Virtual Folders?

[kcs]

Hi,

trying to get my head around the move from AMS3 to AMS5 :confused:

I've been using AMS3 to create front-end menus for a variety of CD projects, the main one of which involved installing an 'offline' intranet and, optionally, various pre-requisite software - such as Internet Explorer.

In AMS3 I had a master directory containing the CD contents which AMS3 used as it's "Virual CD folder". This doesn't appear to be possible in AMS5 ...

It creates it's own project folder and copies all the referenced files into this local folder. Fine for images, audio/visual files etc., but seems problematic for software setup files.

For example, I create a File.Run action for "ie6setup.exe". This file is copied into "autoplay\docs" ... but what about all the CAB files etc. the setup program expects to find?

I could manually enter the relative file path when I create the action script, but to safeguard against error, I'd much prefer to browse for the files. Is there any way of setting a CD_ROOT value in AMS5 that would allow browsing relative to my master CD folders and not the autoplay local projects folder

[Corey]

Hi. Maybe _SourceFolder will work for you... From the help file:

_SourceFolder
The full path to the folder that the AutoPlay application was run from (e.g. "C:\Downloads" or "D:\").

There are a bunch more built in global variables too, check out in the help file's "Contents" tab:

Program Reference > Variables > Global Variables

Hope that helps.

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software

[kcs]

Thanks for the reply Corey ...

doesn't seem to help though :(

If my CD has three folders:

av
ie5
ie6

each containg a SETUP.EXE and related CAB files. If I create buttons with File.Run actions:

I could add, as you suggest, "_SourceFolder\\av", "_SourceFolder\\ie5" and "_SourceFolder\\ie6" to the action properties , but that involves typing, which I'd rather avoid having to do at all

Even so, AMS5 insists on copying each of the SETUP files into autoplay\docs. :mad:

What I want to do is simply browse my CD master folder for the files I want to add into my actions and AMS to automatically insert them with filepaths that are relative to the CD root and to NOT copy them into the local "autoplay" folder! The User Guide says I shouldn't worry at all about this local project folder, but I'm afraid I do :(

Am I missing something obvious? ....

[Corey]

If you like put your files on your CD and use _SourceDrive instead.

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software

[Lorne]

Each project has a CD_ROOT folder which is roughly equivalent to the old virtual CD-ROM folder. What you want to do, kcs, is to put those three setup folders into the project's CD_ROOT folder.

Then, when you're browsing for a file in an action, just navigate up from the project folder (by double-clicking the special ".." folder twice) to get to the CD_ROOT folder.

This way the setup folders will be published along with the project, but the files won't be added to the Docs folder whenever you browse for them in AutoPlay (because they're already in the project folder).

And there is no need to use _SourceFolder or _SourceDrive at all. AutoPlay paths are relative to the CD_ROOT folder, so your paths will end up like this:

"av\\setup.exe"
"ie5\\setup.exe"
"ie6\\setup.exe"

[Corey]

Man, I am not having much luck selling _SourceFolder today, I feel like one of those novelty carpet guys you see parked by the roadside...

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software

[John-oh]

LOL,

Corey, keep going for it - one day you'll get a customer, and it will all have been worthwhile.

In the meantime diversify - binoculars, skateboards, fishing rods, rugs. You might have to move to Spain though .....

[Corey]

Yeah, once I get through these 450 misprinted "Loin King" blankets (They're perfectly good) I'll look into that...

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software

[kcs]

Lorne advised:

Originally posted by Lorne
Each project has a CD_ROOT folder which is roughly equivalent to the old virtual CD-ROM folder. What you want to do, kcs, is to put those three setup folders into the project's CD_ROOT folder.

A-ha! Simple when you know how

I was confused by now having AMS5 creating a complete local copy of the CD, rather than having them all held as folders on my network file server. I imagine then that if I set my 'projects' folder within AMS5 to point to my master folder of CD master folders on the network drive I'd have pretty much the same arrangement as I had with AMS3.

Thanks for helping out guys.

[anastasios]

thankiu