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Windows
Incompatible
The following programs claim to be Windows Compatible. However,
by studying their behavior in a by-the-book Windows environment, they did not
seem to behave the way Windows applications are supposed to behave. The
incompatibility scale ranges from 1-5, where 1 is almost compatible and 5 is
completely incompatible (will not start at all). Developers can find a link to
the guidelines for creating a proper and fully compatible Windows application in
the Docs & Links section.
| Program Name | Level | Incompatibility Reasons |
| ACDSee 3 | 5 | Attempts to write to the HKLM registry branch upon every execution and will not start if it's unsuccessful - and it is unsuccessful if a normal users starts it, because they are restricted from writing to this registry branch. |
| Acrobat Reader 4 | 1 | Program attempts to register file types upon every execution. Since normal users are unable to do this, the program displays error messages in a dialog box, but continues to work normally after the dialogs are manually closed. |
| CoolEdit 2000 | 5 | 1. Application uses INI files to
store settings. This is not advisable. But if it is necessary, the files
must be stored somewhere in a user's profile, like Application Data. 2. Fails completely when a user runs it. It attempts to write to the HKLM registry branch. 3. User-specific settings are saved in the HKLM registry branch. Only machine-specific settings are to be stored there, anything else must reside in the HKCU branch. |
| GetRight | 2 | 1. Defaults to its installation
directory for all customizable directory locations. It should default to
every user's own My Documents directory. 2. Stores the INI file in the %SystemRoot% directory by default. Although this can be changed by editing a registry setting, it should default to the user's Application Data directory. |
| ICQ | 5 | 1. This application stores the
user database, UIN records and various other user specific files in the
application's install directory's subdirectories. User specific files and
data must be stored in the user's profile directory's Application Data
subdirectory. This default behavior can somewhat, but not entirely,
be changed to conform to the norms by manually editing some registry
entries. 2. Received files and other definable directories default to the program's installation subdirectories. They should default to the specific user's My Documents directory. 3. The application needs to write to two files in its installation subdirectory upon every startup. If it fails to do so, and it does when an ordinary user runs it because he has no write permission, it fails to start. |
| mIRC | 4 | 1. Uses INI files for all
settings. Some settings can be stored in the registry, machine-specific in
HKLM and user-specific in HKCU branches. 2. Stores the INI files in it's install directory, instead of a user's Application Data. Thus different users are unable to have their own personal settings. 3. Defaults to the installation directory's subdirectories for all customizable directory settings, like Logs. It should default to a subdirectory in a user's profile, preferably in My Documents. |
| Paint Shop Pro 6 | 3 | This program wants to register file types every time it's executed. Since normal users aren't allowed this, error messages get displayed in a dialog box. The program continues to work though after the dialogs are manually closed, but some features are unavailable (the tool boxes that roll open when the mouse is over them). |
| RealPlayer | 4 | 1. Uses an obscure (not registry
or INI files), multiuser incompatible method of saving program settings
(in files in the program's installation directory). 2. Defaults to subdirectories of the installation directory for all directory settings, like cache. Since users are unable to customize their settings, defaults or administrator-imposed settings are always used. |
| WinAmp | 4 | 1. The most popular audio player
uses INI files to store its settings. The INI file approach must be
dropped and the settings written to the HKCU registry branch. 2. The INI, playlist and other user-specific files are located in the directory where the program was installed. Since users must have no write permission to this directory, they can't personalize the playlist or program settings. These files should be stored in the user's profile, best in Application Data. |
