问题
I am using Project Centennial (Desktop App Convertor) to convert the MSI/EXE to UWP Application. I came across Advanced Installer and wondered why not use that instead of Project Centennial.
Is it because of the below reasons.
Project Centennial - Not licensed, Command handling. Advanced Installer - Licensed, Easy UI.
回答1:
Perhaps because Advanced Installer is a commercial third-party product and Project Centennial, or the Desktop Bridge which the official name is, is an easy and free option created by Microsoft to bring existing .NET and Win32 apps and games to the Windows Store.
You could put the question the other way around, why would you want to pay for a third-party product when the same functionality is available for free from Microsoft?
If you want to use Advanced Installer for some reason then please do, but using the Desktop Bridge is a great and easy way of bringing a classic desktop application into the store without having to acquire any licenses or third-party software.
回答2:
when the same functionality is available for free from Microsoft?
Advanced Installer provides developers with added value on top of the free support for Desktop Bridge from Microsoft, its main focus is to save precious time for all users, time which can be invested in the app development/improvement, not its installer.
Simply offering the same support as MSFT does, for free, and asking for money would not make a sustainable business (at least none that I know of).
Easy to use GUI
On top of being able to create an AppX package for your Win32/.NET applications or games, Advanced Installer provides an easy to use GUI that allows you to professionally customize the package, without you having to spend days to learn all the in and outs about what goes inside an AppX.
Microsoft provides no such UI for this, they simply have some scarce materials online on how to manually edit the AppXManifest, type of resources allowed and links to command line tools (makeappx.exe ...) you need to configure from in order to build and digitally sign your AppX (if you want to integrate it with your development environment).
- YouTube demo - AppX packaging custom GUI, in Advanced Installer
Visual Studio integration
Generating the package is just the first step, you can do that free with the converter from Microsoft or with a trial (free) edition of Advanced Installer.
However, if you really want to deploy the package in the Windows Store or give it directly to your end users, you need to integrate it with your development IDE, so you can painlessly build your AppX package every time your code changes, just as you do with MSI/EXE installers.
The Visual Studio extension Advanced Installer provides can build both MSI (for your clients that don't want or can't use an AppX) and AppX packages from a single project, optimizing as much as possible your packaging/deployment efforts and allowing you to spend more time on actually building/improving your application, instead of worrying about how to package it.
It all depends on how much you value your time (think at your hourly rate for example), and how much time Advanced Installer can save you. After all, isn't any business software we buy an investment? :)
- More details about the UWP (Desktop Bridge) support from Advanced Installer.
Disclaimer: I am part of the team building Advanced Installer.
来源：https://stackoverflow.com/questions/42792941/why-use-project-centennial-when-we-have-advanced-installer