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MANUAL
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[00]. Why is this better than ThinApp?
[01]. Directory Support
[02]. Extensions
[03]. Plugin Support
[04]. Updating, Installations, Re-installations, etc.
[05]. Re-implementing stripped components
[06]. Which features did i remove?
[07]. "appinfo.ini is missing" error
[08]. Where are the settings saved?
[09]. Where is CameraRaw?
[10]. Changelog
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| [00]. Why is this better than ThinApp?
|
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1. Unlike ThinApp versions.. this can utilize your PC's hardware and is better
performing than ThinApp versions.
ie. CPU, GPU, RAM, etc.
2. Leaves no trash behind.
http://www.portablefreeware.com/faq.php#stealth
3. You can add plugins, Extensions, etc.
4. Customizable.
http://portableapps.com/manuals/PortableApps.comLauncher/
5. Optimized for optimal performance regardless if on a PC or portable media.
Within the coding, RAM is optimized for a more responsive application.
6. Can run from a CD.
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| [01]. Directory Support
|
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Previously.. i backed up the entire Adobe directory.
Sure it was easy.. and faster.
But it's not kosher...
allow me to explain.
Adobe has many products under their umbrella.
ie. Acrobat, Elements, Lightroom, Macromedia, Illustrator, Reader, Flash, etc.
And they all use the same directories, registry keys, and file names.
This is why Adobe has so many complaints..
Their installers inadvertently cause collision with this faulty homogenous
design.
For instance:
Adobe Flash is common, and present on almost every machine these days.
If i just backed up: AppData\Roaming\Adobe.
If PhotoshopPortable is running, AppData\Roaming\Adobe is backed up to:

AppData\Roaming\Adobe.BackupByPhotoshopPortable.
Now.. hypothetically lets say a user then launches Internet Explorer w/Flash.
Internet Explorer will also write to: AppData\Roaming\Adobe
But it's been backed up by PhotoshopPortable.
Now if the user closes PhotoshopPortable, it will save Internet Explorer's
data as if it's own.
This is why i don't like to backup AppData\Roaming\Adobe.
Instead.. i work with sub-directories.
If you navigate to: PhotoshopPortable\App\AppInfo\Launcher.
and open PhotoshopPortable.ini in Notepad or any text editor.
Scroll down to [DirectoriesMove] section.
You'll see the sub-directories im talking about.
Now.. the only downside to working with sub-directories is every possible
folder must be accounted for.
That's nearly impossible unless i speak directly to Adobe's designers.
The next best thing is to simply go through each feature and use it.
By using a feature.. the data (if any) is created..
and im able to account for it.
I've done the best i can..
and believe i've accounted for almost all of them.
Of course.. im not perfect and a few are bound to be missing.
Fortunately.. it's not hard to add directories to the launcher file.
If you come across a directory which is being left behind and not accounted
for.. simply add it to the launcher.
If the directory contains irrelevant data, add like this:
-=%APPDATA%\Adobe\Unknown Adobe Folder
If the directory has data you would like to keep, add like this:
AppData\Unknown Adobe Folder=%APPDATA%\Adobe\Unknown Adobe Folder
The 3 variables are
%APPDATA%
=
%LOCALAPPDATA%
=
%LOCALAPPDATALOW% =

as follows:
AppData\Roaming
AppData\Local
AppData\LocalLow

For detailed help, refer to the Online manual:

http://portableapps.com/manuals/PortableApps.comLauncher
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| [02]. Extensions
|
==============================================================================
In this release.. Extensions have been re-added.
It's useful for designing, editing, etc ..

As an example, a few Extensions are included ..

