Programs with special uncommon file formats (not jpg) often register a shell extension in Explorer that offers thumbnails for these files (since the files otherwise wouldn't have previews).
When I trigger in a Wine application (eg. SketchUp) the File Open dialog, I can see previews of the files (skp files) in the preview panel. This means the shell extension does work in Wine. The Shell extension only is not of much use, because outside of Wine it doesn't have an effect. Skp files have by default no thumbnail on Linux.
Would it be possible to integrate such shell extensions in a way that they can offer thumbnails system-wide (eg. register them as gnome-thumbnailer for the specific file type, if there isn't yet a thumbnailer available for such files)?
link Explorer Shell extensions to Gnome thumbnailer
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Martin Gregorie
link Explorer Shell extensions to Gnome thumbnailer
On Sat, 2012-03-31 at 17:59 -0500, vitamin wrote:
and generating icons for files is done by Nautilus, which all the
desktops (Gnome, KDE, XFCE, ...) run wheh the user wants to view
directories and their contents. Nautilus generates thumbnails from
suitable files, which include .GIF, .JPG and .PNG images but not .BMP
or .TIFF. I did a quick check on these image types with Nautilus 3.0.2,
so if you think it should generate icons for additional file types:
- check the Nautilus documentation in /usr/share/doc or visit its
support site.
- if you can't find what you want, raise a bugzilla request against
Nautilus.
Don't forget to read the documentation for nautilus-actions-config-tool,
which may let you configure Nautilus to meet your requirements, before
raising a request.
Martin
This is nothing to do with Gnome: displaying the contents of directoriesFred2 wrote:This is the wrong place for it.It's probably a feature request.
First of all it doesn't really help Wine (this is more of a Gnome feature request). Second, for any Wine related feature requests you need to file bug in bugzilla.
and generating icons for files is done by Nautilus, which all the
desktops (Gnome, KDE, XFCE, ...) run wheh the user wants to view
directories and their contents. Nautilus generates thumbnails from
suitable files, which include .GIF, .JPG and .PNG images but not .BMP
or .TIFF. I did a quick check on these image types with Nautilus 3.0.2,
so if you think it should generate icons for additional file types:
- check the Nautilus documentation in /usr/share/doc or visit its
support site.
- if you can't find what you want, raise a bugzilla request against
Nautilus.
Don't forget to read the documentation for nautilus-actions-config-tool,
which may let you configure Nautilus to meet your requirements, before
raising a request.
Martin
This has nothing to do with Gnome and nothing with Nautilus.
It's Wine's aim/responsibility to make Windows functionality accessible on other platforms.
If proprietary applications provide a shell extension thumbnailer for their own binary file format (not bmp, don't be ridiculous), then it's obviously the better way to make the existing shell extension usable via a compatibility layer instead of reverse-engineering every possible binary file format.
It's Wine's aim/responsibility to make Windows functionality accessible on other platforms.
If proprietary applications provide a shell extension thumbnailer for their own binary file format (not bmp, don't be ridiculous), then it's obviously the better way to make the existing shell extension usable via a compatibility layer instead of reverse-engineering every possible binary file format.
-
Martin Gregorie
link Explorer Shell extensions to Gnome thumbnailer
On Sun, 2012-04-01 at 09:45 -0500, Fred2 wrote:
not a proprietary application. The OP actually wrote 'Explorer' and from
context he obviously meant Windows Explorer, not Internet Explorer or
some other proprietary program.
Wine's purpose is to allow proprietary Windows applications to be run as
Linux applications, so extending it to support windows utilities such as
Windows Explorer is outside its remit, even if it was possible, when the
exact native equivalent, in this case Nautilus, is available.
much except GIMP supports natively under Linux.
But you entirely missed my point, which was that, as Nautilus is what
the OP will be using to find files and it is easily extensible to handle
any additional file type, so it is reasonable to expect it to provide an
extensible mechanism for dealing with thumbnails.
However, at present only the thumbnail display size appears to be
configurable. So, if the OP feels strongly about it, the way forward is
to raise a bugzilla request against Nautilus for extensible thumbnail
generation and display.
Martin
The OP was asking about an extension thumbnailer for *Windows Explorer*,This has nothing to do with Gnome and nothing with Nautilus.
It's Wine's aim/responsibility to make Windows functionality
accessible on other platforms.
not a proprietary application. The OP actually wrote 'Explorer' and from
context he obviously meant Windows Explorer, not Internet Explorer or
some other proprietary program.
Wine's purpose is to allow proprietary Windows applications to be run as
Linux applications, so extending it to support windows utilities such as
Windows Explorer is outside its remit, even if it was possible, when the
exact native equivalent, in this case Nautilus, is available.
