uRSSES app

3T_Ed

For several months now I have been a very happy user of @darkeye 's uRsses app. When updating to todays' release I had to reboot twice, after that all URL's were gone, showing the notification screen

Hope this can be solved soon.

darkeye

Hey @3t_ed ,
I Just noticed this post i actually saw some complaints about the issue in the Open Store.
However i was not able to reproduce it on my devices (PinePhone and Aquaris M10FHD tablet) all the update gone though without any noticeable issue.

Are you using the nextcloud sync? i did noticed that sometimes during development the nextcloud account will be detached from the uRsses application but reauthorizing the app should connect it back again.

In any case I've opened an issue about it on gitlab : https://gitlab.com/dark-eye/ursses/-/issues/8

And i`ll try and investigate it.

3T_Ed

@darkeye

As I could not find a dedicated thread on your uRSSes I decided to start one here. Should have started it as an appreciation thread.

I'm really happy with the app so when a new update is announces I'm very eager to install it, then finding out it has lost all URL's.

@darkeye said in uRSSES app:

Are you using the nextcloud sync?

No, no nextcloud sync

3T_Ed

Twe other issues since last update, probably related:

the app is unresponsive untill it automatically refreshes after about 30 seconds
when refreshing manually (pulling from top) it often shows the same item twice

3T_Ed

Which reminds me to donate for keeping up your good work! :thumbs_up:

darkeye

@3t_ed Yeah i improved the caching response time which moved the bottle neck to the actual xml processing I`m trying to run it a sync in the next (or next next ) release.
The double results are still being investigated (I have a solution but i don't want to apply it until i can find the cause...)

In any case thank you for using the app!, Feel free to request and report any thing you want or that bothering you it will only make the application better

3T_Ed

@darkeye
Thanks. Happy to know you're working on it.

A minor improvement that comes to mind would be a feature to edit the displayed headers. I noticed that in the source overview there's a swipe-left option (seems to be idle) so you may have thought of that future possibility of being able to alter the original header already.

darkeye

@3t_ed It seems that there is some bug with the qt settings QML object when using arrays properties (which is what i use to save the feeds list) this was fixed in the next revision (i moved to a U1DB for now) so it should not happen again in the future....

However this might mean that in the next update it will happen again (i noticed that it's happens intermittently ) as it's an issue with the qt.labs.settings component, So i suggest to back up the ~/.config/darkeye.ursses/darkeye.ursses.conf file ( make sure that the app is closed when you do it) :

cp ~/.config/darkeye.ursses/darkeye.ursses.conf ~/darkeye.ursses.conf.bk

And if the update delete the feeds list again you can restore it with :

cp  ~/darkeye.ursses.conf.bk ~/.config/darkeye.ursses/darkeye.ursses.conf

This should prevent the loss of the feed list in the current version of the app.

3T_Ed

@darkeye
Thanks! I did and I will.
Your efforts are much appreciated.

Have you thought about making uRSSES compatible with Nextcloud? Like 'Newsie' app has done as a native UT app?

darkeye

Hey @3t_ed ,
Nextcoud integration already exists just associate your nextcloud account with it through the
Settings -> Accounts -> click on the '+' action.
It currently only support the feed list but i`ll add read/unread/stared stories in the future...

folders will be added once/if i`ll figure out a sutible UI for it

Next version will probably be uploaded during this weekend.

3T_Ed

@darkeye
Thank you!

Have you been able to determine the cause of the issues since last update?

self refreshing + loading feeds takes over a minute, it did not before
double news items showing, could not determine what causes it, it did not before

Off topic, Liberapay does not seem to allow for a onetime donation. Any other options to get a donation your way?

darkeye

@3t_ed Yeah both of them are fixed plus :

Added an OPML importer
Added initial search bar for the feed stories
Some UI Fixes / improvements
Added an opacity slider on webview to prevent white page for shining too bright at night (assuming you're using dark mode )
Link to a support matrix channel
and other small usability improvements

Regarding librepay it won't auto charge you unless you marked it as such so you can just charge the amount you want and forget about it and in the future when it will remind you just remove the donation "subscription", it actually pretty fair and doesn't try to let you forget or guilt you about your payments (like other crowdfounding sites ).

