sandfox update
Sandfox 1.1.2 is available with the following changes:
- accomodate a recent change in mount’s usage for remounting bind mounts (affected Arch Linux)
- accomodate a recent change to how bind mounts type are listed in mtab – caused sandfox to report an error when creating a bind mount
- added /dev/nvidia0 & /dev/nvidiactl binds to default profiles
- added bindro=/opt/firefox to default firefox profile
- improved detection for ‘firefox already running’ warning
NOTE: If you use nvidia display driver, you may want to add the following lines to /etc/sandfox/default.profile:
bind=/dev/nvidia0
bind=/dev/nvidiactl
Otherwise if you run sandfox with ––verbose you may see Firefox and Google Earth reporting errors about these missing files, which may affect video performance.
New SpaceFM Wiki
A few updates on spacefm:
Version 0.5.4 was released a couple of days ago, including deb files. Based on reports, spacefm has been running very well. Most of the open bugs concern minor GUI glitches. Also, please note that you can review closed tickets there as well – I don’t delete them. I close tickets when they are fixed, I don’t plan to do anything further on them, they are a duplicate or are invalid, etc. Yet you can still post comments to closed tickets, and if applicable I can reopen them. If a ticket is open it means I am still reviewing it or inviting further input on it. Also, the sourceforge ticket tracker is in beta and does strange things – just do your best with it. Thanks for testing!
I have made a start on a new SpaceFM Wiki at Wikispaces. This is a test period to see how Wikispaces performs for this. I chose them because they have good reviews and have one of the best WYSIWYG editors that makes editing very easy for those not familiar with wiki formatting, plus a normal text editor. I also didn’t want to affiliate the main wiki with any one distro. I will be starting on a User’s Guide there, and there is already a page for user-contributed plugins. You can edit and add pages there – feel free to contibute any spacefm information or links there which you would like to share with other users. The User’s Guide will be locked initially while I make a start on it, but eventually most of that will also be open for your contributions. Please let me know how Wikispaces is working for you – if it doesn’t prove usuable the wiki content can easily be moved elsewhere. Also, if you’re more knowledgeable on wiki editing, you may be interested in the details of the wikitext format used there.
Graphics – if anyone is interested in contributing graphics, I would like some screenshots of spacefm in action. If you’ve come up with a unique look to the panels, please drop me an email, or add it to the wiki. Also, SpaceFM could use a custom icon, so if you’re good with pixels I’d like to see some ideas. Otherwise I may try to make one, which everyone may regret. You can see how your icon will work in spacefm by simply setting View|Window Icon. Take a look at how the icon appears in the titlebar, taskbar, and also in the Help|About dialog. The wiki could also use a logo, which should contain the icon and the name ‘SpaceFM’ in the image.
luron has made a start on french documentation at ubuntu-fr which you can probably contribute to, and hasufell has contributed a gentoo ebuild. Thanks for your contributions.
What’s Ahead?
Aside from occasional bugfixes and minor UI improvements, my priority right now is getting a start on the User’s Guide. Initially I aim to provide help there with functions and abilities that are not readily obvious in the interface. I also have plans to add a few features to the custom command support – basically finishing some parts that were not completed, such as context for commands. And there is a long list of potential improvements that I want to review and begin work on as time allows.
Thanks again for all the feedback, testing, and external contributions.
spacefm update
SpaceFM 0.5.2 is available. This corrects several bugs as detailed in News. The deb packages have also been updated (this won’t be the case for every source update during testing, but I’ll try to keep them reasonably up to date, especially with critical fixes).
Initial test results have been promising. I never know what things will do once they hit multiple distros, etc. But spacefm has fared pretty well, and I think the simple dependencies are helpful in this regard too.
There has been quite a bit of design discussion of spacefm in the Arch Linux PCManFM-Mod thread, and in the new SpaceFM thread there, and some discussion in comments further below.
Much thanks for all the helpful feedback.
PCManFM-Mod Final Release
The ‘final’ release of PCManFM-Mod is available. Except for possible bugfixes, v1.2.4 is the last planned release. All further development will take place in the SpaceFM project.
PCManFM-Mod v.1.2.4 is a minor bugfix version which addresses the following issues:
- fixed a bug in the Find Files window where searching for a file size ‘greater than 1′ (KB/MB/etc) was not honored
- fixed Copy As Text not handling filenames containing apostrophes
- by popular request, removed virtual My Documents icon from the desktop
- renamed libmimetype.xml to pcmanfm-mod-mime.xml to prevent collisions with other pcmanfm packages (this is a file installed to /usr/share/mime/packages which was never given a properly descriptive name)
My thanks to everyone who has contributed to PCManFM-Mod (and thus SpaceFM) with their testing, feedback and input!
SpaceFM: How And Why?
First, spacefm 0.5.1 is available. This corrects a few bugs that affected some installations as detailed in News.
