Part of making a Desktop Operating System that people feel immediately
comfortable with is ensuring that software installation is as easy and
familiar as possible. PC-BSD has taken this approach when developing
the PBI (Pc-Bsd Installer or Push-Button Installer) file format. Programs under PC-BSD are
completely self-contained and self-installing, in a graphical format. A PBI file also ships with all the files and libraries necessary for
the installed program to function, eliminating much of the hardship of
dealing with broken dependencies and system incompatibilities. PBI files
also provide developers and packagers with advanced scripting and user
interaction in an entirely graphical format, making the entire install
procedure similar to what a user would expect from other popular
graphical operating systems.
PBI Features
- Completely graphical extraction & installation process.
- Advanced scripting support - Use shell-scripts to control the installation process.
- Corruption detection - Ensures that a user's downloaded PBI is intact.
- Library auto population - Grabs all the library files a binary may need for operation during the creation process.
- Icon Management - Allows developers to set icons for both the desktop & K-Menu.
- Program Error Detection - If a PBI installed binary fails and
silently outputs a stderr / stdout message, this is captured and
displayed in a GUI for troubleshooting.
- Easy Removal - PBI's can be removed through the "Remove Programs" system utility.
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