Here are some anticipations of the new features you’ll get in Direct Access 1.5, which I expect to release in beta in January. Here are the main new features of 1.5:

• support for Windows Vista
• reduced memory footprint
• new, redesigned, easier to use interface
• instant search to quickly find your abbreviations
• new powerful functionalities for Autotext commands

The new interface of Direct Access

Office 2007 style tooltips

Commands are displayed so that you can get the maximum amount of information in a very reduced space. For each command you can clearly see its description, abbreviation (the word you have to type to activate it) and the preview. The little yellow ball tells you if the abbreviation requires a confirmation or will be fired immediately.

Instant Search

With Instant Search you can quickly locate your favorite commands typing a few keystrokes. The commands list is updated instantly to reflect your request.

Redesigned edit dialogs with a number of new features

The dialogs used to create commands have been redesigned to be much clearer and easier to use. A number of new commands have been added to perform special tasks:

• insert a manual text input: this allows you to perform a number of tasks: when the command is executed, a pop-up window is displayed asking for additional information: for example, you will be able to search google, wikipedia, a dictionary from any application and compose personalized messages executing a command and typing a parameter of your choice in the input window.
• insert the current date (using the time/date formats of your choice)
• insert special keys like TAB, ENTER
• insert an ASCII character typing it’s ASCII keycode
• have the cursor positioned at a certain place in the inserted text

OSD Command execution confirmation

Direct Access shows an OSD text confirming the execution of a command. So, you immediately know if the command has been correctly triggered.

I’m expecting to release Direct Access 1.5 in beta in January. All registered users will get the upgrade for free.

Technorati Tags: Direct Access, autotext, Nagarsoft

I’m working on a new version of Direct Access which, among other new features, will add full support for Windows Vista. Thanks to the help of my good friend Marcus Tettmar, I found that the reason why in some cases drag and drop from Explorer to Direct Access didn’t work was due to the privileges Direct Access was running with. The behaviour happened only when launching Direct Access directly from the setup application.

The “Run the program now” checkbox that appears in many setup installations present a security risk with Vista: as all the processes that setup spawn inherit the same privileges as Setup (normally full administrative privileges) your application will be run with full administrative privileges as well.

This will not only create a security problem but may also cause other interaction problems between applications (for example, drag & drop from explorer to Direct Access doesn’t work).

The suggestion, therefore, is to remove the “Run the program now” from the installation final screen, as it’s suggested in the Innosetup FAQ at http://www.jrsoftware.org/iskb.php?vista

Technorati Tags: Vista, Installation

A fellow ASP member mentioned the Virustotal website. You can submit any file and have it scanned with many different antivirus, so you can be sure that you application is not mistakenly identified as a virus or malware.

You can upload the file to the site or alternatively, send it via email. The service is free.

Virustotal
http://www.virustotal.com

Technorati Tags: antivirus