Second, a bit on dependencies compared to its predecessor pcmanfm-mod: spacefm drops dependency on hal. It now supports udisks, but udisks is NOT a build or package dependency – spacefm interfaces with it the old fashioned way: text streams. In this way spacefm should be more resilient to changes in the udisks API, and users who don’t have udisks installed can still use spacefm (the udisks device manager will just be empty). Also, if you do still use hal, you can build spacefm with ––enable-hal, which will cause the old device manager code to be used. And there currently are deb packages available for the hal build. The hal device manager is the same one from pcmanfm – very primitive so I do recommend udisks. spacefm is devmon and then some.
The dependency on fam|gamin has also been removed, replaced with inotify kernel support. So spacefm has fewer dependencies than pcmanfm-mod, yet with greater functionality. I don’t like dependencies – they are sources of endless trouble because the APIs and libraries keep changing – a real problem in Linux. Plus spacefm, like pcmanfm-mod, is somewhat retro, so I have no intention of making it dependent on gvfs.
Third, here’s a start for those interested in the background…
spacefm is NOT pcmanfm or pcmanfm-mod, so don’t expect it to be. It’s quite a different beast, but its design is certainly inspired by pcmanfm, and it still uses some of the pcmanfm code, most of it modified, plus lots of new code. That’s why it’s being released under a new name and as a test version – there is a lot of new code that needs time to mature.
I was considering writing a new fm in gtk3 to try out some ideas I’ve had, but I don’t like using the latest toolkits as they’re always changing, which makes for bugs (it’s not easy developing stable software when everything its based on is changing, as is too much the case in Linux). And who wants a file manager that doesn’t WORK? Plus I didn’t feel at the time that I knew gtk well enough (I do now!) Plus a fm is a massive project to start from scratch.
This got me rethinking pcmanfm-mod. I’ve spent some time debugging its built-in vfs the last couple of years, and I found it very fast and stable. It uses core C and glib I/O functions, so it doesn’t crash with every change to some library, and I can modify or correct parts of it to do whatever I need. It is because pcmanfm-mod ran so solid and had few dependencies (eg no gvfs) that I decided to use it as a base for developing spacefm. I didn’t know if I would succeed in what I wanted to do, but I figured it was a good target for experimentation.
spacefm is experimental, especially in the UI department. This is not your typical file manager, at least in some ways. There are enough of those that work well, so I wanted to get more creative with it. I always hear from users how they want things their way, and I do too! So I wanted a UI that was very flexible, and also had a good memory for remembering and allowing user options and settings. To give you an idea, pcmanfm remembers about 20 settings or so in its config file. A typical spacefm config file remembers about 1000 settings, and that number only gets higher as you add custom commands and customize parts of the program. spacefm remembers just about everything in terms of preferred dialog sizes, program options, menu options, fonts, icons, etc. (If it forgets something you want it to remember, let me know – this is one of the key design aspects.) This design blurs the line between development and use – in using spacefm you are the developer of your own version of it, and you can make it look and work quite uniquely. As you use it, it begins to change and conform to your uses, sort of like a baseball glove that breaks in with use. It’s up to you to decide if I achieved this, but that was the idea. It can seem a little unusual at first though, like a new baseball glove, so give it a chance to break in.
Another aspect of this design is that it’s supposed to be always changing. The ‘space’ in spacefm is much like a room. If you move a chair or a couch in a room of your home, you expect it to be in the same place the next time you walk into the room – it doesn’t magically pop back to its original location. For the most part, everytime you start spacefm it’s exactly as you left it. It’s a space that you’re always changing gradually as you use it.
The other big design priority was easy integration with bash. Having to modify C code everytime I want my fm to do something is a pain. Yet fm UI’s are easier than bash for dealing with lots of folders, long filenames, etc. – click and copy. I wanted it to work like a word processor, where I can create a quick macro to do something repetitive or intelligent. And I may keep some macros long term, while other macros I’ll delete after a few uses – they served their purpose. It’s much easer to whip up a bash script than compile C code.
And I’ve missed multiple panels since I gave up using KDE and Krusader. Tabs are great, but sometimes it’s so handy to have folders next to each other for comparison, without trying to manage multiple windows. Yet pcmanfm was never designed for multiple panels, and the author has even stated it will never have them.
One other thing – I and some users of pcmanfm-mod didn’t like the handling of popup dialogs and errors. So I designed a task manager that provides flexibility in this area, and also allows custom commands to be integrated into the task management – you can add your own popup dialogs for your commands, with error detection and more.
