Bug 97569

Summary: Ability to have external tools executed from right click in file list
Product: [Applications] kate Reporter: Jason Keirstead <jason>
Component: generalAssignee: KWrite Developers <kwrite-bugs-null>
Status: RESOLVED UNMAINTAINED    
Severity: wishlist CC: cullmann
Priority: NOR    
Version: unspecified   
Target Milestone: ---   
Platform: Compiled Sources   
OS: Linux   
Latest Commit: Version Fixed In:

Description Jason Keirstead 2005-01-21 02:18:25 UTC
Version:            (using KDE Devel)
Installed from:    Compiled sources

I wish I could use the "External Tools" by right clicking on a file in the file list.

It would be very handy to have this to run the CVS tools.
Comment 1 Anders Lund 2005-01-21 10:12:57 UTC
The external tools are one object. And not necessarily document related, allthough of the ones defined in the distribution, most are (You can define your own 'external tools' if you weren't aware).

So to do it i need a safe way of establishing that kind of relationship -- either by using options or by analysis.

Another issue is that the external tools operate strictly on the current document, while the filelist shows all documents. So it would be like the 'close' action in the file list, it would change the current document prior to running the tool.

So Maybe.
Comment 2 Jason Keirstead 2005-01-21 14:10:31 UTC
On Friday 21 January 2005 5:13 am, Anders Lund wrote:
> Another issue is that the external tools operate strictly on the current
> document, while the filelist shows all documents. So it would be like the
> 'close' action in the file list, it would change the current document prior
> to running the tool.

Hrm this is now how I pictured it behaving.

For example - I can pick tools - CVS Log of current document, and it opens up 
the document in a cervisia dialog. Or, I can do this with a diff.

This is what I want for the right click option. Now, all you would need to do 
this is the filename, not the opened document, correct? So why would you need 
to switch the active document?

Comment 3 Anders Lund 2005-01-21 14:31:22 UTC
1) The external tools are hot hardcoded, they are shell commands that you can define yourself. They expand macros like filename, directory, selection and more, and may or may not be related to the document itself. For example 'Google selection' would not make sense in the Documents menu. There for I can't just put those items in the document list context menu, there is simply no way to do that currently. I could add a way to do that, but I'm not sure I want to -- letting the user freely define the menus is not a path that is necessarily desirable. And by no means something I'm going to do this short before release.

2) The file list *allways* changes to the current document when clicked, no matter what button. It's selected item is *allways* the active document. I *may* change that (allowing a few actions in a context menu for a not-current document) but I need to think that over carefully. It's planned though. And it would of cause not automatically make external tools show up.

I hope this got you a bit better understanding of why your request isn't that easy to grant.

Personally, I use shortcuts, I have defined SHIFT + F10 for viewing the log of the current file, and SHIFT + F11 for viewing the cvs diff for the current document.
Comment 4 Jason Keirstead 2005-01-21 14:40:22 UTC
On Friday 21 January 2005 9:31 am, Anders Lund wrote:
> ------- Additional Comments From anders alweb dk  2005-01-21 14:31 -------
> 1) The external tools are hot hardcoded, they are shell commands that you
> can define yourself. They expand macros like filename, directory, selection
> and more, and may or may not be related to the document itself. For example
> 'Google selection' would not make sense in the Documents menu. There for I
> can't just put those items in the document list context menu, there is
> simply no way to do that currently.

Maybe there could be two categories of tools - File-based and text-based? Or 
something to that effect.

> 2) The file list *allways* changes to the current document when clicked, no
> matter what button. It's selected item is *allways* the active document.

This is not true of the "Filesystem browser" list.

> Personally, I use shortcuts, I have defined SHIFT + F10 for viewing the log
> of the current file, and SHIFT + F11 for viewing the cvs diff for the
> current document.

Yes but that doesn't help when it is not the active document :)

When I saw this external tools option, I became very excided. I was basically 
hoping it could fill the need for a Konqueror request I posted long ago 
( http://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=65311 ). Basically, Cervisia is no good 
for editing files, and Konqeror/Kate have no CVS integration. So the only way 
currently to have decent CVS integration with KDE is to use KDevelop - seems 
a bit overkill for what I need.

What I may do is have a look at the Kate external tools and add them to a 
Konqueror service menu, that could satisfy me temporarily.

Comment 5 Anders Lund 2005-01-21 15:24:44 UTC
It is not hard to add service menus for konqueror, and you can find HOWTOs on the internet.
http://www.urbanlizard.com/~aseigo/servicemenus/servicemenus.html
is one.

As far as Kate: I do not think you understood how the external tools feature works. The data available for it is related the *current document* and Kates document manager.

I will *not* add kates external tools to the directory viewer.

The purpose of the external tools is to aid working with the current document in kate, nothing more. If you want a general tool, this is the wrong place to search it.

I *may* at some point make it possible to place the tools in Kates own GUI in various ways, but allowing the user to define the GUI must be considered very carefully, so it will not be just now.

Comment 6 Christoph Cullmann 2011-08-09 16:20:28 UTC
External Tools is removed for 4.8, lack of maintainer, closing bugs, asking for somebody to step up, all bugs to look at listed there for archiving.
http://kate-editor.org/2011/08/09/maintainer-needed-kate-external-tools-plugin/