On 1/17/2024 7:58 AM, Newyana2 wrote:
> Microsoft have an irresistible compulsion to add "X" to everything
> at some point. The bundle version is simply a way for lazy developers
> to put all of their installers into a single file and make you download
> the whole mess, even though you can only use one of them. I'm
> guessing the developer probably got Visual Studio to do it for him
> and doesn't entirely understand it. Otherwise, why would people
> be so stupid? To save having to provide multiple download links
> on their website?

Thank you for giving me an idea of what this wacky format is all about.

What caught me unawares is doubleclicking on the msixbundle didn't do the
normal things. It just started the app and that was all that it did.

I have to presume it _installed_ the app. Somewhere. But where?
It didn't ask where to go (I put my apps usually on the D: drive).
And it didn't create a desktop shortcut.

So, unless I dig deeper (as you did), it's a mystery to me what happened.

EDIT: I found it by running a "dir /s/a/l/on/b" on the C: drive.
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\appdata
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\localcache
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\localstate
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\roamingstate
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\settings
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\systemappdata
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\tempstate
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\inetcache
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\inetcookies
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\inethistory
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\nvidia
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\temp
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\inetcache\container.dat
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\inetcache\msimgsiz.dat
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\nvidia\dxcache
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\nvidia\dxcache\f2c69769ecd0aea04b4f97c9152b699c_fce8395f8fd8a9b8_caee20f55bccfe0f_0_0.0.bin
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\nvidia\dxcache\f2c69769ecd0aea04b4f97c9152b699c_fce8395f8fd8a9b8_caee20f55bccfe0f_0_0.0.toc
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\ac\nvidia\dxcache\f2c69769ecd0aea04b4f97c9152b699c_fce8395f8fd8a9b8_caee20f55bccfe0f_0_0.1.toc
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\localstate\silentnotes_repository.silentnotes
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\localstate\silentnotes_user_settings.config
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\settings\roaming.lock
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\22846martinstoeckli.silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe\settings\settings.dat
c:\users\user\appdata\local\packages\microsoft.windows.search_cw5n1h2txyewy\localstate\appiconcache\100\22846martinstoeckli_silentnotes_4aa5zt7h99ppe!app

Does that strange crazy unfathomable location tell you anything about it?

> The package is PKZip format. 7-zip can open it. Inside are the
> multiple msix files. If you open this one you'll see there's a
> 32-bit installer, 64-bit, and so on. The msix files themselves only
> work in Win10/11 and are basically ZIP files with XML files for
> setup settings. (Microsoft loves XML even more than X, despite XML
> being a very bloated and inefficient format as compared to
> something like ini. But MS like X's and they like to webbify anything
> they can get their hands on, so XML was a natural winner in the
> MS camp.)

Thank you for taking a look at the Microsoft .MSIX bundle format
as you (I think) have written msi extraction & debugging tools.

I downloaded it and extracted it with 7zip to take a look inside.
I was surprised to see what you described as I had never seen this
Microsoft ".msix" extension before (is it a common file extension?).

https://www.martinstoeckli.ch/silentnotes/silentnotes.Msixbundle
Name: silentnotes.Msixbundle
Size: 29167026 bytes (27 MiB)
SHA256: 08ADC8A506F1261B134EE3B4F03D0B002AA0898907FAF1DE9D919749E90F7677
AppxBlockMap.xml
AppxMetadata\AppxBundleManifest.xml
AppxSignature.p7x
SilentNotes.UWP_7.3.1.0_ARM.msix
SilentNotes.UWP_7.3.1.0_scale-100.msix
SilentNotes.UWP_7.3.1.0_scale-400.msix
SilentNotes.UWP_7.3.1.0_x64.msix
SilentNotes.UWP_7.3.1.0_x86.msix
[Content_Types].xml

> So you've got a wildly bloated packge, due to being forced to
> download every version, and it won't work on anything but Win10.

You're right! I doubleclicked on the SilentNotes.UWP_7.3.1.0_x64.msix
and it came up with "SilentNotes 7.3.1.0 is already installed"
Microsoft Store App ED1EE5C1E-F8CD-4A09-A57F-18D151833C31

What is that funky long designation? Is it my serial number?
Or is it something that only Microsoft Windows knows how to use?