Why not? Its still a reasonably common Windows file format that nothingIf proprietary applications provide a shell extension thumbnailer for
their own binary file format (not bmp, don't be ridiculous)
much except GIMP supports natively under Linux.
But you entirely missed my point, which was that, as Nautilus is what
the OP will be using to find files and it is easily extensible to handle
any additional file type, so it is reasonable to expect it to provide an
extensible mechanism for dealing with thumbnails.
However, at present only the thumbnail display size appears to be
configurable. So, if the OP feels strongly about it, the way forward is
to raise a bugzilla request against Nautilus for extensible thumbnail
generation and display.
Martin
The OP finds it difficult to be understood and taken serious in this forum.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library ... 85%29.aspx
So this question is not about using Windows Explorer instead of for example Nautilus (or Dolphin etc.), but about having thumbnails in the desktop environment for files for which there exists no Linux compatible thumbnailer (because only the software manufacturer knows how to get these thumbnails and they don't provide linux software).
On Linux, thumbnailers are usually handled on desktop environment level (gnome-thumbnailer, KDE ThumbCreator), not as an extension of the file manager.
Of course we could hack and reverse-engineer a custom thumbnailer for every binary file format for every desktop environment.
But if the Windows application already gives us a shell extension handler thumbnail extractor that knows how to extract the thumbnail from these file formats, couldn't we better make use of that? Could we automatically use all shell extension handler thumbnail extractors and use the extracted thumbnails for a gnome-thumbnailer or KDE ThumbCreator?
Proprietary applications provide a "shell extension handler thumbnail extractor" for Windows Explorer so that Windows Explorer (and also the whole Windows Desktop) displays thumbnails for special binary file formats for which a default Windows installation does not already show thumbnails.The OP was asking about an extension thumbnailer for *Windows Explorer*,
not a proprietary application.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library ... 85%29.aspx
So this question is not about using Windows Explorer instead of for example Nautilus (or Dolphin etc.), but about having thumbnails in the desktop environment for files for which there exists no Linux compatible thumbnailer (because only the software manufacturer knows how to get these thumbnails and they don't provide linux software).
On Linux, thumbnailers are usually handled on desktop environment level (gnome-thumbnailer, KDE ThumbCreator), not as an extension of the file manager.
Of course we could hack and reverse-engineer a custom thumbnailer for every binary file format for every desktop environment.
But if the Windows application already gives us a shell extension handler thumbnail extractor that knows how to extract the thumbnail from these file formats, couldn't we better make use of that? Could we automatically use all shell extension handler thumbnail extractors and use the extracted thumbnails for a gnome-thumbnailer or KDE ThumbCreator?
-
Martin Gregorie
link Explorer Shell extensions to Gnome thumbnailer
On Sun, 2012-04-01 at 12:43 -0500, Fred2 wrote:
Windows desktop, not a separate program as it is in *nixen?
a Nautilus window. Is that correct?
If so, that means there are actually two extra problems to solve:
(1) some way of generating thumbnails for display on the desktop
(and the possibility that this would be different for the various
desktops)
(2) some way of generating icons for use by Nautilus (or Dolphin, etc.
which I've never used).
Unless this thumbnail generator can be run as a Wine app, implementing
it sounds to me like it would need a whole new runtime environment to be
built, i.e. it would either be a Wine sub-project as complex as the one
that may some day allow Windows USB drivers to be used, or a separate
project in its own right.
I'll be interested to see what the devs have to say about doing this.
for these extensions are.
Martin
So, you're saying that Windows Exploder is a built-in part of theThe OP finds it difficult to be understood and taken serious in this forum.
Proprietary applications provide a "shell extension handler thumbnailThe OP was asking about an extension thumbnailer for *Windows Explorer*,
not a proprietary application.
extractor" for Windows Explorer so that Windows Explorer (and also the
whole Windows Desktop) displays thumbnails for special binary file formats
for which a default Windows installation does not already show thumbnails.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library ... 85%29.aspx
Windows desktop, not a separate program as it is in *nixen?
But, this sounds like thumbnails as desk-top icons rather than icons inSo this question is not about using Windows Explorer instead of for example
Nautilus (or Dolphin etc.), but about having thumbnails in the desktop
environment for files for which there exists no Linux compatible
thumbnailer (because only the software manufacturer knows how to get these
thumbnails and they don't provide linux software).
On Linux, thumbnailers are usually handled on desktop environment level
(gnome-thumbnailer, KDE ThumbCreator), not as an extension of the file manager.
a Nautilus window. Is that correct?
