PEM: Portable Extension Manager

[FreewareWire]

PEM stands for portable extension manager. Its purpose is to be able to handle file extensions without having to edit the registry. It also allows you use file association for programs on your flash drive and keeps the paths relative as you move across computers.

http://sites.google.com/site/freewarewi ... ftware/pem
or
http://sites.google.com/site/freewarewi ... /downloads
to download

I know that it was briefly mentioned in another thread (along with 10,000 other suggestions...in the same thread), but it didn't really get noticed, and it really is a useful tool for those who use a flash drive frequently.

-Jon

[FreewareWire]

Hey, hate to bump my own thread, but I am just wondering why I never got any responses on this.

-Jon

[webfork]

Everybody here loves Autohotkey so ... *shrug* I dunno.

Questions I have:

1. Is it better than Cafe/Coffee http://www.portablefreeware.com/index.php?id=1317
2. Is it GPL'd?

[FreewareWire]

1. It's different. I've tried CAFE a while ago, and from what I can remember, they both work well, they just take different approaches. There are definitely things in CAFE that would be cool to have in PEM, but hopefully vice versa as well. (Side note, does it really matter if PEM is 'better' to be listed in Portable Freeware, or was that just a personal question. [Also, I'd feel so totally lame being the author of the program saying 'Yeah, it's way better than CAFE ]).

2. Yup! I really don't know much about licensing, but yeah, it's GPL. I really don't care what people do with it as long as they don't try to make money off my work and they don't try to take credit.

[joby_toss]

...The main way that PEM simplifies file association is via a simple registry entry. When installed, it will add the option "Open with PEM" when the user right clicks any file. To install it, either click the button in the PEM Editor, or right click the tray...

Seeing this, I tried to give a shot to PEM-Dropper, but the download link doesn't work.

Sorry, not portable enough for me.

One question though: does it work on a 64bit OS?

[Cornflower]

I treat it as a special use utility when I am away from either my home or office computer. I admit I use Filemenu for these my main computers. Filemenu, as a context menu thing, is not portable, while PEM has the nifty switch to Install or remove context.

I think the reason it does not get a lot of play is that it has a specific, limited use, and as suggested, many here have other favourites, and we resist change

[FreewareWire]

Seeing this, I tried to give a shot to PEM-Dropper, but the download link doesn't work.

Upps....Fixed it. It should work now.

Sorry, not portable enough for me.

Even though PEM was made to avoid registry keys, the logic is you can have (a) a separate registry key for every single filetype, or (b) one registry key for all filetypes with PEM.

I know that everyone defines "portable" differently, but the way I've heard it most, it 'leaves no trace on the host computer', and as long as you remove the registry key, which is EXTREMELY easy to do in PEM (it can even do it automatically), it satisfies this definition.

Plus, ignoring the registry key option, isn't it portable anyway? I just don't see the problem. True, some of the functionality is taken away without the registry key, but it's still a perfectly useful program.

One question though: does it work on a 64bit OS?

Honestly haven't a clue. It should, but I make no promises. I've barely even tested it on Windows 7, mostly because I don't have the time with my current schedule.

-Jon

[webfork]

I know that everyone defines "portable" differently, but the way I've heard it most, it 'leaves no trace on the host computer', and as long as you remove the registry key, which is EXTREMELY easy to do in PEM (it can even do it automatically), it satisfies this definition.

Plus, ignoring the registry key option, isn't it portable anyway? I just don't see the problem. True, some of the functionality is taken away without the registry key, but it's still a perfectly useful program.

I was going to let Joby cover this, but forgot to check back ...

Portable means being able to take your settings with you, which it sounds like the program does. I'm not real clear on that -- I'll download it and mess with it in the next few days.

I wrote the following thinking that you were unclear on our policy about the registry. When I went back and read it and then read some of the previous entries, I realized I misunderstood ... but here it is anyway, just because it might come in handy for something in the future:

• Whatever the particular behavior of your program, registry entries are almost by nature exclusive to just one computer. Ideally the program should save its settings to application directory in an INI or XML file. Coffee does a great job with this, and its useful when adding 100s of different file types that programs like LibreOffice and XnView can open. At that point its just copy and paste.
  
  Also registry writes over time will slow down a machine so I much prefer programs that -- unless they're deleting useless garbage -- leave the registry alone. In fact, if I had my wish no program would write to anything outside of a few well-formatted config files.

Edit: yeah, way off. Just saw that Pem Dropper program.

I really don't know much about licensing, but yeah, it's GPL. I really don't care what people do with it as long as they don't try to make money off my work and they don't try to take credit.

Please keep in mind, people can make money off the GPL, although I'm not clear who does. Anyway, despite that, please keep using the GPL. What might sound like a minor negative there contrasts a long list of very positive things.

Evidently I'm suddenly an employee of the FSF because I keep talking about GPL stuff today.

[webfork]

Had some problems with this ...

Once I setup a txt file to open in portableprogs\Notepad2\Notepad2.exe, that didn't seem to do anything: I couldn't get anything to drag and drop into the window, either to set up a file association or to open a file in its associated editor. Double-clicking a file (ala Coffee) didn't work either. I don't understand what this program does.

What am I missing? I read through the help file, but couldn't find a clear explanation.

I did download "PEM Dropper" and copied all the files into the same directory. Then, dragging a txt file into it, that did the trick. However, that's not an improvement over Coffee (in fact there's an extra step).

---

EDIT: the program hasn't been updated since 2009 so I'm guessing this got set aside. I do hope someone picks up the code and does something cool with it.