Interactive Installer Creation Task

Objective

Design and implement user-friendly, menu-driven command-line interfaces for installation scripts that guide users through configuration choices and provide clear feedback throughout the installation process.

Task Overview

This task focuses on creating intuitive, interactive installation experiences that make complex deployments accessible to users of all technical levels while maintaining the flexibility needed for advanced configurations.

Process Steps

1. User Interface Design

Purpose: Design intuitive, accessible command-line interfaces

Actions:

• Create clear, hierarchical menu structures for configuration options

• Design consistent visual styling and formatting across platforms

• Implement progressive disclosure for complex configuration options

• Create contextual help and guidance systems

• Design error message formats that are actionable and clear

• Establish consistent interaction patterns and keyboard shortcuts

Output: UI/UX specifications for interactive installer interfaces

2. Input Validation & Processing

Purpose: Ensure robust handling of user input with comprehensive validation

Actions:

• Implement real-time input validation with immediate feedback

• Create type-specific input handlers (integers, strings, choices, etc.)

• Design input sanitization and security measures

• Implement input history and auto-completion where appropriate

• Create confirmation dialogs for destructive or irreversible actions

• Establish input retry mechanisms for invalid entries

Output: Comprehensive input validation and processing system

3. Configuration Workflow Management

Purpose: Guide users through logical configuration sequences

Actions:

• Design configuration workflows that follow logical dependencies

• Implement conditional configuration paths based on user choices

• Create configuration summary and review screens

• Design configuration persistence and resume capabilities

• Implement configuration validation before proceeding to installation

• Create configuration export and import functionality

Output: Structured configuration workflow system

4. Progress Tracking & Feedback

Purpose: Provide clear, informative feedback throughout the installation process

Actions:

• Design progress indicators for long-running operations

• Implement real-time status updates and logging

• Create detailed error reporting with troubleshooting guidance

• Design success confirmations and next-step guidance

• Implement installation rollback progress tracking

• Create comprehensive installation logs and reports

Output: Complete progress tracking and feedback system

5. Platform-Specific Adaptations

Purpose: Optimize interactive experiences for each target platform

Actions:

• Adapt interface elements for platform-specific terminals

• Implement platform-specific keyboard shortcuts and conventions

• Optimize for different screen sizes and terminal capabilities

• Create platform-specific help and documentation integration

• Implement platform-native notification and alert systems

• Ensure accessibility compliance for each platform

Output: Platform-optimized interactive installer implementations

Interactive Interface Components

1. Welcome & Introduction Screen

#!/bin/bash
show_welcome() {
    clear
    echo "╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗"
    echo "║                    Application Installer                     ║"
    echo "║                        Version 1.0.0                        ║"
    echo "╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣"
    echo "║                                                              ║"
    echo "║  This installer will guide you through the setup process    ║"
    echo "║  for your application. You can exit at any time with Ctrl+C ║"
    echo "║                                                              ║"
    echo "║  Estimated installation time: 5-10 minutes                  ║"
    echo "║  Required disk space: 500MB                                 ║"
    echo "║                                                              ║"
    echo "╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝"
    echo ""
    read -p "Press Enter to continue or Ctrl+C to exit..."
}

2. Interactive Menu System

show_menu() {
    local title="$1"
    shift
    local options=("$@")
    
    echo ""
    echo "┌─ $title ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐"
    echo "│                                                              │"
    
    for i in "${!options[@]}"; do
        printf "│  %d) %-54s │\n" $((i+1)) "${options[$i]}"
    done
    
    echo "│                                                              │"
    echo "│  q) Quit installer                                          │"
    echo "│  h) Help                                                    │"
    echo "└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘"
    echo ""
}

get_menu_choice() {
    local max_choice=$1
    local choice
    
    while true; do
        read -p "Enter your choice [1-$max_choice, q, h]: " choice
        
        case $choice in
            [1-9]|[1-9][0-9])
                if [ "$choice" -ge 1 ] && [ "$choice" -le "$max_choice" ]; then
                    return $choice
                else
                    echo "Invalid choice. Please enter a number between 1 and $max_choice."
                fi
                ;;
            q|Q)
                echo "Installation cancelled by user."
                exit 0
                ;;
            h|H)
                show_help
                ;;
            *)
                echo "Invalid input. Please enter a number, 'q' to quit, or 'h' for help."
                ;;
        esac
    done
}

