Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Interesting twitter app but can't see myself using it until it supports avtars as that's how I personally browse through my incoming tweets.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

fair enough.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Same here, as good as the app is I can't see me using it until it's got an avatar-based view.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I know ya don't want it, and at the end of the day this is your app and we are all grateful for what you have provided to date...but as ya know avatars is a very popular request, and neccessity for many...

How does Gravity implement it, as that has avatars and load tweets fast....can you cache avatars so they only need to be downloaded once or when updated?

Food for thought.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

yeah, the only problem i have is lack of avatars and bubbles. otherwise its a pretty app.

for avatars, i end up using www.hahlo.com

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Sad to say but Im in the same situation. Im sticking to hahlo till witter (hopefully) gets avatar suport.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I would imagine Gravity is a natively compiled C app for a start. Witter is python which is always going to be slower.
The problem isn't really a question of *how* to write the code, more a question of how much code it is to write.
I'm certainly not about to spend hours and hours coding up avatar support, just to find it drags the performance to unacceptable levels. There is no point investing that time until I can make the current capabilities work with smooth scrolling.
Anyone that has any ideas how to get faster performance out of python, I'd love to hear them. Currently I'm using GTK, a hildon.pannableArea with a gtkTreeView in it. It doesn't seem to matter whether I use my custom cell renderer or the default text one, neither runs particularly smoothly.
I don't have any real idea how to find out what is the performance issue, I'm assuming that the above combination is just not that fast, but maybe I've made mistakes elsewhere which are costing. Don't really know how to proceed.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

heres a really noobish question, how come your didn't/don't write the software in QT. Isn't QT the messiah for the N900? The software through which we will be able to cure cancer through the N900

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I'm pretty sure at the time I started, QT wasn't available outside of extras-devel (or maybe I read it wrong) It seemed a bit limiting to develop in something that itself wasn't actually ready yet.

I am thinking I might try to learn QT now to write something completely different, and if I get the hang of it, and it seems in any way faster (I've not found anything that categorically states that is or will be the case) then I would consider converting.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

The benefit of QT is not performance. The benefit is its one-for-all-library concept which enables the developer to create platform independent programs. Basically if you stick with QT functionality without depending on further libs this is true. In that case you can easily provide your app for Maemo, Symbian, WindowsCE, etc. after rebuilding it. Even for the desktop. In theory, some issues will still remain.

For witter that would mean that you had to migrate all non-standard Python functionality to QT, like filesystem access, GUI, XML, etc.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

0.2.2-6 updated to extras-devel, just has a couple of minor bug fixes, and a change to the expanding bit.ly url behaviour to something I am happier with.
assuming no problems I would consider promoting this version to testing.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

i can't seem to open or change my preferences

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

first if all for your, for your app; excellent job. i just have some feedback in the latest release.
°clicking on preferences not working
°it would be great if witter could inherit its theme from
the current theme in use on the n900, as the two
options for changing the colour doesn't do the app
justice.

i think it will be plus to inherit themes from the n900, not a critisism at all.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I'm still only ever getting 20 tweets in any line. Any suggestions for what I'm doing wrong? Would it be worth uninstalling and reinstalling?

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Doh!, my bad, 0.2.2-7 now in extras-devel with fix in place.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Are you using oAuth or basic auth?
if you hit one of the + buttons when not in full screen, does the busy spinner show up?

try running from command line
run-standalone.sh python2.5 /opt/witter/witter.py

this way you will get lots of diagnostic output whilst witter runs. See what it says at the point you ask for more tweets.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I'm afraid you lost me there. Could you explain in short words, please?

Yes, when I click on the +100, or +200 it reloads with the busy spinner - but it only reloads the same 20.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

ok...so ther eare two ways of configuring witter to talk to twitter. one is 'basic auth' where you provide a username and password.
The other is 'oauth' with this way witter will direct you to a page on twitter where Twitter asks to you authorize witter to talk to your account. You then take a code and give it back to witter at a prompt. From then on witter doesn't have to flow your username/password around to act on your account, it gets it's own key.
The idea there is that you shouldnt' really have to trust third party apps with your user credentials, just temporarily grant them trusted status which can be revoked at any time.

Anyway...in witter these are two very different means of talking to twitter. the baisc auth stuff is everything I originally wrote, and oauth uses a python-twitter library. I will merge these two over time, but for the moment it is relevant to any given error to know which path the code is going down.
I also encourage you to use oauth if you don't already, as that is the only way for twitter to know you are using witter in the 'source' field.

The fact that it shows a busy indicator when you hit the buttons is a good sign it is trying to do something, but if it's not giving any more results back, maybe I'm getting some kind of error under the covers.

so if you open up terminal and at the prompt type:
run-standalone.sh python2.5 /opt/witter/witter.py

that will run witter, but if you switch back to the terminal, you will see it output lots of information whilst witter runs, about various things it's doing.
So if you attempt to fetch more tweets, then go and look in that terminal, the last lines of output should be related to it trying to do that, and might have some helpful error message that would help me understand why it is not working.

oh and for future reference, rebooting or re-installing the same version, will never solve any problems with witter. it just doesn't work that way.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I'm in synod, so not really able to do much. But I'm pretty sure that I just entered the 'Basic' authorisation. I will sort out switching to oauth when I'm at home - only got 2g here so everything is slow! thanks for the help.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

witter doesn't appear in any off repos just checked. any thoughts on themes as i mentioned in the prevous post.

thanks

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Well it was in extras-devel this morning when I installed it to check it was ok....

