303 lines
13 KiB
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Executable File
303 lines
13 KiB
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<meta name="author" content="Dave Morriss">
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<title>Using Zenity with Pdmenu (HPR Show 2877)</title>
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<h1 class="title">Using Zenity with Pdmenu (HPR Show 2877)</h1>
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<h2 class="subtitle">Zenity is a rather cool program that will display GTK+ dialogs from a script</h2>
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<h2 class="author">Dave Morriss</h2>
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<h1>Table of Contents</h1>
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<nav id="TOC">
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<ul>
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<li><a href="#overview">Overview</a></li>
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<li><a href="#what-is-zenity">What is Zenity?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#the-calendar-dialog">The Calendar dialog</a><ul>
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<li><a href="#how-i-use-the-calendar-dialog-with-pdmenu">How I use the Calendar Dialog with Pdmenu</a></li>
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</ul></li>
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<li><a href="#the-forms-dialog">The Forms Dialog</a><ul>
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<li><a href="#how-i-use-the-forms-dialog-with-pdmenu">How I use the Forms Dialog with Pdmenu</a></li>
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</ul></li>
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<li><a href="#summary">Summary</a></li>
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<li><a href="#links">Links</a></li>
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</ul>
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</header>
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<h2 id="overview">Overview</h2>
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<p>I use <code>pdmenu</code> a lot to help me do work on my main desktop PC. I did an HPR show on <a href="http://hackerpublicradio.org/eps/hpr2443" title="hpr2443 :: pdmenu"><code>pdmenu</code></a> on 13 December 2017 and the author <a href="https://joeyh.name/" title="Joey Hess">Joey Hess</a> responded in show <a href="http://hackerpublicradio.org/eps/hpr2459" title="hpr2459 :: free software's long tail">2459</a>.</p>
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<p>In the intervening time I have also integrated <a href="https://help.gnome.org/users/zenity/" title="Zenity Manual"><code>Zenity</code></a> into my menus. This is a GUI tool which generates a number of different pop-up windows known as <em>dialogs</em>, which can display information, or into which information can be typed. The capabilities provided by <code>pdmenu</code> are a little too basic to enable me to do what I need to do.</p>
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<p>I thought it might be of interest to show some examples of how I use this tool with <code>pdmenu</code>.</p>
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<h2 id="what-is-zenity">What is Zenity?</h2>
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<p>According to the manual:</p>
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<blockquote>
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<p>Zenity is a rewrite of <code>gdialog</code>, the GNOME port of <code>dialog</code> which allows you to display dialog boxes from the command line and shell scripts.</p>
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</blockquote>
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<p>Zenity runs on Linux, BSD and Windows, and a port to Mac OS X is available.</p>
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<p>It’s invoked from the command line or a script as:</p>
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<pre><code>zenity [options]</code></pre>
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<p>The most important option is one that defines what type of dialog is required. The types are:</p>
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<table>
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<thead>
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<tr class="header">
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<th>Dialog Option</th>
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<th>Description</th>
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</tr>
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</thead>
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<tbody>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--calendar</code></td>
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<td>Display calendar dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--entry</code></td>
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<td>Display text entry dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--error</code></td>
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<td>Display error dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--file-selection</code></td>
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<td>Display file selection dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--info</code></td>
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<td>Display info dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--list</code></td>
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<td>Display list dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--notification</code></td>
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<td>Display notification</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--progress</code></td>
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<td>Display progress indication dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--question</code></td>
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<td>Display question dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--text-info</code></td>
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<td>Display text information dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--warning</code></td>
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<td>Display warning dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--scale</code></td>
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<td>Display scale dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--color-selection</code></td>
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<td>Display color selection dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--password</code></td>
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<td>Display password dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--forms</code></td>
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<td>Display forms dialog</td>
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</tr>
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</tbody>
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</table>
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<p>I will not go into lot of detail here because the manpage covers the subject well, as does the <a href="https://help.gnome.org/users/zenity/" title="Zenity Manual">online manual</a>. I will show a couple of examples of how I use Zenity dialogs with Pdmenu.</p>
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<p>Each of these dialog selection options takes a set of further options which control the configuration and behaviour of the dialog window.</p>
