Dialogs View (InstallScript, InstallScript MSI, and InstallScript Object Projects)
InstallShield 2022
Project:This information applies to the following project types:
| • | InstallScript |
| • | InstallScript MSI |
| • | InstallScript Object |
The Dialogs view contains a list of the standard end-user dialogs. The dialogs are identified by their function names. Click a dialog in this view to view a sample dialog in the right pane.
The dialog names in the list are ghosted until you edit the layout. A ghosted name means that the default dialog (from isres.dll) will be used in the user interface. If you edit the layout of a dialog, its name appears in bold in the list, and the dialog is pulled from isuser.dll at run time.
If your installation project supports additional languages, those languages appear as nodes beneath the edited dialog. You can edit the layout for each language separately.
Tip:Selecting and editing a dialog in the Dialog Editor does not automatically place the dialog in the end-user interface. In order for a dialog to be displayed at run time, it needs to be included in the InstallScript code. For example, code for the dialogs that are displayed during a first-time installation are part of the OnFirstUIBefore and OnFirstUIAfter event handlers. To learn more, see Displaying Dialogs During InstallScript and InstallScript MSI Installations.
Dialog Resource Files
By default, all dialogs in InstallScript and InstallScript MSI projects are kept in a resource .dll file called _IsRes.dll. This .dll file is built into your distribution package when you build the installation. There is a separate _IsRes.dll for every supported language; they are located in the InstallShield folder’s Redist folder (for example, InstallShield Program Files Folder\Redist). None of the _IsRes.dll files should ever be modified.
When you edit a dialog in the Dialog Editor, InstallShield makes a copy of the dialog from the original _IsRes.dll file. This copy is stored in your project file. When your project is built, all edited dialogs (and any new dialogs you have created) are built into a resource .dll file called _IsUser{CurrentLanguage}.dll. For English, a .dll file called _IsUser1033.dll. _IsUser{LanguageID}.dll is then built into your distribution package.
At run time, the engine that displays the dialogs first looks for a dialog in _IsUser{LangId}.dll. If the dialog is not found, it then looks for the default version in _IsRes.dll. The engine looks for dialogs based on their resource identifier. You can see the resource identifier of a dialog by going to the Dialog table in the Direct Editor.
See Also
Displaying Dialogs During InstallScript and InstallScript MSI Installations
Editing the Layout of a Dialog in an InstallScript or InstallScript MSI Project
Editing Dialog Behavior in an InstallScript or InstallScript MSI Project