To access.. launch PhotoshopPortable > Windows > Extensions.
Some extensions require Internet service.. such as Kuler.
It is OK to allow PhotoshopPortable Internet access.
I've designed it to not call home :)
To add more Extensions:
- By default, Extensions require Extension Manager.
- Which is not included with this edition.
- Simply extract .zxp with 7-Zip.
- Sometimes, Extensions are double-archived.. if you see a 2nd .zxp after
extracting with 7-Zip.. simply extract again.
- Now copy into:
PhotoshopPortable > App > CommonFiles > CEPServiceManager4 > extensions
==============================================================================
| [03]. Plugins
|
==============================================================================
Navigate to: "PhotoshopPortable" > "App" > "Readme.txt" for a brief tutorial.
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| [04]. Updating, Re-installs, installs
|
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During upgrades or reinstalls..
Your settings are preserved.
In addition, the following directories are also preserved.
- Photoshop\Plug-ins
- Photoshop\Presets
- Photoshop\Required\Plug-Ins
* same applies to Photoshop64 directories.
If you specifically do not want to preserve any of the above directories,
simply delete before re-installing or upgrading.
==============================================================================
| [05]. Re-implementing stripped components
|
==============================================================================
The following items have been stripped to reduce bloat & increase performance.
Adobe
Adobe
Adobe
Adobe
Adobe
Adobe

Photoshop
Photoshop
Photoshop
Photoshop
Photoshop
Photoshop

CC\Required\Linguistics
CC\Required\Default Materials.p3m
CC\Required\PDFL
CC\CIT
CC\AGF3DPrinterDriver.exe
CC\LogTransport2.exe

If any of these items are required for your usage.. simply re-add into
appropriate location.
==============================================================================
| [06]. Which features did i remove?
|
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1. DynamicLink
2. Creative Cloud
3. PDF Admin
4. Face Recognition
5. etc.

Those are the major features removed..

there may be a few other minor ones..
Why did i remove them?
Because from past experience.. these features are extremely heavy, resource
intensive, large in size, and degrades the performance.
Im not a professional graphic designer.. and never had any need for them.
If those features are important to you.. you'll have to learn PAF specifications
and add them yourself.
I wanted a version that was lite, fast, responsive, and bloat free.
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| [07]. "appinfo.ini is missing" error
|
==============================================================================
This error was brought to my attention by "BillT".
I finally experienced this error myself and was able to pinpoint the problem.
It's related to encoding.
appinfo.ini must be encoded as ANSI.
otherwise, the launcher thinks it's missing and refuses to launch.
simply re-encode w/Notepad++ or Notepad2-mod.
==============================================================================
| [08]. Where are the settings saved?
|
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It is redirected into PhotoshopPortable > Data > settings.
This reduces workload, which improves performance.
==============================================================================
| [09]. Where is CameraRaw?
|
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CameraRaw has been relocated into:
PhotoshopPortable\App\Photoshop\Required\Plug-Ins\File Formats
or
PhotoshopPortable\App\Photoshop64\Required\Plug-Ins\File Formats
Why? CameraRaw is a large file and by default is located in CommonFiles.
Copying back & forth into CommonFiles w/such a large file degrades performance.
==============================================================================
| [10]. Changelog
|
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February 18, 2014
* Updated to v14.2.1
* Reset "Presets" to factory settings: reduces overall size.. this way users
can add what they want.
* Improved directory backup & restore function: implemented sub-directories.
* Improved registry backup & restore function: implemented sub-keys.
* Improved launcher code: had a bit of time due to TPB's technical difficulties,
and was able to redesign the launcher, and fixed any errors.
* Added automatic directory backup for following directories:
- Photoshop\Plug-ins
- Photoshop\Presets
- Photoshop\Required\Plug-Ins

* "Prefs" files are now automatically detected by language.

(End-users no longer have to manually edit the launcher)
* ProgramData has been modified a bit: only SLCache is backed up. the other
directories are not because Photoshop does not write data there. Also.. if
CameraLens are present.. Photoshop can detect & use.
February 19, 2014
* Added automatic path adjustment for CameraRaw's cache directory.
- because this directory has the potential to grow as large as a few GBs..
it's kosher to set to "Data\CameraRaw Cache" directory to prevent copying
back & forth which can degrade performance.
* Added EnglishGB