3T_Ed

@darkeye
Update installed:

Just two notifications saying "could not parse [URL X, Y], looking fine. Thank you for your work.

I like the way the item is grayed out when returning to the overview after reading that specific item, highlighting the last position in the reading list and go from there.

Will check further improvements and give feedback in the coming week.

3T_Ed

@darkeye

SOLVED (thanks @Keneda !)
The app does not respond like it used to. I decided to uninstall it with the intention to install it again fresh. However, when installing the app the feeds are not removed, somehow stored and loaded as feeds. In settings system does not allow for deleting individual feeds either.

Last week I did follow up on your ealier advice to back up the feeds by

cp ~/.config/darkeye.ursses/darkeye.ursses.conf ~/darkeye.ursses.conf.bk

The re-installed app probably gets the information from that location.

How to wipe all information from uRSSES and start over again?

Keneda

@3t_ed
Did you try wipe app data with UTTT ?

3T_Ed

@keneda
Thanks. No I did not. I just removed the .bk file in filemanager thinking that was the one uRSSes got the previous channel sources from.

Actually I never installed UTTT as I was under the impression it was for advanced users (which obviously I'm not). Since it requires unlimited system access I have never had the urge to try and find out.

Keneda

@3t_ed said in uRSSES app:

Actually I never installed UTTT as I was under the impression it was for advanced users

You're the second person telling me something like that today lol.
No it's not for advanced user only, it's only for some options that are not, yet, implemented (i.e. scaling), or some convinience (i.e. no need to use terminal to make system r/w).

UTTT should be default app in uT image i think...

3T_Ed

@keneda

Thank you so much for lowering the treshold for me to try UTTT. Wiping the data over there did the trick, got a brand 'new' uRSSES ready to be filled with feeds!!

From what I have seen in just a few minutes my device is responding quicker and snappier just by making some changes in UTTT setting. Will certainly dive into it and find out about ways to benefit from it, even as a 'non-advanced' user

I suppose the UTTT comes across as being an app for very experienced users only due to the notifications being showed in the Open Store, lack of explantory text and images for newcomers, and the perceived 'red flags' when the explicite warning notification pops up during the installation process.

Thanks again for the pointer!

Keneda

@3t_ed
I'll tell you quite the same as i told to @Pulsar33 :

In fact any app that has full access to your device (unconfined apps) could have the same warning in their front openstore page, you even use some of them (i.e. Terminal or file manager) but they don't have it because they are ubport team apps, UTTT is not one of those, so it has it...

But if you go to the bottom of the open store page of any unconfined app you'll see the same warning :
text alternatif

3T_Ed

@keneda
When people are new to UBports, coming from mainstream platforms, one of the main reasons to make that switch is to not have the invasive factor of being tracked and feeling of being monitored.

For most non techsavvy newcomers, first thing they'll do after using the installer is gather all must have applications, some of wich are obvious part of the eco system and above all being confined apps or - although unconfined - known to be part of the basics in order to have the device fully operating.

Having installed them new users are ready to add a minimal number of the nice to have apps, cautiously selecting them in the Open Store they'll discover there's a clear distinction between confined apps and unconfined apps.

When using the device as a daily driver, I assume being a newcomer to UBports instinctively people will settle for a basic set of confined apps plus a limited number of apps that do not require unlimited access, therefore dismissing UTTT. Why? I think it's because you don't want to mess around with your phone too much when all basic functions are there to actually have it working as a daily driver and be happy with it because it has been your ticket out of the mainstream tracking/monitoring world, so why take the chance of skewing things up by using an app like UTTT for tweaking the device? Why take the risk?

In my case I learned it the hard way. UTTT is a neccessity when apps do not work properly on your device. Now that I have taken notice of the options in UTTT I must admit that they're not difficult to understand at all, whereas somehow the appearance of the app in Open Store clearly gave me that impression. Although I had seen the UTTT been mentioned in various threads the unconfined character of it just made me reluctant to give it a go. Now I can't imagine this UTTT being a stand alone app, it should be an integrated part of UBports.