[Windows RT Development and Hacking] Fasin:
(got enough posts so I could move this thread here)

Desktop Store

(didn't habe the brains to come up with a nice name like "Subvert", if you have something good in mind, tell me, but I still would be glad to merge with toxickills project, even if it's only for the cool name ;) )

Screenshots

Program Download Links:

RT Desktop Store Installer

Features

50 apps packaged

install/uninstall packages

all items on the startpage get shuffled

tile creation

start apps directly from the store

Todo

sometimes uninstalled packages are still displayed as installed (restarting the store currently fixes this)

tile management (delete, check for already existant tile)

add store tile to the start screen

add screenshots to existing packages

pack the remaining packages

distributed repositories

package/installation updates

and much more - if you have ideas, tell me

How can you help?

If you would like to help me with the packages until I release the package manager: send me screenshots from the packaged applications available in the store, as this is hard for me to do (I don't even use every application myself).

Here are some criteria for screenshots I would like you to check before sending them to me:

make the size exactly 1366x768 or 683x384, so that they don't scale bad in the screenshots control

If the app can't run fullscreen or maximized window, its always nice to have the pc property window in the background showing the Windows RT logo text

you can also make only screenshots from the application window itself and place them on a canvas complying to point 1., maybe applying a nice dropshadow

don't edit the screenshots in any other way, let them look natural

and if you can: screenshot them in a productive/properly used scenario, that's always the best to see

Mail adress should be viewable in my profile, just sent it there, or if you have mailbox space issues, sent me a link to the screenshot(s), Thanks!

Further information:

Pretext

Hey guys, so i have been sitting some hours and tried to take up what djboo (thread) had no time to continue on.

I've build a little RT Desktop Store based on his idea on getting a repository to present packages and let you download them via a custom store client.

If you are confused: No this is not the store called "Subvert" build by Toxickill, which he posted on this thread.

So what's the reason for this "duplicate" ? Well i wrote my own store during the same time Toxickill did, but when i released my first screenshots, i saw he had released his first beta only a few hours earlier. We used the same UI Framework it seems, so our applications even look similar. I wrote him asking what to do, if we could work together, etc. because it would be dumb not to use our resources together, to make this work for you even better. But since he hasn't been answering my PM and I don't have the permission to post in his development thread as of yet, I thought i could at least release what i have build so far, let you review it and maybe even Toxickill will notice me :D And if not? Well i don't mind doing this alone since I already spent all this time doing it this way, and im so glad of being able to give back something to the community (This is my first ever publicly released application!). If you like my store (or don't like it), please comment so that I can make it better :)

And while I'm on the road, i can as well earn my 10+ posts, so that i can post in the development threads :)

If you are interested in working together: i have setup a TFS on my server which we can use for working on this project.

Ok now for the application.

Concept

Basically, it's the same concept djboo originally pointed out: have a repository with packages, let a store client download, unpack and install them. So far so good.

I've gone a bit further and tried to make the client look & feel like the normal windows store app (still a lot to be done, but it really looks alike).

The current repository is hosted on my server. While i have plans to release my the package creator too, i will first release the client, because the package creator is not that, erm, user friendly right now. In fact i have, because of my store client design, divided packaging and the repository, because the basic packages that can be build contain more that what is needed to simply install the application. After building a package you can add it to a repository (using a repository manager) which then will unwrap all that is only needed for the store client presentation of the package (tile images, screenshots, etc.) and present the rest of the package as downloadable file for the store client.

If you want to see it, here is a screenshot from my package builder application that I will release once all the applications available have been packaged and added to my repository (thinking of a simple package creation service that spawns new guids, so that ppl creating packages for the same application will get the same application guid to prevent presentation of duplicate entries by the store client)

Installation & Files

First and foremost: you need to jailbreak your device (Windows 8.0 only, hopefully 8.1 will follow soon)

To install the store client, simply download and run this Installer from my server.

The store client will get installed under your Program Files folder, creating a new Folder named "RT Desktop Store". Installation consists of 2 steps:

The Installer downloads and then and runs the launcher for the store client

The Launcher downloads the latest store client files and starts the RT Desktop store (this will happen every time you start the store client)

Packages that you install from the store will not be installed under your Program Files folder, but a Folder called "Program Files (RTDS)" (same parent directory as your Program Files folder). This is for not confusing the packages installed from the store with any existing applications in your Program Files folder. Uninstallers for all all installed packages will be held in the "__storepackages" folder of your RT Desktop Store installation directory (like C:\Program Files\RT Desktop Store\__storepackages).

If you install an app, the store client will also create a Tile on your start screen, using the command line interface of OblyTile - if a tile is supported by the package. If no tile is specified by the package, the application will start after installation, so that you can at least pin it directly to your task bar. Unfortunately, programmatic removal of tiles via OblyTile is not possible as of yet, so you would need to unpin them yourself. The same goes for checking of already existing tiles. The same tile will just get created a gain. But the will most likely be pointing to the same file, so just delete all but one of the tiles.

Shortcuts

As long as i dont release a proper installer that creates shortcuts, start menu entries and/or a live tile, you will have to pin the store client yourself. I recommend you to create a shortcut to "RTDStore.exe", not "RTDStore.Launcher.exe", because the launcher application may get renamed during an update process. That aside, it doesn't matter if you run the launcher or the store client directly, the launcher will be called either way to check for updates.

Packages

I have yet to package every application that has been ported already, but i got roughly 1/3 of them already packaged (they may not all include screenshots, tiles etc, but that will follow this week, along with the remaining ported apps i think.

Finally

Have fun and i hope everything works well. If you experience any errors, please comment here or sent me a PM, so that i can fix them and let the new versions get pushed to you by my launcher as soon as possible ;)

Disclaimer

THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND ANY EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE REGENTS OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION)

HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.