Software Delivery
I’m looking at how to deliver software on Linux, Mac OS, and Windows. Delivering software on Linux is a pain if you cannot release the sources. However, Linux is all about open source, so it would not be fair to compare it to what Microsoft or Apple provide.
What is fair, is to compare Microsoft to Apple: take a look at Microsoft’s Windows Installer. Apparently, it reduces the Total Cost of Ownership, and that could be its most important feature. The guide mentions that you need a program called Orca which comes with something called the Windows SDK Components for Windows Installer Developers. The provided link tells you that this is part of Windows SDK which you can download after taking the genuine Microsoft Windows challenge. Unfortunately, Orca is not installed when you install the SDK: the installer for Orca is. So you have to locate the file called Orca.msi and install it.
Now, take a look at Apple’s Software Delivery Guide. Apparently, this is all about packaging and delivering a software product so that it can be installed on a user’s computer.
Unlike Microsoft, Apple provides a PDF version of the guide so you can search it, print it, or read it off-line.