foxe - firstobject XML editor freeware, single portable exe

[Ben Bryant]

Last week I released foxe 2.3 freeware for Windows specifically to comply with portability as described here on portablefreeware.com. Download the plain "zipped exe only" (only 367kb)

http://www.firstobject.com/dn_editor.htm

Foxe, the "firstobject XML editor" can be used as a simple text editor, as an HTML editor, and as a programmable/scriptable XML tool.

Previously foxe was putting a settings.xml file in the user application data folder, but with release 2.3 foxe.exe no longer puts the settings on the machine unless you request it to. It also has the option of putting the settings in the same folder with it so that you can store settings with it on your memory stick.

As a single Windows executable with no dependencies on frameworks or runtimes, working on Windows 95 to Vista, it is versatile and useful. I've posted portablility details here:

http://www.firstobject.com/simple-xml-e ... -stick.htm

This XML tool was listed here some years ago but then disqualified when I put settings in the registry. I stopped using the registry in July 2007, and now I made it so by default it does not create settings.xml, so it should meet all the criteria.

Note that you can also download the installer (592kb), but that is just for convenience since foxe.exe works anywhere and runs anywhere without installing. Hope you like it, and hope it will get re-promoted here.

[Local]

Thank you for the update.
It's always good to see developers interested in portable software.

Just wondering though do these keys matter when left behind?
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\foxe.Document]
""="XML Document"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\foxe.Document\DefaultIcon]
""="D:\\Desktop\\foxe23\\foxe.exe,1"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\foxe.Document\shell\open\ddeexec]
""="[open(\"%1\")]"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\foxe.Document\shell\print\ddeexec]
""="[print(\"%1\")]"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\foxe.Document\shell\printto\ddeexec]
""="[printto(\"%1\",\"%2\",\"%3\",\"%4\")]"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\foxe.Document\shell\open\command]
""="D:\\Desktop\\foxe23\\foxe.exe /dde"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\foxe.Document\shell\print\command]
""="D:\\Desktop\\foxe23\\foxe.exe /dde"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\foxe.Document\shell\printto\command]
""="D:\\Desktop\\foxe23\\foxe.exe /dde"


I thought that they were to change file associations but nothing seems to have changed on my machine.
Are they only for the program while it is running?

[Ben Bryant]

Thanks for posting those; they have no purpose for foxe. I forgot to check if MFC was going in there and doing some nonsense. Now I'll have to get rid of those and release version 2.3.1...

[Ben Bryant]

I've updated foxe (see 2.3.1) so that it does not create those foxe.Document registry entries. Those settings should not matter when left behind, but my goal was that foxe would not touch the registry at all unless I add a feature allowing the user to purposefully request extensions to be registered. You were right on, there was a call in foxe to register the shell file type even though it was only partially doing it and not actually associating a file extension as far as I can tell. For MFC programmers: I had left the RegisterShellFileTypes(TRUE) call in the CWinApp derived InitInstance.