kicad-developers team mailing list archive

[Michael Kavanagh <michael@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I really do not think that is necessary. Anyone who has owned a Mac
for more than a few hours (the initial install/setup phase) will be
well acquainted with the process.

The KiCad macOS download page is already a bit "complicated" and
"confusing" for us "special Mac people". Usually it's just an empty
page with a big download button ;)

https://www.mozilla.org/en-GB/firefox/mac/


On Sat, 25 Apr 2020 at 07:50, Rene Pöschl <poeschlr@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> Hi again,
>
> might it be a good idea to add the content of the Readme to the download
> page? That way it would bring the Mac download page to the standard of
> the ubuntu one. (That page also explains the "normal" way to install
> from a third party source.) Even better would be if screenshots are
> included as the process is done in a graphical interface.
>
> My reasoning here would be that having this info clearly visible without
> needing to download anything would help anyone that needs to help others
> install software on any platform. So the forum users, teachers and
> possibly even the IT guys in companies might benefit from such detailed
> explanations.
>
> I would assume there might be differences depending on Mac version which
> is why i first ask here instead of just copying the content of adams
> mail into a pull request on the website repo.
>
> On 24/04/2020 17:31, Adam Wolf wrote:
> > Hi folks,
> >
> > Thanks for bringing this to my attention, Rene.
> >
> > I have attached two images, one showing what "normal" macOS
> > installation looks like, and what ours looks like.
> >
> > Our situation is not very far from normal and I would hesitate to call
> > it "manual" copying.  I do not know what they're talking about, but it
> > is not correct that you need to use a terminal or something to run
> > commands to install KiCad on macOS.
> >
> > When we surveyed users ~5 years ago when I revamped the macOS
> > packaging, users were overwhelmingly in favor of this method vs a pkg.
> > Pkgs have a bad reputation for doing bad stuff to your system--like
> > Zoom just did.
> >
> > There is also a README right when you open the DMG that explains step
> > by step what to do:
> >
> > """
> > To install KiCad, click and drag the two directory icons to the
> > targets pointed at by the arrows.
> >
> > After dropping kicad onto Application Support, you may be asked to
> > authenticate with an administrator username and password.  This
> > installs the support files for KiCad for all users on the system.
> >
> > KiCad is now installed!  Inside of /Applications will be a directory
> > called KiCad, and inside of that are all the programs in KiCad.  The
> > project manager is the one labeled kicad, and is probably where you
> > want to start.
> >
> > When you open the KiCad apps the first time, you must right-click on
> > them and select Open.  You only need to do this once.  You must open
> > KiCad first before opening the standalone apps, or else the standalone
> > apps won't be able to open up due to macOS quarantining.
> > """
> >
> > If someone wants to write a homebrew cask for using the mac DMG, I
> > suspect it would only be an hour or so total, and then users could
> > install with a single command in just a few minutes (however long it
> > takes to download the DMG).  Previously, another developer made a
> > homebrew recipe but it did not have a bottle, so it took hours to
> > install on a user's computers.  This was before homebrew casks which
> > should solve this problem.
> >
> > On Fri, Apr 24, 2020 at 9:35 AM Jon Evans <jon@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> >> I believe these users are talking about the normal MacOS method of installing software,
> >> which does typically involve copying files.
> >>
> >> Normally MacOS software is packaged as a disk image that is mounted when you double click it.
> >>
> >> The mounted image then normally contains the software to be installed, and shortcuts
> >> that are used as drop targets for a "drag and drop" copy.
> >>
> >> Most software only has one "file" (the .app file, which is actually a directory)
> >> That file is copied to the Applications folder on the user's system.
> >>
> >> KiCad's installation also involves copying a second folder to a privileged location (Application Support),
> >> so the user will be prompted for authentication when they do this step.
> >>
> >> This part of the approach is not very common for commercial MacOS software.
> >> Software that must install to privileged locations typically ships as a binary installer with a wizard,
> >> more like what you would typically see on a Windows machine.
> >>
> >> I am not familiar enough with the MacOS packaging to know if there is any potential for KiCad
> >> to have a single app file that just gets copied to Applications in the future.
> >>
> >> If we want to do fancy things such as write-protecting certain parts,
> >> probably the best bet would be to build a MacOS installer wizard (a PKG file).
> >> But, I don't know the details there either or if there are reasons we cannot / should not.
> >>
> >> -Jon
> >>
> >> On Fri, Apr 24, 2020 at 10:22 AM Rene Pöschl <poeschlr@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> >>> Hi all but especially adam,
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> lately there where a few threads on the forum where installation on Mac
> >>> came up. The users reported that they installed KiCad by manually
> >>> copying files around which sounded wrong to me. But as a lot of users
> >>> seem to be under the impression that this is indeed the right way i am
> >>> now starting to believe them.
> >>>
> >>> If these users are really correct then maybe this should be documented
> >>> very clearly on our download page. Or if there is any option to automate
> >>> this process (reducing human error) then maybe this would be the better
> >>> way to go long term but until then it should still be documented what
> >>> needs to be copied.
> >>>
> >>> One problem i see is if users can copy KiCad files then the libs might
> >>> not be write protected which would be a problem as KiCad relies on the
> >>> operating system write protection to avoid users modifying the shipped
> >>> libraries.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> _______________________________________________
> >>> Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~kicad-developers
> >>> Post to     : kicad-developers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> >>> Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~kicad-developers
> >>> More help   : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
> >> _______________________________________________
> >> Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~kicad-developers
> >> Post to     : kicad-developers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> >> Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~kicad-developers
> >> More help   : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~kicad-developers
> Post to     : kicad-developers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~kicad-developers
> More help   : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp

Attachment: Screenshot 2020-04-25 at 14.14.58.png
Description: PNG image