If so, that means there are actually two extra problems to solve:
(1) some way of generating thumbnails for display on the desktop
(and the possibility that this would be different for the various
desktops)
(2) some way of generating icons for use by Nautilus (or Dolphin, etc.
which I've never used).
Unless this thumbnail generator can be run as a Wine app, implementing
it sounds to me like it would need a whole new runtime environment to be
built, i.e. it would either be a Wine sub-project as complex as the one
that may some day allow Windows USB drivers to be used, or a separate
project in its own right.
I'll be interested to see what the devs have to say about doing this.
That would depend on how well defined and documented the Windows APIsBut if the Windows application already gives us a shell extension handler
thumbnail extractor that knows how to extract the thumbnail from these
file formats, couldn't we better make use of that? Could we automatically
use all shell extension handler thumbnail extractors and use the extracted
thumbnails for a gnome-thumbnailer or KDE ThumbCreator?
for these extensions are.
Martin
Re: link Explorer Shell extensions to Gnome thumbnailer
It has everything to do with Gnome that's the problem. If you search mailing list history you will see people attempting to add one thing or the other so Wine can directly talk to desktop environment. All of those attempts were shut down.Martin Gregorie wrote:This is nothing to do with Gnome
If you want something like this - you'll have to create your own project and convince your distro to include it as a "mod" for Wine. Wine does not include any desktop environment specific "features". It have to be standard and work across most/all desktop environments.
Optionally you can get Free desktop to cook up a standard for such a things. Then you have a chance for it to be considered for Wine inclusion.
And as far as implementing this, I'm sure distros will be highly against it. You talking about having a running copy of Wine every time use wants to browse something. This will dramatically increase start times and memory usage.
-
Martin Gregorie
link Explorer Shell extensions to Gnome thumbnailer
On Sun, 2012-04-01 at 17:16 -0500, vitamin wrote:
directory, which has everything to do with Nautilus and, because
Nautilus is separate from desktops (Gnome, KDE, XFCE,...) has nothing to
do with either the desktop or Wine.
onto the desktop, when it becomes a desktop manager problem.
Wine problem.
manager but certainly not a Wine problem.
that can generate thumbnails. I'm a little surprised: a more general,
extensible way to say "show an thumbnail image generated from the file
alongside this file and this is what you call to generate the thumbnail"
would be a reasonable thing to find in Nautilus.
something else that's written as a special wrapper for Windows
thumbnail generation plugins is unlikely ever to be written (unless he's
volunteering!) I can see such a wrapper being called by the extensible
Nautilus rule I mentioned earlier but if it was slow there'd be nobody
to blame except the person who used the extensible rule to call it
instead of a fast native thumbnail generator.
Martin
I was reading the OP's request as being for icons in lists of files in aMartin Gregorie wrote:This is nothing to do with Gnome
directory, which has everything to do with Nautilus and, because
Nautilus is separate from desktops (Gnome, KDE, XFCE,...) has nothing to
do with either the desktop or Wine.
See above. Its a Nautilus problem unless the OP wants to drag the fileIt has everything to do with Gnome that's the problem.
onto the desktop, when it becomes a desktop manager problem.
I haven't looked, but that's exactly what I'd expect. It is simply not aIf you search mailing list history you will see people attempting to
add one thing or the other so Wine can directly talk to desktop
environment. All of those attempts were shut down.
Wine problem.
Agreed, and already stated, except I think its a Nautilus and/or desktopIf you want something like this - you'll have to create your own
project and convince your distro to include it as a "mod" for Wine.
Wine does not include any desktop environment specific "features". It
have to be standard and work across most/all desktop environments.
manager but certainly not a Wine problem.
Agreed, *except* that Nautilus seems to have a fixed list of file typesOptionally you can get Free desktop to cook up a standard for such a
things. Then you have a chance for it to be considered for Wine
inclusion.
that can generate thumbnails. I'm a little surprised: a more general,
extensible way to say "show an thumbnail image generated from the file
alongside this file and this is what you call to generate the thumbnail"
would be a reasonable thing to find in Nautilus.
Total agreement, as I've already said to fred2. Doing this, or callingAnd as far as implementing this, I'm sure distros will be highly
against it. You talking about having a running copy of Wine every time
use wants to browse something. This will dramatically increase start
times and memory usage.
something else that's written as a special wrapper for Windows
thumbnail generation plugins is unlikely ever to be written (unless he's
volunteering!) I can see such a wrapper being called by the extensible
Nautilus rule I mentioned earlier but if it was slow there'd be nobody
to blame except the person who used the extensible rule to call it
instead of a fast native thumbnail generator.
Martin
