If you’ve played around with native installers for AIR 2, you probably already found out that you cannot use the update framework. My fellow evangelist Piotr just released a solution for that.

Piotr’s NativeApplicationUpdater library works in exactly the same way as the update framework you use for AIR applications. When your app starts it loads an XML file that has all the update information. If an update is available you will be prompted to download and install it. Piotr actually uses another AIR 2 feature to launch the downloaded native installer. By opening the package with openWithDefaultApplication() the installer launches and installs the update.

I’ll definitely add this to the next release of my Package Assistant application (an update is coming soon!).

Check out the video where Piotr explains how it works and download the library from Google Code.

If you haven’t played with native installers for AIR 2 and want to learn more, then check out my video tutorial.

One of the many exciting new features in AIR 2 is the ability to create native installers. That gives your AIR 2 application the ability to talk to native code. In this video I’ll show you how to build native installers for Adobe AIR 2 using the command line, and I also explore how my Package Assistant app simplifies that process. The Package Assistant that I’m using in the video is an older version and I think you’ll find that the current version is even easier to use.

Update: A brand new version of Package Assistant is available. Check out this page for more info.

Just before the holidays, I released an alpha version of my AIR 2 Package Assistant application. As many of you know, AIR 2 allows you to build native installers. The only downside is that you have to use the command line in order to package these native installers.

I have just narrowed down the possible solution for the only reported problem. Some of you got an “Invalid input” error message and the packaging failed. I think this may be caused by forgetting to include the icons you use for the app. You have to include these in the final step where you add any additional files to the package.

I also updated the application so it now works with the AIR 2 Beta 2 runtime, which is available on Adobe Labs.

The Package Assistant application should still be considered in alpha phase. If you don’t mind testing alpha builds, go ahead and download the updated application. (Don’t forget to read these notes.)

If you find any other bugs or if adding the icons did not resolve the “invalid input” error message, feel free to leave a comment or email me directly.

Update: A brand new version of Package Assistant is available. Check out this page for more info.

I already sneaked this application last week but in case you missed that: I am building an application that makes it easier to package native installers for AIR 2.0. Instead of having to fiddle around with the command line to create installers, this wizard style application makes it very easy and straightforward.

Now before you go and install this application, there are a couple of things you should know.

1. This is an early version of the application. It may not do what you thought it would do and it may even explode ;-). If that is the case, please let me know. I’m releasing it now to get some feedback and to improve version 2 ;-) The application should be considered alpha quality.
2. It is currently OSX only. I ran in to a little snag with the Windows version but will try to get around that ASAP.
3. It currently only supports PKCS12 code signing certificates.
4. It’s not yet very user friendly if you make a mistake… If you for instance mess up your cert passcode, you’ll have to start over again. I’m also not saving the path to ADT.. These things are “on the list”.
5. Additional files are supported but are always relative to the folder that holds the main SWF… This is one that needs a lot of testing. If your setup does not work, please let me know.
6. If you have feature requests or you find a bug or something weird, please let me know. Just leave a comment to this post, send me an email or use the contact form on my blog.
7. Did I already mention that this should be considered alpha quality?
8. I think it’s fairly obvious but just in case: This application requires the AIR 2.0 runtime.

So… You’re still here. That must mean that you’re a geek like me and you don’t mind testing early builds of applications ;-). Good… Go ahead and download the application.