Why not into a program folder and where are the settings stored?
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Hello,
first I don't understand why this software is installed into a folder where normally other programs store their settings and not into a program files folder - any why can't I just choose where to install?
Second I don't find where the software stores it's settings... -
btw there are no .json files inside the media subfolder...
And how can I disable the "Firelight before bed" setting?
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And when I do the 24-h preview using the 4.20 beta I don't see an info which time is represented actually...
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Okay, I got it, these two facts:
1st:
@echo off
setlocal enabledelayedexpansion
cd /d "%~dp0"
REG EXPORT "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Michael Herf\flux\Preferences" "f.lux Settings Export.reg" /y2nd:
"Adjust all colors at once" -
Hmm. I think you're over-complicating it to an extreme.
Just use the f.lux UI. It's all there. There's no need to do any of this fancy stuff. Just set f.lux how you want it, and then leave it. There's nothing else you need to do.
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@TwoCables well I'm used to be able to choose where to install a software - and normally it's C:\Program files - and I'm used to backup settings to have them in place with the setup files in my software archive.
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@El-Narizon said in Why not into a program folder and where are the settings stored?:
@TwoCables well I'm used to be able to choose where to install a software - and normally it's C:\Program files - and I'm used to backup settings to have them in place with the setup files in my software archive.
You don't have to do that with f.lux. This program doesn't need to be in Program Files and you don't need to worry about saving any of the settings, etc.
For the record, I get what you're saying. I never install a program without checking for the option to fully customize the installation. With f.lux though, it's different; it doesn't matter. It's just a simple little program. You just install it, set it up, and forget about it.
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@TwoCables of course "it doesn't need to be in Program Files", of course I could decide to install GTA V on the desktop and Adobe Whatever suite into the documents folder if I like ...
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@El-Narizon said in Why not into a program folder and where are the settings stored?:
@TwoCables of course "it doesn't need to be in Program Files", of course I could decide to install GTA V on the desktop and Adobe Whatever suite into the documents folder if I like ...
Let me ask you this: what would change if f.lux were in the Program Files or Program Files (x86) folder? How would that be better? Why do you want it to be there?
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@TwoCables Just only persistence in software behavior standards, nothing more...
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@El-Narizon said in Why not into a program folder and where are the settings stored?:
@TwoCables Just only persistence in software behavior standards, nothing more...
So if I understand correctly, you don't have any good reason for it to be in the Program Files folder. It wouldn't improve anything for you. It wouldn't provide any sort of benefit to you or make any real difference. It would be the exact same end-user experience for you. Am I right? It's just that you weren't expecting it to be this way. Does it really matter though?
I think we should wait and see what Michael Herf has to say about this. I think he's the one who decided to do it this way. I would bet he has quite a good reason for it, or else he would have changed it by now.
Consider this: the entire amount of space f.lux consumes between the two different AppData folders is 3.21 MB.
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@TwoCables somehow you're right, but it's still not common to do so... perhaps Michael Herf is a native Linux user so that could be the reason...?
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@El-Narizon said in Why not into a program folder and where are the settings stored?:
@TwoCables somehow you're right, but it's still not common to do so... perhaps Michael Herf is a native Linux user so that could be the reason...?
I really don't know, and if I may be completely and apologetically honest, I really don't care. What matters the most to me is that f.lux is awesome and it works. It's always right there in the Notification Area. If I exit f.lux and I want it back, then all I have to do is open the Start menu and type "f.lux". I don't need it to be in some easy-to-access folder. Actually, I have f.lux pinned to the Taskbar, but hey, I'm weird like that; I don't use f.lux the same way everyone else does.
Oddly enough though, I'm far more anal about installing software than it seems. Every time I install anything, I will carefully make my way through the installation. I won't go ahead with the actual installation process until I know I set it up and customized it to my complete and total satisfaction and I've avoided all piggyback software. Even then, I will review my installation setup before proceeding to make absolutely certain it's exactly how I want it to be. I will never install something without first checking to see if it has a 'Custom' or 'Advanced' option. I almost can't unless I check first.
For f.lux, I immediately made an exception because it's just a tiny little program (it's a program that's barely even a program) that you are essentially just installing to the background. It doesn't need anything other than an AppData folder and a simple Registry key (and of course an entry in one of the main Run keys so that it starts with Windows). It's designed to always be running, so it's really more appropriate for it to just be a part of the OS, more or less.
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The trend to install software into
%appdata%\Localis not new, other software ends up there —including Chrome and Dropbox. This is done because an installer can copy files there without administrative permissions, and the installation process can go ahead without asking anything, smooth like butter.There are a number of negative sides though:
- some IT departments block executables in the directory, because malware likes to hide in those places; if you can't change the installation directory, you can't run the software;
- executables can be tampered with or replaced without administrative permissions; this is a security risk, and it helps malware work around the OS security features;
- increase backup sizes:
AppDatais considered essential profile information, but software binaries should not be backed up in the same way; - the
AppDatadirectory is supposed to be for Application Data, not software; installing things in there means messing up with conventions and expectations.
Now, F.lux is a tiny piece of software and therefore not much of a problem. However, its installer could offer two options like many others do:
- install for all users → store under
Program Files - install for this user → store under
Appdata\Local
I would install it in
Program Files, because that's where it belongs. And then I wouldn't have to create exceptions in my backup configuration :) -
Yes, the original reason was for easy updating, and so non-Admin users could install f.lux. You might be surprised how many people will avoid installing updates and then send you lots of email about how much your old version is broken. We really want a large majority of users on the latest version if it's possible.
So, when Windows Update pushes a video driver that breaks us, we have to be able to update quickly. Also, because we're touching home automation and some features like that, we want to be able to update for security reasons too.
Our "enterprise" installer does install in Program Files, but we do not expect our updater to work the same way there.
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@TwoCables so that it works with app whitelisting rules, that define that an unprivileged user may not run applications from their home folder.
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@herf that is the worst possible reason for installing to %APPDATA%. Google Chrome installs to Program Files fine, and it has to update a heck of a lot quicker than f.lux.
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@cartel google runs a localsystem service to make this work. This is nice for them, but we don't do that.
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@herf said in Why not into a program folder and where are the settings stored?:
So, when Windows Update pushes a video driver that breaks us, we have to be able to update quickly. Also, because we're touching home automation and some features like that, we want to be able to update for security reasons too.
One security reason vs another security reason —indeed it's never easy. Anyway, consider this a feature request for an "All users" option (even a command line switch in the installer), since there are a number of good reasons for installing under
Program Files.