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<p>There are a few general options:</p>
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<table>
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<thead>
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<tr class="header">
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<th>Option</th>
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<th>Description</th>
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</tr>
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</thead>
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<tbody>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--title</code></td>
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<td>Window title for the dialog box</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--window-icon=ICONPATH</code></td>
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<td>Set the window icon.</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--width=WIDTH</code></td>
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<td>Set the dialog width</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--height=HEIGHT</code></td>
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<td>Set the dialog height</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--timeout=TIMEOUT</code></td>
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<td>Set the dialog timeout in seconds</td>
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</tr>
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</tbody>
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</table>
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<h2 id="the-calendar-dialog">The Calendar dialog</h2>
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<p>This takes the following options:</p>
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<table>
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<thead>
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<tr class="header">
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<th>Option</th>
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<th>Description</th>
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</tr>
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</thead>
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<tbody>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--text=STRING</code></td>
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<td>Set the dialog text</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--day=INT</code></td>
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<td>Set the calendar day</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--month=INT</code></td>
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<td>Set the calendar month</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--year=INT</code></td>
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<td>Set the calendar year</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--date-format=PATTERN</code></td>
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<td>Set the format for the returned date</td>
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</tr>
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</tbody>
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</table>
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<p>Any of the options <code>--day=INT</code>, <code>--month=INT</code> or <code>--year=INT</code> will default to the values for the current day if omitted.</p>
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<p>The format of the date returned can be controlled with the <code>--date-format=PATTERN</code> option which uses the <code>strftime</code> codes, like <code>%Y</code> for the 4-digit year.</p>
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<p>Example:</p>
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<pre><code>$ zenity --calendar --title=Test --date-format='%Y-%m-%d'
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2019-07-25</code></pre>
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<figure>
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<img src="hpr2877_zenity_calendar.png" alt="Zenity Calendar Dialog" /><figcaption><em>Zenity Calendar Dialog</em></figcaption>
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</figure>
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<h3 id="how-i-use-the-calendar-dialog-with-pdmenu">How I use the Calendar Dialog with Pdmenu</h3>
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<p>Here is a menu definition from my <code>.pdmenurc</code> file:</p>
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<pre><code>#
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# Menu cnews3 - Update Wiki from wiki.db
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#
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menu:cnews3:Update Wiki from wiki.db:Update Wiki from wiki.db
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exec:Update the _Wiki for this month:display:$HOME/HPR/Community_News/update_wiki
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exec:Update the Wiki for any _month:pause:\
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rep=$(zenity --calendar --title='Update Wiki' --text="Select a month" --date-format='01-%b-%Y') &&\
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{ echo "$rep"; $HOME/HPR/Community_News/update_wiki "$rep"; }
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nop:--
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exit:E_xit Update Wiki from wiki.db</code></pre>
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<p>I keep a SQLite database of HPR shows and my notes about them and use the notes when I am recording the monthly Community News episodes.</p>
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<p>I have a script which will update a MediaWiki Wiki on one of my Raspberry Pis from this database, and that’s what’s being done here. I have a Wiki page per month of HPR shows and update these individually. That way I have the shows and my notes all organised together.</p>
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<figure>
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<img src="hpr2877_update_wiki_menu.png" alt="Pdmenu sub-menu" /><figcaption><em>Pdmenu sub-menu</em></figcaption>
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</figure>
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<p>For the action <code>"Update the Wiki for any month"</code> the menu will show a Zenity calendar and will return the date of the start of the month as <code>'01-Jul-2019'</code> for example.</p>
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<p>Notice that <code>zenity</code> is being invoked in a command substitution, and the result is being stored in a variable called <code>rep</code>. The statement setting this variable may succeed (with a value in <code>$rep</code>) or may fail. The <code>&& { list }</code> part at the end handles the success case. In it the date returned is echoed (so I know what it is) and is passed to a script that updates the wiki for the particular month.</p>
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<p>All I have to do to update a particular month when presented with the calendar dialog is to click the <code>'<'</code> or <code>'>'</code> sign to the left or right of the month name and it moves backward or forward one month. I then click <code>'OK'</code> when I have found the month I need, paying no heed to the day since it’s replaced by <code>'01'</code> in the menu.</p>
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<h2 id="the-forms-dialog">The Forms Dialog</h2>
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<p>This takes the following options:</p>
