@Peter O,
Hello and thank you for the questions. Below is my reply.
1) x86 was chosen because it will work on most computers, either x86 or x64. To use as a recovery media, x86 is usually good enough. I'm not sure how easy or difficult it would be to use x64 sources as well. This is something that Peter Schlang is more suited to answer.
2) We verify some of the files inside the WIM archives.
3) No hash check is performed at this point. There is a check to verify the expected size of the default windows source that is used. Then, we read the details from the WIM archives and if some error happens in the process, the source is simply assumed as not valid. If you're using the AUTO command to build the boot disk, winbuilder tries to solve any problems with the source automatically.
4) You're right, sorry if it seemed this way. It is not installed nor runs with admin permissions. What the US government recommends is to disable Java applets as extensions to the browser or uninstall Java completely if the end-user does not know how to disable them. The Java used by Winbuilder does not run as an applet in your browser, it is a standalone version that is executed without need for any administrator permissions. Other software such as Open Office and Android use the same method of embedded Java to permit full isolation. If the end-user has Java installed already on the system and their version is more recent, then winbuilder makes use of the most recent version.
Java is a collection of very different technologies and applets are a security problem that should have been disabled a long time ago. Unfortunately, Java applets are easily perceived and associated with the Java platform as being the same thing. We are making a conscientious and safe use of Java with winbuilder.
5) Later versions will make available a nice UI to select and install plugins. At the current moment you need to type them manually. Plugins are installed directly from our download portal here at reboot: http://reboot.pro/fi...ory/10-sandbox/
To install some plugin, you need to type install nnn where nnn is the title of the plugin. An example is "install win7pe" or another example is "install filezillaportable". There is no need to type with exact upper and lower case letter the title.
6) The current project only creates a basic Windows PE based on Windows 7 files. On a Windows PE, there is reduced need for updates since it is not used for everyday work tasks. In the future might be possible to include the Windows files and permit the install from the rescue media. The licensing and activation of Windows is kept as the original edition, you need to either enter a valid key or install in trial mode.
Last but not least, your questions are not dumb. They are questions that need to be clarified and points on our side that need to be improved in terms of communication.