3. Input Validation System

validate_port() {
    local port=$1
    
    # Check if it's a number
    if ! [[ "$port" =~ ^[0-9]+$ ]]; then
        echo "Error: Port must be a number"
        return 1
    fi
    
    # Check range
    if [ "$port" -lt 1024 ] || [ "$port" -gt 65535 ]; then
        echo "Error: Port must be between 1024 and 65535"
        return 1
    fi
    
    # Check if port is in use
    if netstat -ln | grep -q ":$port "; then
        echo "Warning: Port $port appears to be in use"
        read -p "Continue anyway? [y/N]: " confirm
        if [[ ! "$confirm" =~ ^[Yy]$ ]]; then
            return 1
        fi
    fi
    
    return 0
}

get_validated_input() {
    local prompt="$1"
    local validator="$2"
    local default="$3"
    local value
    
    while true; do
        if [ -n "$default" ]; then
            read -p "$prompt [$default]: " value
            value=${value:-$default}
        else
            read -p "$prompt: " value
        fi
        
        if [ -z "$value" ] && [ -z "$default" ]; then
            echo "This field is required. Please enter a value."
            continue
        fi
        
        if $validator "$value"; then
            echo "$value"
            return 0
        fi
        
        echo "Please try again."
    done
}

4. Progress Indicators

show_progress() {
    local current=$1
    local total=$2
    local description="$3"
    local width=50
    local percentage=$((current * 100 / total))
    local filled=$((current * width / total))
    local empty=$((width - filled))
    
    printf "\r["
    printf "%*s" $filled | tr ' ' '█'
    printf "%*s" $empty | tr ' ' '░'
    printf "] %d%% - %s" $percentage "$description"
    
    if [ $current -eq $total ]; then
        echo ""
    fi
}

run_with_progress() {
    local command="$1"
    local description="$2"
    local log_file="/tmp/install_progress.log"
    
    echo "Starting: $description"
    
    # Run command in background and capture PID
    $command > "$log_file" 2>&1 &
    local pid=$!
    
    # Show spinner while command runs
    local spin='-\|/'
    local i=0
    while kill -0 $pid 2>/dev/null; do
        i=$(( (i+1) %4 ))
        printf "\r${spin:$i:1} $description..."
        sleep 0.1
    done
    
    # Wait for command to complete and get exit code
    wait $pid
    local exit_code=$?
    
    if [ $exit_code -eq 0 ]; then
        printf "\r✓ $description completed\n"
    else
        printf "\r✗ $description failed\n"
        echo "Error details:"
        cat "$log_file"
        return $exit_code
    fi
}

5. Configuration Summary & Confirmation

show_configuration_summary() {
    echo ""
    echo "╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗"
    echo "║                   Configuration Summary                      ║"
    echo "╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣"
    echo "║                                                              ║"
    printf "║  Application Name: %-38s ║\n" "$APP_NAME"
    printf "║  Installation Path: %-37s ║\n" "$INSTALL_PATH"
    printf "║  Server Port: %-45s ║\n" "$SERVER_PORT"
    printf "║  Database Type: %-43s ║\n" "$DATABASE_TYPE"
    printf "║  Service User: %-44s ║\n" "$SERVICE_USER"
    echo "║                                                              ║"
    echo "╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣"
    echo "║                                                              ║"
    echo "║  The installer will now proceed with these settings.        ║"
    echo "║  This process may take several minutes to complete.         ║"
    echo "║                                                              ║"
    echo "╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝"
    echo ""
    
    read -p "Proceed with installation? [Y/n]: " confirm
    if [[ "$confirm" =~ ^[Nn]$ ]]; then
        echo "Installation cancelled by user."
        exit 0
    fi
}

Platform-Specific Implementations

Windows PowerShell Interactive Elements

function Show-Menu {
    param(
        [string]$Title,
        [string[]]$Options
    )
    
