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And for those still not aware what product(s) I am talking about, shortly put:

SFT Encoder is a multipurpose App-V package content modification tool, that can be used to create new App-V packages or update existing one. This includes both SFT file itself (as product name implies) but also all associated package files (save for the MSI) as well. SFT Encoder is command-line operated, but very capable tool for all package update needs.

Gridmetric Lib-V is a .NET based library component, that can be integrated to one’s own application for full support for opening, modificating and writing out SFT files. This makes it extremely easy to have SFT handling capabilities if you happen to have application that somehow concerns itself with App-V packages.

How to spot a cheap company? When you do one-off consulting for them, they don’t even pay your lunch.

It’s as simple as that.

Just yesterday I suddenly received three [very well known] books I had ordered from the Amazon a while earlier: Art of Computer Programming, Volume 1 (Fundamental Algorithms), Art of Computer Programming, Volume 2 (Seminumerical Algorithms) and Art of Computer Programming, Volume 3 (Sorting and Searching) by Donald E. Knuth, guy which has greatly influenced the programming scene.

I say suddenly because I had selected the most cheapest delivery method for them and the estimator on the order tracking page predicted that I should receive them at some point in October, which, in my mind, sounded way too slow for delivery in this time and year.

Anyways, I got them (they are approx. 600 pages each) and now I’m waiting to find enough time to actually read even some of it through! I already started the first one and have to say that I find Knuth’s writing style to my liking, although I’m already fearing a bit about the mathematics he might have for some of the algorithms..

I have read quite some number of programming books before, but I think that instead of focusing specific technologies or products -which most IT books nowadays seem to be about – it’s probably helpful to actually read some of these fundamental base books as well. Like for IT project management, they say that you should read The Mythical Man-Month
(which I also have owned for quite some time already, but never managed to finish… shame on me) in order to understand concepts like why adding more people to the already late project makes it even more late etc..

New release introduces several new directives for template -based package processing as well as few new command-line options.

Installer now includes the Batch Processing GUI – previously available as separate download – which makes it breeze to mass-process batch of App-V packages when there’s need to change server name due to server migration or perhaps when needing to add new OS values due to Windows 7 rollout.

For those wanting to evaluate product before buying, trial version is finally available for downloading and trying, as is the free Express version for simple package creation purposes.