#MICROSOFT TO DO MAC OS INSTALL#

Smaller developers usually tried to make their app installable via drag-drop, distributed in zip archives or disk images(for simplicity's sake). Until it's debut, what was standard for large companies was their own custom scripts rolled into an older-style 'bundle' package or using an executable like the VISE installer. Its usage is described here: /articles/mactech/Vol.25/25.03/2503MacEnterprise-PackagingforSystemAdministrators/index.html.īut as others have mentioned, the elephant in the room is the MacAppStore(MAS for short). app, as recommended by AppleĪn older marketing page on Apple's site says it's recommended to create packages (so the Installer application can move the bits in place) with the PackageMaker application. second, the mechanism for preparing the.first and most importantly, the standard method by which the bits of an executable get laid on the disk in a way that's accessible and properly registered by the system.Ideally in this case, your program will detect that it is running from a disk image and offer to copy itself into the Applications folder. They will run your application from the disk image. But a lot of your users will not understand that they need to do that (unless your target audience is solely knowledgeable computer users). In all other cases use a DMG that prompts the user to copy the application into the Applications folder.

#MICROSOFT TO DO MAC OS INSTALL#

Use a PKG if you need to install files aside from your application bundle (which should not be a common use case). Of course that benefit comes with some costs, but this isn't the place for that debate–there are plenty of other places for that.Īssuming you don't want to or can't go the App Store route, both PKG and DMG are common ways to distribute a program. And, believe it or not, normal people have a lot of trouble with the concept of installing a program. This has the benefit of making application installation transparent to the normal user. Apple is very clearly making the 'standard' to be downloading a program from the App Store.

Microsoft to do mac os