Month: January 2010

Q: Why Doesn’t Drag-and-Drop work when my Application is Running Elevated? – A: Mandatory Integrity Control and UIPI

UAC logo

If you run notepad elevated (Right click | Run as Administrator), and you try and drag-and-drop a file from Windows Explorer, nothing happens. It looks like it is going to work because the pointer icon changes but the file doesn’t open. Weird, huh?   What’s Going On?   In the traditional NT Security model (prior … Read moreQ: Why Doesn’t Drag-and-Drop work when my Application is Running Elevated? – A: Mandatory Integrity Control and UIPI

Common Application Installer Issues on Windows 7 (and Vista)

There are some very common application installer issues developers run into due to UAC.  Most of the issues are easy to fix.  I’ll cover the most common issues in this post. Per Machine Installers Need Admin Privileges Unless you have a ClickOnce installer, your installer probably installs to a per machine location. The recommended location … Read moreCommon Application Installer Issues on Windows 7 (and Vista)

Common Problems with Checking OS Versions in Code

When a new OS is released, a high percentage of applications don’t install or don’t run because they check for a specific OS version.  The application or installer checks for a specific version number and exits if it isn’t what is expected. I’ve heard claims of up to 50% of incompatibility issues are due to … Read moreCommon Problems with Checking OS Versions in Code

Using the “secret” Windows 7 Problem Steps Recorder to Create Step by Step Screenshot Documents

PSR logo

When I show this tool to developers or QA guys, their eyes light up with excitement. When you work in Application Compatibility, you spend a lot of time documenting problems ;-).  In this post, I’ll talk about some of the tricks and tools I use for documenting issues. There’s a slick new tool called the … Read moreUsing the “secret” Windows 7 Problem Steps Recorder to Create Step by Step Screenshot Documents