delphi like Inno Setup and that you would need to install a number of custom components in order to compile the program.

As a fellow Delphi programmer, I just wondered how you did ... ... in ScriptMaker.

Firstly - I'm not a Delphi programmer, ScriptMaker is written using C++Builder. Having said that, I am happy to try and share any part of ScriptMaker with fellow programmers (but see the comments about the source code above). I have used some custom components by other Delphi and C++Builder programmers (see the About box in ScriptMaker), but most of it is my own code. I'll do my best to answer specific questions but remember that it will be in C++ (not Delphi) and that it may not be easy to adapt my code to other programs.

Inno Setup version 1.xx was released yesterday. Does ScriptMaker support the new features?

If the new version was only released yesterday, I probably haven't even seen it yet! Give me a chance!! I don't see advanced copies of Inno Setup, neither do I have any advanced knowledge of proposed changes. However, I do my best to keep up-to-date, and I will try and release a new version of ScriptMaker within a few days. Because I try and make the new release quickly, please remember that it will not have been fully tested and may contain a few minor bugs. These are usually ironed out within a couple of weeks of the first release, and a revision issued.

Can I use ScriptMaker commercially?

If you mean "can I use ScriptMaker to create the scripts for commercial programs?" then the answer is "yes", but I would appreciate you letting me know that you are doing so. If you mean "can I sell ScriptMaker?" then the answer is definitely "NO" - you can give it away, and you can charge for the cost of the media (disk or CD) but no other charge may be made.

© 2006