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List Info
Thread: Syncing photos
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| Syncing photos |
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2007-09-29 17:28:12 |
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I've just joined this list, so please forgive me if there is a specific protocol for suggesting new features, but I have something I think should be added (and as far as I know it won't take much work). While dragging files to the applet works if they are prc or pdb files, the most recent generation of palm pilots also include a photo viewer. When installing a file other that a prc or pdb, it doesn't work.
Currently the only way to add a photo to a palm is to use the utility here: http://djw.org/product/palm/par/index.html
As described in the article here:
http://www.pilot-link.org/node/225
The utility compiles and functions properly under Ubuntu Gutsy beta, and is released under the Mozilla Public License. I believe that it would be quite simple to include this utility as part of gnome-pilot, and have the applet recognize when it is being asked to sync a jpg rather than a prc or pdb. It would then convert the photo to a pdb with the utility and copy it at the next sync using the pre-existing file conduit.
What do you think?
Evan
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| Re: Syncing photos |
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2007-10-01 06:13:36 |
On Sat, 2007-09-29 at 18:28 -0400, Evan wrote:
> I've just joined this list, so please forgive me if
there is a
> specific protocol for suggesting new features,
Welcome to the list. This is the best forum for this sort
of
discussion.
> but I have something I think should be added (and as
far as I know it
> won't take much work). While dragging files to the
applet works if
> they are prc or pdb files, the most recent generation
of palm pilots
> also include a photo viewer. When installing a file
other that a prc
> or pdb, it doesn't work.
>
> Currently the only way to add a photo to a palm is to
use the utility
> here: http://djw
.org/product/palm/par/index.html
> As described in the article here: http://www.pilot-l
ink.org/node/225
Hmm. I haven't tried installing JPEGs onto a palm, but I'd
presumed
that, at least for recent devices, the best thing to do was
just to copy
the JPEGs directly onto removable media (are there any
recent devices
that don't support removable media?).
This approach should work for any sort of files, not just
images,
whereas wrapping a 'dropped' file in a .pdb file would be
inappropriate
for some files (e.g. a text file should probably be
installed as a doc
pdb file, and a html file should be installed as-is or
converted a la
plucker or something like that. It becomes pretty complex,
pretty
quickly.)
I mentioned in a previous post that we could consider
support for
installing files onto removable media at sync time, but the
usability
challenge is specifying the destination folder at the 'drag
and drop'
time.
Thoughts?
Matt
Matt Davey A hero is someone who can keep his mouth
shut
mcdavey mrao.cam.ac.uk when he is right. Yiddish Proverb.
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| Re: Syncing photos |
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2007-10-01 11:26:06 |
----- Original Message -----
From: Matt Davey
Time: 01-10-07 13:13
> On Sat, 2007-09-29 at 18:28 -0400, Evan wrote:
>> I've just joined this list, so please forgive me if
there is a
>> specific protocol for suggesting new features,
>
> Welcome to the list. This is the best forum for this
sort of
> discussion.
>
>> but I have something I think should be added (and
as far as I know it
>> won't take much work). While dragging files to the
applet works if
>> they are prc or pdb files, the most recent
generation of palm pilots
>> also include a photo viewer. When installing a file
other that a prc
>> or pdb, it doesn't work.
>>
>> Currently the only way to add a photo to a palm is
to use the utility
>> here: http://djw
.org/product/palm/par/index.html
>> As described in the article here: http://www.pilot-l
ink.org/node/225
>
> Hmm. I haven't tried installing JPEGs onto a palm, but
I'd presumed
> that, at least for recent devices, the best thing to do
was just to copy
> the JPEGs directly onto removable media (are there any
recent devices
> that don't support removable media?).
The z22 does not support removable media, and is still
sold.
Apart from that, I don't know whether the address book app
can read
photos if they are not in the pdb format? I have a z22 so I
can't test
it, but for me the only way to get a photo in the address
book was with
the par tool.
This is also something I was thinking about when I was
working on the
syncing of the address book with evolution for the os5
database
structure. If contact pictures must be synchronized, I think
the par
tool need to be implemented in gpilot.
>
> This approach should work for any sort of files, not
just images,
> whereas wrapping a 'dropped' file in a .pdb file would
be inappropriate
> for some files (e.g. a text file should probably be
installed as a doc
> pdb file, and a html file should be installed as-is or
converted a la
> plucker or something like that. It becomes pretty
complex, pretty
> quickly.)
>
> I mentioned in a previous post that we could consider
support for
> installing files onto removable media at sync time, but
the usability
> challenge is specifying the destination folder at the
'drag and drop'
> time.
>
> Thoughts?
>
> Matt
>
Regards,
Tom
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| Re: Syncing photos |
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2007-10-01 17:11:13 |
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I have a z22, with Splash-photo as the preinstalled photo management software. Splash-photo only supports pics with the .jpg.pdb extension (it must be doubled like that). I have never bothered to try a raw jpeg since I want all of my pics in Splash-Photo as well. For all I know, the address-book could be referencing the splash-photo database.
