Crazy stuff: sudo snap install signal-desktop

pparent

Hi,

Today I just figured why not try:

sudo snap install signal-desktop

And I realize it just works! This is crazy. With this simple command I can link my device and see my chats. Well it is certainly not a responsive interface (but not terrible either, there's just the left menu coming in the way) and the keyboard does not show for now. But I can consult messages, and this is major.

It means:

1°) We can certainly create quite easily a version of Signal-Desktop that is adapted to mobile display (with few patches to the interface to make it responsive), and that we can get a full-fledge signal client on Ubtunu touch, that way.

2°) That Mir2.0 will certainly help with that.

Ps: I guess the first easy thing to make it usable as a consul-only stuff is adapt the scale, which I guess must be easily doable.

pparent

Craziest thing:

The calls are partially working out of the box!!!!
Which means we can certainly get calls working one day!

kugiigi

Yeah, snap is now preinstalled on 24.04 Noble.
We really need new Mir to get better Wayland/Xwayland support. Flatpak would also be cool and we'll be able to use desktop apps or apps in other mobile Linux distros. Nix can also be used with Crackle.

Moem

@kugiigi said in Crazy stuff: sudo snap install signal-desktop:

Yeah, snap is now preinstalled on 24.04 Noble.

I don't think that's the main point of the post. The main point seems to be that, specifically, Signal for desktop can be installed on UT as a snap and works.
Which is pretty impressive!

kugiigi

@Moem Oh okay.
Then I'm just commenting in general context of snaps
For example, you can also do this with telegram. It even has a scaling setting to make it more usable on the phone. It also doesn't show the OSK though

pparent

@kugiigi

Do you know how to adapt scaling of a snap app in Ubuntu Touch, or how to easily pass it parameters like ?

GDK_SCALE=2

Normally I would pass it in the .desktop file but snap constantly rewrites the .dektop file

pparent

@Moem
Honestly I see 4 simple steps to make it a usable client at least for basic chat:

1°) Adapt the scale (normally it should be easy)
2°) Show the keyboard when clicking on an input (I'm supposing Mir2.0 might help with that)
3°) Adapt UI to hide left menu when in chat view (Should be doable with minimal patches)
4°) Connect to content Hub to Import/export files.

pparent

I've actually succeeded to start the app with acceptable scaling by creating a dummy unconfined app with simply a .desktop file with the launcher:

Exec=env GDK_SCALE=2 /snap/bin/signal-desktop --no-sandbox %U

pparent

Maybe @ChromiumOS-Guy can help us figure out how to enable keyboard, as you did it with uWolf ?

t12392n

Nice find!

Unfortunately its the desktop app which cannot be a "main" app, as in you always need to keep a separate phone.

@pparent said in Crazy stuff: sudo snap install signal-desktop:

I've actually succeeded to start the app with acceptable scaling by creating a dummy unconfined app with simply a .desktop file with the launcher:

Exec=env GDK_SCALE=2 /snap/bin/signal-desktop --no-sandbox %U

That might be worth a guide/instruction with steps on how to do.

pparent

@t12392n said in Crazy stuff: sudo snap install signal-desktop:

Unfortunately its the desktop app which cannot be a "main" app, as in you always need to keep a separate phone.

Or you install it in waydroid in the same phone and open it from time to time only.

pparent

@t12392n said in Crazy stuff: sudo snap install signal-desktop:

That might be worth a guide/instruction with steps on how to do.

I will publish a repository and a .click file for signal-launcher, pretty dummy stuff, but it can help making it usable for reading messages only, until we find a way to make the keyboard usable.

pparent

Here you are: [USE AT YOUR OWN RISKS]

https://github.com/pparent76/SignalLauncher/releases/tag/Initial
https://github.com/pparent76/SignalLauncher

The 2 clicks versions correspond to scaling x2 and x3

Note that it is just a temporary hack, this repo is to disappear when we have a proper support

pparent

And the desktop notifications even show up when the phone is suspended , that's nuts!

pparent

Actually it's interesting to note that Mobian package works as well if you install it with apt-get [NOT RECOMMENDED If you don't know what you're doing]

https://github.com/0mniteck/Signal-Desktop-Mobian/

pparent

I've succeeded in opening the keyboard when editing text in signal-desktop !!!!

I could do it reusing the work of @ChromiumOS-Guy in uWolf!

I can officially send signal messages from a native Ubuntu Touch app, without Waydroid!

Even though for now it's not convenient , since keyboard hides the text area, and the enter button of the keyboard somehow does not trigger sending the message, and the "send" button in signal is hidden until you expend the editing area. But still very usable.

For now everything is messy, but I will try to make it available soon (I think it should be possible to do a click package, but I'm not sure yet)

Ps: Note that I could do it with Mobian version only for now.

wally

@pparent Some of us old-fashioned (and long-winded) folks LIKE to be able to press <Enter> without sending the message
But however it worked in the end, I sure wouldn't complain!

Congrats on what sounds like an amazing start on this!