Thunar Actions Plugin

If you have a *.pdf viewer, please don’t use this wiki but take a look at the below document:

:projects:thunar-actions-plugin_-_project_description_-_v0.1.1j.pdf

If you want to improve thus documentation, please use the below file:

:projects:thunar-actions-plugin_-_project_description_-_v0.1.1j.odt

The layout of this wiki is not really user friendly, for example it renders terrible on 800×480 resolutions.

This is an introduction for a new thunar plugin called thunar-actions-plugin. The plugin will be an evolution on the current existing thunar-uca custom actions plugin.

The reason for the creation of the new plugin is the need for a better system to manage custom actions. This include more standardization and automated options.

The improved system will be based on freedesktop.org standards, and will include .desktop files and mime-type activation.

If you want to help with the plugin project, please contact us bye sending an email to the thunar-dev mailinglist.

The original thunar-custom-actions system right-context-menu list gets far to long, is not organized, hard to maintain, and does not provide interoperability with other file managers. So lots of improvement points:

The improved thunar-action-plugin: The right-context-menu is based on .desktop files, mime-type activation, and smart maintaining options. The below image is a manipulated image, and only gives a visualization idea:

Right context menu generation for thunar filemanager based on freedesktop.org standards with mime-type activation and .desktop files management. The code will be an evolution on the existing custom actions.

• file extension insensitive
• case insensitive
• multi-language support
• fast
• manageable
• gtk desktop integration
• interoperability
• molecular
• based on standards
• mime-type parsing
• .desktop file parsing
• xdg environment parsing

freedesktop.org .desktop specification freedesktop.org mime specification ordering freedesktop.org basedir specification gnome/gtk/mid Human Interface Guidelines

native packaging planning for:

• fedora
• debian
• ubuntu

we are creating small code frameworks to get the key/base technology’s working and documented.

• build environment
• thunarx plugin system
• context menu framework
• .desktop parsing
• mime type parsing
• creating library’s
• gtk widgets
• efficient function from thunar
• best caching technology’s
• best querying technology’s
• merging the technology’s
• ......

sort of based on:

• xdg-mime
• xdg-desktop-icon
• xdg-desktop-menu
• update-desktop-database
• desktop-file-validate
• desktop-file-install

standard GNOME/GTK/MID HIG compliant application to open .desktop files

• save .desktop file
• change standard keywords as in the spec:
• name
• genericname
• comment
• icon
• exec (using xdg place holders like %f %F
• categories
• onlyshowin
• mimetype

• enter extensions to get mime type selections
• enter string to get matching mime type selections
• typing “image” in the edit box, results in a list of mime-types

• ...
• image/x-icon ico
• image/x-jg art
• image/x-jng jng
• image/x-ms-bmp bmp
• image/x-photoshop psd
• ...

• exclude, include and pattern selection to create a list of mime types.
• some smart gui selection methods molecular auto addition of .desktop keys and values.

• shows list of used .desktop files for the context menu (list of action’s)
• open selected elements with xdg-gtk-desktop-file-manger
• alphabetic ordering based on environment settings

note: needs more documentation, creation of flow diagrams to get a clear structure of the code flow.

• parsing and caching .desktop files
• caching .desktop files key elements
• parsing and caching mime types of selected files
• filter elements that are common on mime type
• create context menu, submenus and action

menu-element press event

• matching of the .desktop file key elements
• argument ordering based on used placeholder
• execute command with arguments