Downloading and Installing DXLab Applications

Installing a new DXLab Application

With the latest version of the DXLab Launcher installed on your PC, you can install an uninstalled DXLab application by following these steps:

1. start the Launcher

2. click the Launcher's Config button to open its Configuration window

3. click the Configuration window's New ? button to update the installation status and release availability of all DXLab applications

4. click the appropriate Install button on the DXLab Apps tab

The Launcher will confirm your intention to install the application, and display the pathname of the folder into which the application will be installed so you can confirm or correct it. The Launcher will then initiate a Setup program that registers the application and its components, prompting you for additional installation decisions such as the creation of start menu entries, desktop shortcuts, and the installation of optional files like country maps or audio announcements. A step-by-step guide is available.

If you haven't yet reviewed Getting Started with DXLab, doing so is strongly recommended.

Upgrading an Installed DXLab Application

With the latest version of the DXLab Launcher installed on your PC, you can upgrade an installed DXLab application to its latest release by following these steps:

1. start the Launcher

2. click the Launcher's Config button to open its Configuration window

3. click the Configuration window's New ? button to update the installation status and release availability of all DXLab applications

4. click the appropriate Upgrade button on the DXLab Apps tab

The Launcher will inform you when the upgrade is complete. A step-by-step guide is available.

If you installed a DXLab application at some time in the past but haven't been installing its upgrades, you can obtain all subsequent defect repairs and enhancements by upgrading to the latest release, as described above.

Cleanup

After upgrading a DXLab application, the DXLab Launcher does not automatically delete the previous version of that application; the previous version is retained in the application's folder in a file named AAAXXX.exe , where AAA is the name of the application, and XXX is a version number, for example

• CI-V Commander1224.exe

• Pathfinder541.exe

After the Launcher successfully upgrades an application, you should retain the previous version of that applicationjust in case; older versions can be manually deleted.

Full releases and incremental releases

All DXLab applications are produced using a software engineering process known as iterative development, characterized by frequent releases. To facilitate this process, two kinds of releases are provided: a full release containing all software and documentation components, and an incremental release that contains only those components that have changed since the most recent full release. A full release is installed once; from then on, only lighter-weight incremental releases need be installed. It is not necessary to install every incremental release of an application; installing the most recent incremental release is sufficient to bring an application up-to-date, no matter how many incremental releases may have previously been skipped.

When the DXLab Launcher installs a new DXLab application, it first installs the application's most recent full release; if a later incremental release is available, the Launcher automatically performs the upgrade. Subsequently, the Launcher can report the availability of new incremental releases and, at your direction, download and install them.

If you installed a DXLab application at some time in the past but haven't kept up with subsequent releases, directing the Launcher to upgrade that application will obtain all subsequent defect repairs and enhancements.

Availability announcements and Release Notes

You can configure the Launcher to automatically check for new application releases at startup and daily thereafter; if releases are available that are newer than what you have installed, a "new app upgrades" message will appear on the Launcher's Main window, as shown above. On the Launcher's Configuration window, available DXLab application releases that are newer than what's installed on your PC are highlighted in red font. Double-clicking any version number will display the Release Notes for that version.

New releases of DXLab applications are also announced on the DXLab Reflector, an open forum that you are encouraged to join. This reflector plays a major role in driving the development of DXLab -- suggestions are refined, alternatives are considered, and releases are critiqued; the result is a powerful flow of ideas whose implementation benefits all participants. At your option, messages posted to the reflector can be delivered via email -- either individually, or in a daily digest.

See https://www.dxlabsuite.com/dxlabwiki/InstallingDXLabApplications for step-by-step guides to installing and upgrading DXLab applications.

Documentation

For step-by-step help with common installation and usage scenarios, see Getting Started with DXLab. The table below provides links to feature summaries, online reference documentation, and printable documentation for each DXLab application:

Release Notes, Defect Logs, and Enhancement Logs are helpful in identifying changes made over time; links to this information for each DXLab application are provided in the Available Releases table below.

Available DXLab Releases

DXLab applications can be manually downloaded via hyperlinks in the table below, or via any of several worldwide distribution sites; if you do this (instead of directing the Launcher to install and upgrade a DXLab application you seek),

1. first download and install the application's Most Recent Full Release

2. then download and install the application's Most Recent Incremental Release

Bridges, Gateways, and Extenders

DXLab applications can interoperate using several protocols. This has stimulated the development of new applications that work in concert with some or all members of the DXLab Suite:

Distribution sites

• US: https://www.dxlabsuite.com/download.htm (thanks to Jamie W2QO, and Networks & More! Inc. https://www.k12usa.com & http://www.isboss.com )

• Italy (in Italiano): http://www.i6kzr.it/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=13&Itemid=27 (grazie a Renzo I6KZR)
  

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