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Author how to edit file extensions on uiq3?
gezer
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Posted: 2008-09-05 11:20
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i think, i understand you. you can do something good by telling if there is a file that keeps file extensions and descriptions. if there is someone doesn't want to edit this file by hand, then he should buy the program that includes your code.
ares
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Posted: 2008-09-05 11:27
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i really miss being able to set up xplore to open all rar and zip files by default
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AD
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Posted: 2008-09-05 11:29
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I personally would love to see this happen for UIQ, might start to make it feel like a proper OS As to the problem of individual programs not being coded to accept external file-open commands, I guess progress has to start somewhere, I mean it wouldn't be possible in windows unless some bright spark at MS had not provided a standard proceedure for it. Add to that the fact that it seems that the most significant strides forward with regard to Symbian are being made by independant developers/hackers anyway.

@Zed, even if this maybe of limited use (right now) as a standalone product, how about making it an addition to the file properties dialog in SMP? I believe it would make many of us ditch the built in (lame) file manager altogether, and perhaps boost your sales of an existing and well known product (particularly if you made it a PRO-only feature).

I'm sure the likes of ares would give this new ability a glowing writeup in their blogs


[ This Message was edited by: AD on 2008-09-05 10:33 ]
Zed@CPS
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Posted: 2008-09-05 13:09
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AD, you are right in every aspects. I decided to publish the file type association handler facility, in one form or the other, still to be determined, but you guys will surely get it.
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AD
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Posted: 2008-09-05 13:20
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Nice one! Looking forward to it Many thanks

[ This Message was edited by: AD on 2008-09-05 12:27 ]
gezer
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Posted: 2008-09-06 11:26
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@AD ,
you're right. but there are some programs for uiq3, that accepts direct file open commands. like quick office, core player, etc..
and Zed, thanks a lot.
Zed@CPS
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Posted: 2008-09-06 12:43
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there are some programs for uiq3, that accepts direct file open commands. like quick office, core player, etc.
It would be helpful to list here the names of all known viewers (that is, programs that accept external file open commands) along with their supported file types.
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gezer
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Posted: 2008-09-07 14:00
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i dont know.
AD
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Posted: 2008-09-07 15:46
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I guess it's a catch22 situation from a users point of view - impossble to tell without being able to create the association.

@zed why not just allow users to try it and see? Or are there syntax issues with the sent command to consider? In which case I suppose the only people who could tell you are the devs of the programs concerned. Do programs such as quickoffice & the other inbuilt viewers use a standard external file-open request?
Zed@CPS
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Posted: 2008-09-07 17:56
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Okay, it seems some more explanation is needed. A true viewer app meets the following criteria:

- File managers show the viewer's own icon with data files recognized by them. For example, in front of a .jpg file you see a specific icon for the viewer associated with a .jpg file.

- When opening a data file from a file manager, the viewer suitably displays the data file's contents. Like what the built-in image viewer does when you click on a .jpg file, or what Media Player does when you click on an audio file.

- When a 3rd-party viewer is uninstalled, both the icon and the action reverts to the default built-in viewer (if it exists).

An example for a true 3rd-party viewer is Documents To Go. It meets all the above criteria.

An example for a non-viewer app is X-plore. It is able to display various files types (.txt, .zip, .rar), but only from within its own file browser, and never from another file manager.

What I ask for is the following. Please look into your media folders with your favorite file manager application. See what icons are displayed for various file types (sound, picture, video, text, Word, Excel, etc.), and what application comes up when you click on them. Does Documents To Go come up when you click on a .txt file? Does LCG JukeBox play when you click on a .mp3 file? And so on...

I'm looking for pairs of file types and viewers. In other words, for pairs of file extensions and applications that come up and act properly when you click on a file with that extension.

Do programs such as quickoffice & the other inbuilt viewers use a standard external file-open request?
Yes! The goal is to determine alternatives for them. If such alternatives do not exist then the file association switcher program we talked about can not let you choose.

Edit: One more thing to make it even clearer. The "switcher" would be able to associate any file type with any application. Like an Excel file with the Walkman player. Obviously that does not make sense, as the sound player does not understand the Excel file and can do nothing with it. The problem is that in the same situation X-plore similarly can not do anything with .txt or .zip files.

[ This Message was edited by: Zed@CPS on 2008-09-07 17:10 ]
AD
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Posted: 2008-09-08 13:00
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Well of course I see what you mean, you want to be able to provide a list of viable alternatives for each file type, I guess to prevent people from making silly choices like your example. I can also see the merits of this as it would theoreticaly be possible to cripple the phone with this program I suppose.

All the associations on my phone are the factory default:

jpg : Picture viewer
txt: quickword (in 'viewer mode' - can't edit freely - would prefer jtext)
utz: theme installer
ini: quickword (but only if edited on the pc - otherwise there is no association
htm: built in web aplication (but only after resaving to opera's saved pages folder)
mp4: built in media viewer
pdf: pdf+
MP3: Built in media player (would prefer Walkman3)
xls: quicksheet (viewer mode)
doc:quickword (viewer mode)

The only exception I have is .prc : mobipocket viwer

I know this isn't very helpful, but at least provides a baseline




[ This Message was edited by: AD on 2008-09-08 12:01 ]
Zed@CPS
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Posted: 2008-09-08 21:40
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@AD: Thanks very much for the above list, which indeed serves as a good baseline. I hope others will contribute with some (may be rarely used) alternative viewers.

you want to be able to provide a list of viable alternatives for each file type, I guess to prevent people from making silly choices like your example.
I mainly need the list of working viewers to avoid presenting all installed applications to choose from.

I can also see the merits of this as it would theoreticaly be possible to cripple the phone with this program I suppose.
So far it seems that changing associations is harmless. The worst that can occur is that an inappropriate viewer tries but can not understand the passed data file and the viewer crashes. Only the viewer and only when the user attempts to view a file. In such case it is easy to restore the default viewer. Of course, if someone associates .sis files with Calendar then he will not able to install applications by clicking on a .sis file until he notices the problem and restores the association.

[ This Message was edited by: Zed@CPS on 2008-09-08 20:41 ]
AD
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Posted: 2008-09-09 11:26
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If it is likely to present no real issues, then why not allow the user to experiment with file associations freely? I only say this as surely anyone who tries this would already have a pretty firm idea of the changes they'd like to make. To use the windows analogy, there are no restrictions on user defined associations, and I just think you may be creating unneccessary work for yourself. Also, what happens when a new viewer comes along - after the program is published?
Zed@CPS
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Posted: 2008-09-09 11:42
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You are right when we talk about power users. However, the average user will soon be confused when presented with the (long!) list of defined data types against the (again long) list of installed applications. He will also be frustrated when realizing that only a very small subset of the installed apps can be successfully used as viewers.

For the above reasons I'd like to use a "fool-proof" filter for both lists, to make it easier to choose and associate. The query for establishing "baseline associations" in my above post was for this purpose. But you are right, for power users there should be a "no filter" option.

Thanks a lot for your valuable comments!

[ This Message was edited by: Zed@CPS on 2008-09-09 10:44 ]
gezer
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Posted: 2008-09-20 22:29
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hi again!
i understand all what you want to say.
my main objective was opening swf files directly with web browser. but i understand now, opera may be not able to do anything with swf files.
but,
if we give the .swf files' path as a web address to opera, it runs(with flash player plugin installed). cant we do any modification to opera to accept swf files as a webpage? note: opera can recognize .htm files that launched from file browser(correct if i'm wrong).
cheers!
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