Digital Workshop

Hello,
I own Opus Pro 5.5 but am evaluating version 6.

I published a web publication and uploaded to the internet. Plugin downloads and installs for me fine (win XP), but my associate, on Windows Vista gets the following error message when it starts to download the plugin:

Cannot create file C:\program files\common files\digital workshop\io opus player\ilmplay2.dll; access denied


I don't understand. It is her personal PC; she is an administrator with full PC permissions.

Anyone know what might be wrong?

Thanks,
Mike

Hi Mike,

Have you tried to download Plexus manually and install it that way?

Mack

Hi Mack,
I don't think she's tried installing it manually, but I think I've discovered what the problem is anyway. After some research, I've discovered that there are some security settings in Vista that affect even people with admin rights. If this is the case, we'll just need to place a note on our site for Vista users. Most of our clients are XP users, anyway.

Anyway, I hope that's what's wrong, because otherwise, it's a bug with the plugin.

Thanks,
Mike

Being an 'administrator' on Vista is not like it used to be.

see here::

http://www.jimmah.com/vista/vistanew.aspx

and here

http://www.jimmah.com/vista/content.aspx?id=46

Paul

Wow, thanks a lot for those links; they are very helpful!

Mike

Hi Mike,

You can get a program called TweakUAC which helps with admin under Vista.

I know that DW were having various problems with the updates to Plexus a while back. Our customers & schools simple couldn't access our izones (now repository) files that we'd published with Opus 6.4.

I was sent an email stating that you'd need to download Plexus manually as this was a slightly older but working version. This still seems to be the case as I published a file last night under my original copy of 6.4 and it would not run under XP or Vista until I installed the manual version. However, this was simply a case of download and run under Vista - no special permissions were necessary.

I've left a demo at:

http://www.sandbox.interaktiv.co.uk/Untitled1/

I've been busy with other things an not had a chance to find out exactly why it has to work this way, but I'll drop DW an email and see what is happening and let you know.

Mack

Hi Mack, thanks a lot for all your help. I'll ask my associate to download and install the manual version. Can you tell me why permissions aren't necessary for that?

Also, thank for emailing DW. Good luck with that, and please let me know if you get a response.
Thanks,
Mike

Hi Mike,

I'm afraid what's is causing the permissions error is a little difficult to debug without having access to the machine it's self. As Paul rightly explained, Vista's admin functions are different to XP's and IE7 also implements Protected Mode for Vista that causes various headaches.

As our clients are mostly UK schools who have been advised not to use Vista, I've barely looked into it and am waiting for W7 before switching our development machines.


We got a lot of emails a while back complaining of problems with our free online software, but these were most teachers working on home machines which is when we discovered the Plexus problem and PH explained that we'd need to download the older manual version.

Is this still related to the previous mails that you posted trying to find the best way to provide your publications to lots of user without too much download? If so have you considered using the update function?

Mack

Hi Mack,
This is a different thing. This client is considering switching to online altogether from delivering on CDs.

However, now that you mention, I do know that at one time, my client was also advisng his clients to avoid using Vista, also. So maybe, if he's still advising that, it all works out.

Thanks,
Mike

FUN WITH VISTA

Had a day of fun testing my pub with Vista's User Account Control switched on (how does anyone live with this?).

Sorry, some of this may be slightly incorrect or incomplete, but it got me to a solution. I thought it may be useful for someone, somewhere.

I needed to save both a registry key and some data for all users. The registry key was for software activation purposes and I was already managing different user data in one file, so didn't then want various data files all over the place.

Vista UAC will prevent:

1. Saving to the Program Files folder (read only)
2. Saving keys to the Local Machine registry (ie. when selecting 'all users' in Opus)

Attempting these resulted in data being placed in a virtual store in the registry, never to be seen again (not by any other user anyway).

Bizarrely, you CAN save to the C:\ root.

You can also save to the Local Machine registry if you right-click on the pub and 'Run as administrator'.

You can also do both of these straight after using an install application, but neither on the next launch, even when logged on as an administrator.

For me, the answer was to:

1. Encourage activation on first open (unlikely, as I offer an evaluation).
2. Suggest that 'Run as administrator' might be required for activation on further launches.
3. Save data files to a folder in the root of the C drive (I really can't believe that one, but if MS are going to make the proper solution impossible...).

I've started to put in a check for administrator rights. I don't know the code, so was just creating and then reading from a txt file in the Program Files folder. If it is there, then they must have the rights. Not very pretty, but it looks like working.

Anyone have any better solutions? Ideas would be much appreciated.

Cheers
Dan


PS. UAC also appeared to:

- slow IE to a crawl
- dropped computers out of network view
- blocked FTP
- knocked out my display drivers (surely not?)

PPS. Windows 7 looks like being even more of a pain.

Looks like basic misunderstanding on how Vista's virtualization works.
Searching this forum for 'UAC' brings up useful information.

See:
Installing Opus pub in (Vista) Program Files directory:
viewtopic.php?t=3129&highlight=uac

This can clarify the situation as well:
Vista "Gotchas" You Should Know About:
http://www.sonsothunder.com/devres/revo ... env007.htm

Files that can be changed are not supposed to be stored in the Program Files directory; this has been the recommended approach in XP from the start, but it was not enforced. Vista is more strict, behaving more like Linux and Mac OSX in this regard.
I leave UAC turned on and don't seem to have the problems you describe.

Paul

Dan,

I similarly 'wrestled' with Vista when my WinXP laptop died. I manually migrated some of my data files over to Vista (attached old HD thru USB). I totally missed that Vista or OEM had a feature for "Easy Migration" or some such.

That's where my problems started. Can you believe this: I manually created a 'My Documents' folder on the Vista C: drive. And attempted to populate it. Don't do this. Vista gets indigestion and bad manners.

As far as UAC, I too stumbled many times on it. The good news is, once you get a basic idea of Vista's new approach to program install regimen, the appropriate paths for program data and for user data, and the Virtual Store... it is easy to accept and use UAC at face value. (Hint: sometimes, when manually launching a utility application or .exe from a file icon, Right-Click and use "Run as Administrator").

Paul has some good suggestions. Do read-up on the Vista stuff. You may have to audit your installation ( I had to undo some of my early mistakes, then have been running smooth and clean for 1.5 years).

Thanks guys.

With all due respect Paul, I had actually looked into the virtual store (I just didn't want to come over as an expert when I am not, and have edited out my feigned complete ignorance - it was probably not good for business). The thing is that this appears to be a user-based folder/registry area.

As mentioned, my publication manages users. If, for example, three kids set up a game each when Dad is logged on, I wanted the same three sets of data to be available when Mum is logged on. I needed a common area to read and write to without elevated/admin rghts.

The Program Data folder seemed like an obvious answer, but I wasn't sure if it was similarly protected. It is also not a variable in Opus, so would have to be an absolute path. I came across the root directory solution before finding decent info about the Program Data folder, and the change was easy. I will play with the Program Data folder today and see if I can use this instead. It would seem logical. Thanks for the link there

I am advising 'Run as administrator' for the activation, as mentioned.

As far as the other UAC problems are concerned, I have now turned it off and everything is back ship-shape. Hmmm. I have to admit I went off Vista on Day 1. I tried to simply cut and paste a folder containing 3000 files to a new location. 2000 turned up in the new location and 2000 stayed in the original folder (!).

Cheers for the ideas.
Dan

Paul / Lar / Mack

Could you please have a look at this and tell me if you have a solution. It seems like a big problem to me, but I'm still working with limited knowledge of UAC.

viewtopic.php?p=16557

Thanks
Dan