> Is it possible to launch and external .exe file from within
director?
>
> I actually have a client who wants to run a Powerpoint 2000
> file as a link
> from a D. presentation, but it needs to be an external file
> so he can change
> it. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.
Neil,
This question comes up on this list as well as Direct-L about once a
week. Here is some info which may help you:
There are 3 things to consider in opening any file, such as a PPT,
using an executable from within Director:
1 - finding the full path to the PPT file on your CD or hard drive
2 - finding the full path to the PPT viewer on the target machine
3 - opening the viewer with the PPT file appropriately
If you ABSOLUTELY know 1 & 2, you can simply use the built-in Director
functionality:
open xxx with yyy
If that CONSISTENTLY works for you, then you're done.
Unfortunately, you will often know only item 1 with any moderate
certainty. The reasons for this is that the user may or may not have
installed the Powerpoint Viewer, and they can install it anywhere. To
find this information you will need to look in the system Registry.
Additionally, they may put your CD into a drive that may or may not be
one that you can guess the path to. Fun huh?
This problem is made simpler by using an Xtra to determine these
items. There are several Xtras available to help and MasterApp is one
such Xtra. The MasterApp Xtra contains a function specifically
designed for that purpose named
mappLocateExecutable()
It returns the path to the executable registered to handle the
document at the file path specified. Once you know this information
you can open the PDF ising other MasterApp functions or even embed the
PPT file in your movie, as if it were a part of the movie.
Platforms: 32-bit Windows, Win 3.1, Mac
Director versions supported: Director 4,5,6,7,8, 8.5
Author: Glenn Picher
MasterApp gives you broad control over other applications from your
Director presentation. The most common application for MasterApp is
building connectivity between your Director piece and various Web
browsers and Web pages. However, MasterApp is much more powerful than
this basic use, including dozens of methods for launching, monitoring
and controlling external applications. MasterApp is a commercial Xtra
sold by UpdateStage. You find out more information, download an
evaluation version or purchase the Xtra here:
http://www.updatestage.com/xtras/xtrahome.html
I hope that this information is useful.
Cheers,
Al Hospers
Marketing Associate
UpdateStage
alhospers<at>updatestage<dot>com
http://www.updatestage.com
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