As for themes. if you can tell me how to look at theme settings from python, or what to use in order to have theme settings applied, then I'd be happy to look at coding it.
If you can even point me at instructions that that talk about theme information from C that might help. But the bottom line is I have no clue how to even find out theme information let along how to ensure witter follows it.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I picked up an update from devel this morning, so it was definitely there then.

And switching to oauth seems to have solved my problem! I can haz lots of tweets now. This will mean I don't have to wake every two hours to check my twitter stream! Thank you!!!

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I found a bug, I guess.

Since there is no way of saving multiple searches, I decided to try putting my favorite searches on one line. Then the next time I ran witter, it would be easy to invoke that line, I thought.

So I clicked on the search icon and put

#iranelection #n900 #kindle

on the line and hit refresh.

Got an error. I suppose it looks for all three, which is probably correct, but I wish a drop-down bar would pop up of searches done in the past, then you could select a search you have used before. As it is, it appears to only remember one search. Twitter itself saves searches, why not witter?

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

put a comma between those search terms, and you will get one search for each term.
it *should* also 'save' them in the sense that if you swipe to a different view, and then back to searches, your terms will still be there. and if you quit and re-open your searches should still be there (can't promise no bugs)
I'm not sure I know what twitter does in terms of saving searches and if there is some mechansism I could tie into which would use searches stored by twitter, then it is something I might look at. But for the moment, the above describes the function that is there.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I found a bug in 0.2.2 (I don't know if it got mentioned already)

when you abort setting the basic auth or oauth setting, and retry the settings window is not fully visible, actually one only sees the title and a few pixels of the 1st input field.

edit: I forgot I found something else too.
characters that use escape sequences in html (like <) are not displayed properly, instead of the character witter displays the escape sequence (&lt; in this case)

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

for the first problem, yes I know about it. but I have no idea why it happens. if you cancel the dialog with the cancel button, then you can return no problem. but if you cancel by clicking outside the dialog, then you get what you describe.

However, I started last night, to completely restructure the whole application using what I've learned about Python so far to try and do a vaguely sane architecture rather than the monolithic app it is today. As part of that I am hoping to enable multiple account support, so I will be totally changing that dialog before I release the next version anyway.

as for the escape sequences, I think I fix some, but perhaps not all. part of the issue is using pango for markup which is html like itself. at some point I may revisit that logic and see what I can do.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Witter doesnt work properly anymore since a long long time.
the first time i installed it it worked fine i think that was in december.
now i cant upload twitpics anymore and functions like +20 +50 arent working for me. how can i fully uninstall witter? cause when i uninstall and reinstall i get the same witter back with my username + passwd stored

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I was just curious as to when the next update will be released.
and what can we be expecting

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

@dwould

notcied witter hasn't been updated for quite a while.
Curious to know what are you working on now :D

How about gps support? or interface like hahlo so we can get avatars

Again, just pitching ideas, thanks a lot of the app

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

sorry missed the first time you asked...
i'm most of the way through a big internal re-structure that will enable multiple account support of twitter/identi.ca/other. sadly I've been super busy recently and I've not had a chance to get it finished.
hopefully in the next week that will be ready for extras-testing. then i'll see how i feel about next items.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

not sure if you're the same person that asked similar question on my blog. if not then try oauth if this is still a problem

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

oh alright.

Hope everything is good and glad to hear witter will be updated soon :)

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Witter 0.3.0 is now in extras-devel.
see http://danielwould.wordpress.com/witter
for latest changelog
main point is that if you don't need multiple account support, it's probably safer to not upgrade just yet. lots has changed to underlying code with the only real external change being that you can now run multiple accounts.
That said if you do use identi.ca or multiple twitter accounts, or any other twitter compatible account, I'd be interested in feedback about the way it's done in 0.3.0

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I spent some time yesterday evening with a bottle of wine, and ended up playing with the tweet display of witter.
Feedback welcome
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2723/...6a02dc86_o.png

personally I want horizontal lines between tweets, but can't seem to get that to work.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

I really like the new look. Just align the avatars with the top line to create an illusion of a horizontal line - might not need an actual line. Could you provide a zip package of the icons you are using - I might have some time to create an alternative set.

One wish - would it be possible to have nav bar and the tweet box appear automatically shortly after the user stops scrolling?

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Theme support is something I sort of started thinking about. athe moment all the icons are under /opt/witter/icons so just replacing those with same named versions of whatever would do, but it would be nice to manage that nicely.

I'll look into the alignment issue, as for the nav bar I wanted to do that but there is no event signal for 'stopped scrolling' that I could find. Unless anyone knows any different.

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

so for avatars...how often should they be re-downloaded? daily? weekly? would monthly be enough?
or would it be preferable to have a specific button to clear out saved ones and force redownload?

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

and I assume no N8x0 update will be coming?

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

Ok now that there are avatars there is only lists (and maybe saved searches) and faster scrolling missing. :)

Re: witter - a python twitter client
 

sorry, in theory the code in svn is easier than ever for an enthusiastic person to port back for n8*0, but I have little enough time for development as it is.