User talk:Gnosygnu/Archives/2016/March

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Using xowa with an existing web server

Hello.
I have been intrigued by xowa for some time (kudos! it really seems excellent!) and I am finally ready to take the plunge to use/try it. I have an existing server with apache http and mysql. I would like to use this server to render xowa's wiki content; I have no requirement to allow edits.

Based on what I have read:
- xowa uses sqlite
- xowa has its own gui; the ability to edit content is only available through this interface
- xowa has an http server mode that can be used to serve xowa content (no edits)
- there is a firefox add-on that will render xowa content

Options I have considered:
- try to use mysql with xowa... likely not worth even considering. :)
- use xowa in http server mode... but I would prefer to avoid the additional server process and use the existing apache instance.
- use firefox... but I would prefer to use chrome.
- run mediawiki locally and use WP-MIRROR... but I really like (and prefer) xowa's approach.

Finally... the question:
Is there a way to use xowa with an existing apache http instance to allow users on my local network to browse xowa content with a chrome browser?

I really apologise if you have already answered this question in the past... I searched and couldn't find any information on how to do this.

Thanks.

Cmcinroy (talk) 21:33, 3 February 2016 (UTC)

Hi Cmcinroy! Thanks for the interest in XOWA, as well as the praise!

Each of your points in "Based on what I have read" is completely correct.

Responding to your "Options I have considered": ...

  • try to use mysql with xowa... likely not worth even considering. :)
    • I'm actually trying to get XOWA to work on multiple databases (mysql, postgresql). This probably won't be complete for a month or two, but I am planning to get it functional
  • use xowa in http server mode... but I would prefer to avoid the additional server process and use the existing apache instance.
    • Yeah, the extra server process is the drawback to the HTTP server mode.
  • use firefox... but I would prefer to use chrome.
    • Unfortunately, there is no Chrome addon. :(
  • run mediawiki locally and use WP-MIRROR... but I really like (and prefer) xowa's approach.
    • This is a good approach, but I think the only problem is the time it takes to sync English Wikipedia through WP-MIRROR. Last I checked, it takes on the order of 30+ days. If you only plan to sync every few months, this might work for you.

Finally, as for your "question"

  • Is there a way to use xowa with an existing apache http instance to allow users on my local network to browse xowa content with a chrome browser?
    • Not really. From what I understand, XOWA would have to implement some sort of servlet in order to run within Apache. I've not done this before, and my time is a bit stretched now. I can put it on my todo list for future implementation, but honestly it might be a while.

Hope this was useful. Let me know if there is anything else! gnosygnu 04:03, 4 February 2016 (UTC)

Adding new extension from Wikia

The wiki I try to import has heavuly used this extension for their link: https://github.com/Wikia/app/tree/dev/extensions/wikia/NewWindowLinks

And here the help page from Wikia: http://community.wikia.com/wiki/Help:New_window_links

Because of the lack of this extension so When I use Xowa to import this wiki, Xowa don't show any link at their page. Only [[:Template:#NewWindowLink: *Insert page name here*]]

Can you add the support for NewWindowLinks extension?

Thank you 14.163.21.204 (talk) 16:05, 12 February 2016 (UTC)

Hey, thanks for the detailed report as well as the links! The request seems straightforward enough: I'll try to add it for the next release. I think I'll be skipping this Sunday's, but it should be ready for the 21st or the 28th. If you're interested in getting a copy sooner, let me know, and I'll put up a debug version in my Google Drive account.
Also, do you have a specific wikia I can test with? If you don't want to post the name here, feel free to send me an email to gnosygnu at gmail dot com. Thanks! gnosygnu 00:39, 13 February 2016 (UTC)
I've just send you an email. Thank you for your fast reply. Btw, I want to test your work as soon as possible, so if you can put up your demo version sooner, I'm very appreciated 123.26.217.150 (talk) 07:58, 14 February 2016 (UTC)
Cool. Got the email. I added support for {{NewWindowLink}} and links now show correctly. However, I couldn't get the "open in new tab" function working. This is really a drawback of the underlying SWT browser (it doesn't publish a locationEventChanged / Changing for target = _blank). I'm planning to move XOWA to a different webBrowser engine in the coming months, and will try to handle it then.

Hopefully this isn't too much of a drawback. You can always manually force opening in a new tab by middle-clicking the link. At any rate, give it a try with one of the upgrades below:

If you run into issues, let me know which OS you're on as well as the page, and I'll investigate. I already did a quick test with the pages you sent me and things look fine.

These will become integrated in the main source code sometime next week (or the week afterwards).

Thanks! gnosygnu 21:35, 14 February 2016 (UTC)

One other note. I noticed that your wikia also uses another custom function called choose / option. This is also simple enough for me to add. I'll take a crack at it sometime over the next two weeks. Let me know if you run into other functions that are used widespread (actual links would be great). Also, feel free to let me know what other feature would be extremely useful, and I'll let you know how easy / doable it is. Thanks! gnosygnu 21:42, 14 February 2016 (UTC)
Thank you . I don't expect you can release new version so fast, much faster than the wikia staffs when i try to report them some bugs :3 . The new version works pretty good with NewWindowLink parser, except the problem you had already figured out. Hope you can fix it in the near future :3
About extensions, I think you can add the support for tabber and tabview extensions. Many wikis I know use these features frequently, even on their main page.
* Tabber: https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension:Tabber and the help page from wikia: http://community.wikia.com/wiki/Help:Tabber
* Tabview: https://github.com/Wikia/app/tree/dev/extensions/wikia/TabView and the help page from wikia: http://community.wikia.com/wiki/Help:Tab_view
Btw, i have given some problem when i try to update the wiki from xml file. Run the custom script with the same "custom name" from the wiki I had already imported and Xowa only shows "The import is in progress" or some message like that and get stuck. I have to restart the computer and delete all the file from Xowa\wiki\"custom name wiki" and import it again. Don't know it's a bug or something i do wrong? 123.26.217.150 (talk) 06:54, 15 February 2016 (UTC)
Cool. Thanks for the confirm. Glad to hear it worked as expected.

The NewWindowLink was pretty simple, so it was easy to push out. I'm hoping the same for RandomSelection and Tabber. Tabview is a little more code, so it should be possible.

As for the update bug, I don't have any ideas at the moment. Next time it happens, can you go to home/wiki/Special:XowaSystemData?type=log_session and copy the output here (or email me)? Generally, there should be more detail there. Thanks gnosygnu 03:51, 16 February 2016 (UTC)

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