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MKInst: generator of installers of Clic 3.0 packages

The MKInst utility allows you to easily create programmes for installing your own Clic activities in other computers, similar to the EXE files that are used to distribute the activities in the clicZone.

JClic incorporates its own installation wizard. Do not use MKInst to install JClic projects!

MKInst is available in five different languages:

Catalan:	mkinst.exe (123 Kb)
Spanish:	mkinst.exe (123 Kb)
Basque:	mkinst.exe (123 Kb)
Galizian:	mkinst.exe (123 Kb)
English:	mkinst.exe (123 Kb)

Before using MKInst it is advisable to read the following instructions:

What is an installer?

An installer is a programme that has three basic functions:

• Allow the distribution of the multiple components of Clic activities (packages PCC, files WAV, MID, AVI, documentation DOC, pdf, HLP, icons...) in a single EXE file, or more than one if it surpasses the capacity of a floppy disk (1.44 Mb).
• Verifies that the user who receives the application has correctly installed Clic.
• Copy the components of the package to the user's hard disk, and create an icon that will allow him to run the activities from the Programme Manager or the Windows "Start" menu.

How to create an installer?

The first step consists of preparing the package of activities in a folder on your hard disk, making sure that it only contains the really essential files. In order to get rid of unused files it is recommendable to use the "copy " function of the ClicPac utility. It is also recommendable to always use images in GIF format, sound files in compressed WAV format and to compress the packages in PCC format. It is very important to verify that the names of all the files have only 8 or fewer characters.

You have the option of creating a customized icon for your application, using a programme like Image Editor, otherwise the installer will use the default Clic icon for your package.

Next it is necessary to start the MKInst programme and to fill in the form with the following data:

• Title of the package of activities.
• Name of the author/s of the package of activities that will be displayed on the screen during the installation process.
• Unit and folder in which the package of activities is. Note that the installer will also copy the subfolders attached to the selected folder.
• Name of PCC or PAC file (better PCC) that is the main package of your application.
• A description that will be the legend shown below the icon. The text should be brief and unique, so that it is different to any other legends corresponding to other packages that the user may have previously installed.

Optionally you can also fill in these fields:

• The name of the ICO file, if you have created one for this package of activities.
• An additional icon that points to some explanatory document or to a second package of activities in the same folder. The description of this second icon has to be different to the  main icon.

When you have filled in the data, click on the Accept button. The programme will inform you on the number of diskettes (or files) that the installer will need. The main file will have the same name as the package of activities, but with the exe extension, and if it occupies more than 1.44 Mb, additional files with the same name will be created, with extensions w02, w03, etc.

Click on the button Create the installation disks. You will have two options: to directly create the files in unit A: (use new and formatted diskettes) or to select a folder in the hard disk  to create the files.

We recommend that you verify successful working of the installer before distributing it, taking care to select a folder with a different name to that which contains the original package, to avoid overwriting the source data.