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<table>
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<thead>
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<tr class="header">
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<th>Option</th>
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<th>Description</th>
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</tr>
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</thead>
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<tbody>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--text=STRING</code></td>
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<td>Set the dialog text</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--add-entry=FIELDNAME</code></td>
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<td>Add a new Entry in forms dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--add-password=FIELDNAME</code></td>
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<td>Add a new Password Entry in forms dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--add-calendar=FIELDNAME</code></td>
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<td>Add a new Calendar in forms dialog</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="odd">
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<td><code>--separator=STRING</code></td>
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<td>Set output separator character</td>
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</tr>
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<tr class="even">
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<td><code>--forms-date-format=PATTERN</code></td>
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<td>Set the format for the returned date</td>
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</tr>
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</tbody>
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</table>
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<p>This dialog lets you assemble some other dialog types into a form.</p>
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<p>Example:</p>
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<pre><code>$ zenity --forms --text="Name and DoB" --add-entry=FirstName --add-entry=LastName \
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--add-calendar=DoB --forms-date-format='%Y-%m-%d'
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Joe|Bloggs|2000-04-01</code></pre>
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<figure>
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<img src="hpr2877_form_example.png" alt="Zenity Forms Dialog" /><figcaption><em>Zenity Forms Dialog</em></figcaption>
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</figure>
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<h3 id="how-i-use-the-forms-dialog-with-pdmenu">How I use the Forms Dialog with Pdmenu</h3>
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<p>Here is a piece of a menu definition from my <code>.pdmenurc</code> file:</p>
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<pre><code> exec:_Collect JSON from IA:pause:\
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rep=$(zenity --forms --text='Enter show numbers' --add-entry=Start --add-entry=End) &&\
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$HOME/HPR/InternetArchive/collect_show_data "${rep%|*}" "${rep#*|}"</code></pre>
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<p>I keep another SQLite database with information about HPR shows which have been written to the Internet Archive (archive.org). I have scripts which collect data from archive.org in the JSON format, save it in a file and then add it to my database.</p>
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<p>The above menu fragment takes in the start and end show numbers in a range that has been uploaded (usually a week’s worth, 5 shows at a time), then it queries archive.org for details of shows.</p>
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<p>This is what the full menu looks like:</p>
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<figure>
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<img src="hpr2877_IA_menu.png" alt="Pdmenu for IA management" /><figcaption><em>Pdmenu for IA management</em></figcaption>
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</figure>
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<p>The following dialog is shown to enable show number entry:</p>
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<figure>
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<img src="hpr2877_IA_form.png" alt="Zenity range dialog" /><figcaption><em>Zenity range dialog</em></figcaption>
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</figure>
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<p>Note that after <code>'&&'</code> in the menu definition we do not need enclosing curly braces since there is only one command.</p>
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<p>Note also that the <code>zenity</code> call returns two numbers separated by the default separator (<code>'|'</code>). These are separated out when calling the script that does the work, making use of the shell’s parameter substitution facilities. See the <em>Bash Tips</em> shows on HPR, particularly episode <a href="http://hackerpublicradio.org/eps/hpr1648" title="hpr1648 :: Bash parameter manipulation">1648</a> (<em>Remove matching prefix pattern</em> and <em>Remove matching suffix pattern</em>).</p>
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<h2 id="summary">Summary</h2>
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<p>I <em>need</em> menus since I can never remember what I am supposed to do to carry out workflows and other processes! My motto is “<em>If in doubt, write a script</em>”!</p>
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<p>The facilities in Pdmenu for prompting and gathering information are a bit too basic for my needs, but Zenity does a fine job for me here. OK, so it has moved me away from my usual preference for command-line stuff, but I find this to be a great compromise!</p>
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<p>One slight grumble about Pdmenu is that the shell it uses to run commands is <code>'sh'</code>, not <code>'bash'</code>, so some of the <em>Bashisms</em> I’d like to use are not available. It’s not hampering me too much now, and when it does I’ll maybe consider changing the source of <code>pdmenu</code> to do what I want if I can.</p>
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<h2 id="links">Links</h2>
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<ul>
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<li>Pdmenu:
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<ul>
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<li><a href="https://joeyh.name/code/pdmenu/">Pdmenu website</a></li>
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<li><a href="https://joeyh.name/">Joey Hess</a></li>
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</ul></li>
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<li>Zenity
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<ul>
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<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zenity">Wikipedia page</a></li>
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<li><a href="https://help.gnome.org/users/zenity/">Zenity Manual</a></li>
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</ul></li>
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</ul>
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</article>
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</main>
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