#1 Question Asked About GenDetective

Why does the install take so long to run?  This is a great question and some users have seen the install take almost an hour to run!  Why does it take so long?  The answer depends on a couple of items.   Lets start with what additional tools are installed by GenDetective (the list of which appears in the installation program):

  1. Adobe Acrobat XI:  GenDetective uses this to display your reports.  All reports are PDF files and they can be printed, transferred to tablets, e-readers, cell phones, emailed, etc.  A frequent question is: “I don’t use Acrobat do I have to?”.  No, if you have your own PDF utility you prefer to use, as long as it is the default used when a browser launches you can uninstall it.  However, Acrobat is installed so that GenDetective knows a PDF reader is available for its use.  Installation of Adobe products can take a few minutes to 10+ minutes to install.
  2. GenDetective 2:  The GenDetective files themselves, the program and sample PDF files, install in 1-2 minutes.

    Detail of the United States

    Detail of the United States

  3. Microsoft Access Runtime 2010:  GenDetective uses the Runtime version of Access to create your reports.  Access functions as both data storage and report generator.  It may take a few minutes to 10 minutes to install.  If you have the “full version” of Access 2010 installed on your machine the Access Runtime does not install.
  4. Office Primary Inter Op Assembly:  A small piece of Microsoft Office software that facilitates communication, usually installs in 1-2 minutes.
  5. .NET Framework 4.0.30319:  The Framework is from Microsoft and is the usual cause of long running installs.  The older your machine or operating system (XP & Vista and early Windows 7 releases) the longer this installation takes to run.  Why does GenDetective 2 use a newer .NET Framework than the first version of GenDetective?  We needed to use some of the latest Windows technology for all of the graphics that provide the visual insight into your data: the maps and charts!  In order to create the maps and charts GenDetective must use this newer .NET Framework.  If your install is taking a really long time to run, this is the cause.  If you have a newer version of the .NET Framework the version released with GenDetective is not installed.
Visualization of my research into 3rd great grandparents death statistics

Visualization of my research into 3rd great grandparents death statistics showing: completed, approximate and missing research

Can you do anything about the long install time of the .NET Framework?  Yes, you can.  Before installing GenDetective, you can run Windows Updates and install any outstanding updates as well as selecting the optional update for the .NET Framework 4.0.  The installation of the .NET Framework will still take the same amount of time, however the installation of GenDetective will run much quicker.

All of the estimated times for installations are approximate and depend on the age and speed of your computer system.


4 Responses to #1 Question Asked About GenDetective

  1. Pingback: Connecting to database .. | GenDetective

  2. Karon says:

    How is all this affected when you use this program on a Mac?

  3. Pingback: Connecting to Database Redux | GenDetective

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