    Clear-Host
    Write-Host "╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗" -ForegroundColor Cyan
    Write-Host "║  $($Title.PadRight(58)) ║" -ForegroundColor Cyan
    Write-Host "╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣" -ForegroundColor Cyan
    
    for ($i = 0; $i -lt $Options.Length; $i++) {
        $option = "  $($i + 1)) $($Options[$i])"
        Write-Host "║$($option.PadRight(62))║" -ForegroundColor White
    }
    
    Write-Host "║                                                              ║" -ForegroundColor Cyan
    Write-Host "║  Q) Quit                                                    ║" -ForegroundColor Yellow
    Write-Host "╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝" -ForegroundColor Cyan
    Write-Host ""
}

function Get-ValidatedInput {
    param(
        [string]$Prompt,
        [scriptblock]$Validator,
        [string]$Default = ""
    )
    
    do {
        if ($Default) {
            $input = Read-Host "$Prompt [$Default]"
            if ([string]::IsNullOrEmpty($input)) { $input = $Default }
        } else {
            $input = Read-Host $Prompt
        }
        
        $isValid = & $Validator $input
        if (-not $isValid) {
            Write-Host "Invalid input. Please try again." -ForegroundColor Red
        }
    } while (-not $isValid)
    
    return $input
}

macOS Terminal Optimizations

# macOS-specific terminal capabilities
setup_macos_terminal() {
    # Enable color support
    export TERM=xterm-256color
    
    # Set up proper character encoding
    export LC_ALL=en_US.UTF-8
    export LANG=en_US.UTF-8
    
    # Optimize for macOS Terminal.app
    if [[ "$TERM_PROGRAM" == "Apple_Terminal" ]]; then
        # Use Terminal.app specific features
        echo -e "\033]0;Application Installer\007"  # Set window title
    fi
}

# macOS notification integration
send_notification() {
    local title="$1"
    local message="$2"
    local sound="${3:-default}"
    
    if command -v osascript >/dev/null 2>&1; then
        osascript -e "display notification \"$message\" with title \"$title\" sound name \"$sound\""
    fi
}

Quality Assurance & Testing

User Experience Testing

• Menu navigation is intuitive and consistent

• Input validation provides clear, helpful feedback

• Progress indicators accurately reflect installation status

• Error messages are actionable and specific

• Help system provides adequate guidance

• Installation can be safely interrupted and resumed

Accessibility Compliance

• Screen reader compatibility for visually impaired users

• Keyboard-only navigation support

• High contrast mode compatibility

• Appropriate text sizing and spacing

• Clear visual hierarchy and information structure

Cross-Platform Consistency

• Consistent behavior across all target platforms

• Platform-specific optimizations don't break functionality

• Keyboard shortcuts work appropriately on each platform

• Visual elements render correctly in different terminals

• Error handling is consistent across platforms

Integration Points

Input Sources

• Configuration parameters from manifest generation

• Platform-specific templates and UI components

• User preference and history data

• System capability detection results

Output Consumers

• Script generation system (receives user configuration)

• Installation logging and monitoring systems

• Configuration persistence and backup systems

• Post-installation validation and testing

Error Handling & Recovery

User Error Management

• Invalid input: Clear validation messages with examples

• Interrupted installation: Safe resume capabilities

• Configuration conflicts: Automatic detection and resolution guidance

• Permission issues: Clear escalation instructions

• Resource constraints: Graceful degradation options

System Error Handling

• Terminal compatibility: Fallback to basic interface modes

• Network failures: Retry mechanisms with user control

• Disk space issues: Early detection and user notification

• Dependency conflicts: Clear resolution strategies

• Service failures: Rollback and recovery procedures

Performance Optimization

Response Time Optimization

• Lazy loading: Load interface components as needed

• Input debouncing: Prevent excessive validation calls

• Progress caching: Cache progress state for resume capability

• Resource pooling: Reuse validation and processing resources

• Background processing: Perform non-critical tasks asynchronously

Memory Management

• Efficient data structures: Minimize memory footprint

• Resource cleanup: Proper cleanup of temporary resources

• Stream processing: Handle large inputs without loading entirely

• Garbage collection: Explicit cleanup in long-running processes

• Memory monitoring: Track and report memory usage