> An explanation I found said that msix is based on msi, but that's
> not true. It seems to be more like an xpi or a docx -- basically
> just a ZIP file package. The msi format is a compound storage
> file format, like .doc, and structured with a kind of sql database.

You would know better than anyone on this group so I thank you for
clarifying that it's just a zip file package of some strange sort.

I unzipped "SilentNotes.UWP_7.3.1.0_x64.msix" with 7Zip to look at it.
05DBE9EA-EF75-43DB-8A03-27898B59D1E9
AppxBlockMap.xml
AppxManifest.xml
AppxMetadata\CodeIntegrity.cat
AppxSignature.p7x
Assets\(other stuff)
clrcompression.dll
Lng.SilentNotes.cz
Lng.SilentNotes.de
Lng.SilentNotes.en
Lng.SilentNotes.it
Lng.SilentNotes.ru
Lng.SilentNotes.tr
Lng.SilentNotes.zh
resources.pri
SilentNotes.dll
SilentNotes.exe
SilentNotes.xr.xml
[Content_Types].xml

The biggest file (by far) was "SilentNotes.dll" at 21MB where the
executable "SilentNotes.exe" was tiny by comparison at 20KB.

Doubleclicking on the "SilentNotes.exe" executable failed with
the error "SilentNotes.exe - System Error" the code cannot proceed because
SharedLibrary.dll was not found" which it repeated for "mrt100_app.dll".

> I don't get why you care about this.

On Windows I typically use GVIM but it doesn't have a checkbox feature.
On Android I typically use checkbox apps which can't be edited on Windows.

Yet I want to synchronize checkbox notes on Android with Windows.
It's not such a strange desire. I'm sure many people would like to do that.

Wouldn't you?

Anyway, the 1st step in synchronizing is getting the native Windows WebDav
server working - and that's the part that is the most frustrating so far.

I turned on the native Microsoft WebDAV server and I was able to add it to
the network neighborhood but I haven't been able to sync with Android yet.

I am hoping that by using Silent Notes temporarily on Windows, I will
eliminate the Android part of the setup - to simplify the testing process.

Also though, if I'm going to synchronize checkbox lists between Android and
Windows, I'm hoping the Windows Silent Notes is designed to work with the
Android SilentNotes app. You'd think that's what it does, wouldn't you?

> You installed a 30+ MB Windows "app" to replace Notepad?

I use GVIM, not Notepad. And the SilentNotes.exe file is only 20KB. :)
And while VIM is on Android, it's too difficult to use without a GUI.
More to the task at hand, SilentNotes has a very nice checkbox feature.

> I now have two Win10
> boxes going and a Win11 install just out of curiosity and to
> test my own softare. I've never even looked in the "app" menu.
> (I always install Classic or Open Shell, so thankfully I only see
> an "apps" item on the start menu.)

Like you, I never use the Microsoft provided Start Menu either.
That's why I was looking for the desktop shortcut.
So that I could find the target and see if I could move it to the D: drive.
Usually I use portable software. Like you do.

>| I doubleclicked on that ".msixbundle" and it did "something" that caused
>| Silent Notes to be "installed" somewhere but what the heck did it do?
>
> Why would you download and double-click a file when you don't
> even know what it is?

Because I have no way of knowing how it works until I do that. :)
Now that I know how it works, that's where people like you come in.

You have a better idea than I do about this new Microsoft *.msix extension.
This thread is asking Windows experts what they think of this wacky format.

>| I have no idea where the program went, or how to uninstall it, or what.
>| What do you think about this new Microsoft MSIX Bundle installer format?
>
> Presumably it's in the apps menu. Having never
> installed an app, I don't know how to uninstall them. Isn't
> it in the Control panel Programs and Features applet?

The *.msix installer didn't even ask where it should go, so it's no good.
I don't use the start menu but I looked and you're right that it's there.
But you can't rightclick on it to see where the target executable is.

The "shortcut" (or whatever it is) that starts it in the start menu isn't
in the typical place where you'll find all the "normal" menu shortcuts.
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\

You can't even rightclick on the "thing" in the Start Menu to look at it or
even to pin it to the taskbar (nothing happens when you rightclick on it).