About 4-5 months ago I began tearing apart all the source code of pcmanfm-mod thinking, “How will I EVER get all of this back together again and working?” spacefm is pcmanfm-mod after major Frankenstein surgery, with large sections of new code grafted into it, and old code used in ways it wasn’t originally designed for. I added support for up to four panels, which allows a combination of side-by-side and vertical (plus tabs too). And I added a custom data set for giving it a practically infinite memory for settings, custom commands, etc., and this memory is automatically saved with your session. This makes it very easy to add additional user options, etc (unlike having to code each one independently in pcmanfm-mod). Plus the new Design Mode, a tricky and unique use of gtk’s menus, allows the user to change the menus, keys, icons, etc. (On this topic, Design Mode currently doesn’t work without a mouse, or the ability to ctrl- or middle-click, so if you need a keyboard mode please let me know. I tried once at that and failed, but I plan to revisit it. If I know it’s a priority for you I’ll move it higher on my list.)
It’s not easy designing a multiple-panel file manager with all of this flexibility while still retaining pcmanfm’s simple, clear interface. Yet I didn’t want a program that looked like the control panel of the space shuttle. I wanted it to be as simple as possible, and as direct as possible. A setting for anything should be directly accessible from that object (in a context menu for example), rather than having to hunt it down in a list of options. To me this makes use much easier.
I think I did pretty well with this, but I’ve been looking at every detail of it for so long it’s hard to tell. I’m still getting to know spacefm myself – I haven’t actually had a chance to use it much yet. I’ve been using daily builds of it on my HTPC for a few months with great results – I love being able to customize the panels and columns, plus the large fonts on the tv. It can create some unique views. As for the custom commands, I’m just starting to use those seriously myself.
Anyway I hope you enjoy spacefm, or at least give it a try when you’re comfortable with its stability level. I’m somewhat burned out after working on it intensely for several months. I’d like to use it a bit to get an idea of how it works in practice, plus get the existing features as stable as Linux allows. As a free software author I don’t make any promises or deadlines, but I can certainly see myself working on this more from time to time. And in the design I left a lot of space to accomodate ideas that I knew I might want later, so I think it has a lot of potential for growth despite being (deliberately) retro.
Introducing SpaceFM – PCManFM-Mod Remade
The next major version of PCManFM-Mod is now available for early testing. This version is being released under the name SpaceFM. I plan to release one more update to PCManFM-Mod 1.2 within a few days, which will correct a few minor bugs. Aside from possible bug fixes, that will be the last release of PCManFM-Mod. All further development will be within the SpaceFM project.
You can visit SpaceFM’s homepage for details.
Please keep in mind that this release is for pre-alpha TESTING PURPOSES ONLY – USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Also, this project is just getting started so the website and project site are minimal at present, and there is virtually NO documentation (I know that only encourages some of you). Sourceforge has a new forum and wiki which I’ll be trying out, so feel free to post there. Also, I prefer most bug reports go to the new ticket tracker beta, so I can learn to use it and decide if it’s a keeper. This is a test period for everything. Also feel free to email bug reports or leave comments here if you prefer, but I think the bug tracker will let everyone review the known issues more easily.
A source tarball, a self-extracting installer, and debian/ubuntu packages are available, as well as spacefm and spacefm-hal in my PPA, and spacefm in Arch Linux’s AUR. All of these should be considered for testing purposes and feedback is welcome.
There is yet much to be done so keep this in mind when submitting feedback – it may take awhile to be addressed. I still have my own long list of things to do – this release just represents the end of my ‘things to do before early test release’ list. Also, insofar as any software can be said to be ‘done’, SpaceFM is NOT DONE. Some users expressed an interest in getting an early test version, so this is it. I’m using this as my own primary file manager now with good results, but please tread carefully. Also keep in mind that future versions may break plugins or configuration files – things are not yet set in stone. Yet one advantage of testing early is that you can give me your feedback before the cement hardens, so to speak.
If you’re ready to get to it, proceed to SpaceFM’s homepage. I’ll be making another post shortly on the background or ‘how and why’ of SpaceFM for those interested. Thanks for testing!
Sandfox Update
A very recent change to ps (addition of random spaces to the ends of lines in v3.3.0) broke Sandfox’s detection of sandfox daemons. Sandfox v1.1.1 corrects this problem.
xtract and mountiso rebuilds
The following packages in the PPA:
mountiso_1.0.1-1_all.deb
xtract_1.1.0-1_all.deb
did not install the scripts to the correct location due to a change in one of the deb build programs I use. Please upgrade to these packages to the correct the problem:
mountiso_1.0.1-2_all.deb
xtract_1.1.0-2_all.deb
mountiso update
mountiso v1.0.1 is available to correct a problem with relative paths on the command line (seems to be a theme), and also it adds a note on setup about setting max_loop to prevent loop devices disappearing on reboot.
xtract 1.1.0
xtract v1.1.0 is available. This update adds options for using xtract on the command line without zenity. Also, the ––inter and ––inter-name options have been renamed ––combine and ––ask. However, the old options will work even though they are not listed in the help, so there is no need to change existing setups.
Also, zenity is no longer required by the xtract deb package, but is required if you’re using xtract from within a file manager.