Unfortunately, my only palm is my z22 (excepting an original zire which doesn't do external memory either), so I can't do any testing on whether or not the file goes to the right place.
On another note, a blanket warning message for unsupported files such as "Unfortunately, Gnome-Pilot does not support the synchronizing of formats other than prc and pdb at this time. This file will not be synchronized next time you connect your palm."; The problem here is that currently it tries (and fails) to sync unsupported formats
every connection. They fail, and then don't get removed, so you can build up a long list of unsupported files that fail to sync every time.
A blanket ban won't be hard to do at all, and we can implement converters for other formats as we think of them. This is definitely something that should be implemented because compiling par and using it are not something newbies want to do. It also doesn't take much new code, so it won't take long.
Objections or concerns?
Evan
On 10/1/07, Tom Billiet < mouse256ulyssis.org" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">
mouse256ulyssis.org> wrote:
----- Original Message -----
From: Matt Davey
Time: 01-10-07 13:13
> On Sat, 2007-09-29 at 18:28 -0400, Evan wrote:
>;> I've just joined this list, so please forgive me if there is a
>> specific protocol for suggesting new features,
>
> Welcome to the list. ; This is the best forum for this sort of
> discussion.
>
>> but I have something I think should be added (and as far as I know it
>>; won't take much work). While dragging files to the applet works if
>> they are prc or pdb files, the most recent generation of palm pilots
>;> also include a photo viewer. When installing a file other that a prc
>> or pdb, it doesn't work.
>>
>> Currently the only way to add a photo to a palm is to use the utility
>> here: http://djw.org/product/palm/par/index.html
>> As described in the article here:
http://www.pilot-link.org/node/225
>
> Hmm. I haven't tried installing JPEGs onto a palm, but I'd presumed
> that, at least for recent devices, the best thing to do was just to copy
> the JPEGs directly onto removable media (are there any recent devices
> that don't support removable media?).
The z22 does not support removable media, and is still sold.
Apart from that, I don't know whether the address book app can read
photos if they are not in the pdb format? I have a z22 so I can't test
it, but for me the only way to get a photo in the address book was with
the par tool.
This is also something I was thinking about when I was working on the
syncing of the address book with evolution for the os5 database
structure. If contact pictures must be synchronized, I think the par
tool need to be implemented in gpilot.
>
> This approach should work for any sort of files, not just images,
> whereas wrapping a 'dropped' file in a .pdb file would be inappropriate
> for some files (e.g. a text file should probably be installed as a doc
> pdb file, and a html file should be installed as-is or converted a la
> plucker or something like that. ; It becomes pretty complex, pretty
> quickly.)
>
> I mentioned in a previous post that we could consider support for
> installing files onto removable media at sync time, but the usability
> challenge is specifying the destination folder at the 'drag and drop'
> time.
>
> Thoughts?
>
> Matt
>
Regards,
Tom
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| Re: Syncing photos |
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2007-10-01 18:52:05 |
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I was referring more to the fact that putting in a file-type checker and blocking unsupported file-types would be easy, not to the additional conduits. I was also under the impression that actual new conduits wouldn';t have to be written. A file converter would convert the files to a .pdb format readable by the program before the sync, and then they would be synced using the pre-existing file conduit. Yes, the converters would be complicated to write, but you wouldn';t have to deal with any new IO conduits during the sync itself.
I'm unclear on the legal powers of these file formats. If they can sue us for using them, why hasn't MS sued Sun/OO.o or Writely (now Google) for use of the doc format (ooxml is technically open, but the older formats aren't).
On 10/1/07, David A. Desrosiers < desrodgnu-designs.com">desrodgnu-designs.com> wrote:
> A blanket ban won't be hard to do at all, and we can implement
> converters for other formats as we think of them.
That's not as easy as you might think... not without any documentation
on the file formats used by these proprietary application vendors, and
not when these vendors threaten to sue if you release a FLOSS tool
that can read/deconstruct/reconstruct their proprietary data format.
I ran into this with Kodak several years ago at Palmsource, and one of
their representatives directly threatened me in front of about 15
bystanders, when I asked if they wanted to collaborate on writing a
conduit in pilot-link to extract their images from their image
database.
> This is definitely something that should be implemented because
> compiling par and using it are not something newbies want to do. It
> also doesn't take much new code, so it won't take long.
Every format is completely unique, and every version tends to be just
as unique. Photos v1.0 is different from Photos v2.0 for example, and
Photos v1.0 on a Sony device is not the same as Photos v1.0 on a Palm
device.
It gets complicated when you have to rewrite complete conduit logic
from scratch, after reverse-engineering every byte-on-the-wire for
each app and each version.
--
David A. Desrosiers
desrodgnu-designs.com">
desrodgnu-designs.com
http://projects.plkr.org/
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