Signal UT: Signal-Desktop for Ubuntu Touch

pparent

I'm building a new application for the openstore: Signal UT, which will be a custom version of signal-desktop for Ubuntu Touch. I've already succeeded to build an initial .click package of signal-desktop for Ubuntu Touch with basic tweaking to have a more acceptable scale and have the keyboard working. I've made scripts to build it automatically. Currently it is based on a reuse of the binaries from https://snapcraft.io/signal-desktop . But it does not require to use snap to work, it's a standalone click package (that we'll be able to publish openstore later).

https://github.com/pparent76/SignalUT

The app is currently not responsive (but I plan to work on it):

You can reduce the left menu to it's minimal size, as a temporary workaround
The keyboard will display on top of the textedit, so you won't see what you type
[EDIT] Somehow the "enter" and "back" buttons of the keyboard do not work after starting the app, but locking and unlocking the phone with Signal in foreground will solve it. (Probably and Xmir problem)
You should be able to fine tune zoom by plugin in a keyboard and use the shortcuts Ctrl+= & Ctrl+- (untested)

But it is already usable to consult messages, and send small messages (in a sub-optimal way)

What also works or kind of works:

Sending Audio messages, and listening to them (seems to work quite well)
Audio calls (and it's possible to see video from the other person but internal camera does not work), call quality untested.
Receiving non-Ut desktop notifications when keeping app in background (even when the phone is suspended)

WARNING: This is experimental, use at your own risks. The app currently needs to run unconfined. It contains binaries, that are free software but that I've not compiled personally (coming from snapcraft.io ) and that I have not checked. I do not take responsibility in case of any problem

Knowing that, if you want to be a tester, I'd be glad to get feedback from testers to know if it runs on other phones. So you will find a pre-built .click package here ( ONLY RUN ON NOBLE (24.04) ) :

https://github.com/pparent76/SignalUT/releases/tag/FirstRelease

pparent

Next steps (in a undetermined order, and in an undetermined date):

Recompile the binary from snapcrafters scripts instead of using their binaries
Make the app fully responsive and adapted to the phone screen, by injecting a js script very similar to whatsweb.
Make the app at least partially confined
Publish in openstore

Probably depends on system fix (idealy):

Make it possible to import/export files with Content-hub (probably a system-wide fix)
Have the notifications, be real UT notifications instead of being standard desktop notifications (possibly a system-wide fix as well)

Keneda

@pparent said in Signal UT: Signal-Desktop for Ubuntu Touch:

The enter button does not trigger message send

When I push enter button in a text field I don't expect the text to be sent, but cursor to go to the next line.
So maybe not something to "fix" here ?

pparent

@Keneda said in Signal UT: Signal-Desktop for Ubuntu Touch:

@pparent said in Signal UT: Signal-Desktop for Ubuntu Touch:

The enter button does not trigger message send

When I push enter button in a text field I don't expect the text to be sent, but cursor to go to the next line.
So maybe not something to "fix" here ?

Ok but here SIngal-Desktop does not offer in its interface any button to actually send the message, and normally relies on pressing enter to send the message. So you'll understand that this is a problem if enter does not actually send the message, because in the default interface there is simply no other way. (fortunately expending the textedit allows to make it appear).

[EDIT:] Seems to be a problem with Xmir and window focus, because locking the phone and unlocking it allows to get the "enter" and "back" button of the keyboard working, that otherwise does not work.

pparent

Anyway after all the investigations that I've made I'm extremely confident that we'll be able to have a fully responsive client based on Signal-Desktop landed in the openstore within few month. I see exactly how to make it perfectly adapted to the phone Interface like whatsweb. (Funny enough it is possible to use a modified version of the js script of whatsweb to make the interface responsive, because the interface has an extremely similar structure. )

It's not anymore a question of "if" but a question of "when". But there are few tedious tasks in the way, and I need to go little by little, because I can't dedicate all my time to this.

Of course I'm open to any offer for help and testing!

pparent

I've noticed this battery problem that seems inherent to Xmir:

https://forums.ubports.com/topic/11538/xmir-lomiri-high-cpu-usage-battery-drain.

Hopefully Mir2.0 should solve this, and make the overall experience of desktop applications on UT way more integrated.