applegrew
August 30th, 2007, 05:55 PM
This article can be found on my blog too at http://applegrew.blogspot.com/2007/08/how-to-display-currently-played-song-by.html .
A tip. If you need to install new fortune data then I have a how to on it here at http://applegrew.blogspot.com/2007/08/installing-new-fortune-data-for-fortune.html .
--------------------------------------------------------
Updated to version 1.2.4. See change log below.
Like me many others might have tried to display currently played song in Gaim's status. The AmarokPidgin no longer works with Gaim and the Autoprofile plugin for Gaim is broken for Feisty. So, below I introduce a hack that actually works!
Features:-
Can change status of Gaim to currently played song in Amarok. The status of Gaim changes to the form...
♫ The Song Artist- Song Title
Can change status of Gaim to currently played song or video in Kaffeine. The status of Gaim changes to the form...
same as above if music file is being played. For video files the status become...
⚇♪ Video Title
When Amarok and Kaffeine are not playing or are closed then it can display random messages from fortune.
Tested on system with:-
Kubuntu 7.04 Feisty Fawn
Gaim 2.0.0beta6
Amarok 1.4.7 (optional)
Kaffeine 0.8.5 (optional)
fortune-mod version 9708 (optional)
KDE 3.5.7
Intel Pentium (32-bit)
Depends upon gaim-remote (probably gets installed with Gaim, can anyone confirm this?).
The following code is based on code from http://gentoo-wiki.com/TIP_Gaim_Autoprofile_plugin .
Copy the following shell script code and save it as gaim-status, anywhere you feel like. I am assuming you copied it to /usr/bin so that it is accessible just by typing gaim-status.
You can also download this code from the attachment section (below). Note the attached file is named gaim-status.sh, but this guide assumes its name is gaim-status.
#!/bin/bash
#Filename: gaim-status
#Version: 1.2.4
#License: GPL version 2
#Code by AppleGrew
#Based on code from http://gentoo-wiki.com/TIP_Gaim_Autoprofile_plugin.
sleep_time=90 #Adjust the timer to suit your likings.
#Setting it to too lower value will consume CPU cycles
#and the script may also exit if Gaim fails to load in the above time.
if [[ $1 == "startgaim" ]] || [[ $2 == "startgaim" ]]
then
#Checking if gaim is allive or not.
if `pgrep -x gaim >/dev/null`
then
echo "Gaim already running, continuing to load gaim-status..."
else
gaim &
fi
fi
#Checking if the script is already running or not. If yes then exitting.
gaimstatus_proc_count=`pgrep -c gaim-status`
if [ $gaimstatus_proc_count -ge 2 ]
then
echo "Only one instance of the script can run at a time."
exit 1
fi
skip=0
while [[ 1 == 1 ]]
do
player_title=""
isVideo=0
player_artist=""
player_song=""
#Checking if Amarok is allive and kicking or not.
if `dcop | grep amarok >/dev/null` && [[ `dcop amarok player isPlaying` == "true" ]]
then
player_artist=`dcop amarok player artist`
player_song=`dcop amarok player title`
fi
#Checking if Kaffeine is allive and kicking or not.
if `dcop | grep kaffeine >/dev/null` && [[ `dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface isPlaying` == "true" ]]
then
if [[ `dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface isVideo` == "true" ]]
then
player_title=`dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface title`
isVideo=1
else
player_artist=`dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface artist`
player_song=`dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface title`
fi
fi
if [[ $isVideo == 0 ]]
then
if [[ $player_artist == "" ]] && [[ $player_song == "" ]]
then
player_title=""
else
player_title="$player_artist- $player_song"
fi
fi
if [[ "$player_title" != "" ]]
then
if [[ $isVideo == 1 ]]
then
msg="⚇♪ $player_title"
else
msg="♫ $player_title"
fi
fi
if [[ "$player_title" == "" ]]
then
if [[ $1 != "nofortune" ]] && [[ $2 != "nofortune" ]]
then
if [[ $skip == 1 ]]
then
skip=2
else
# Displaying random messages.
msg=`fortune -ue|cat`
msg=`echo -en "Auto Message (Ignore if offensive): \n$msg"`
skip=1
#Comment out the line above if you donot want fortune
#messages to change at twice the period of song messages.
fi
else
msg=""
fi
else
skip=0
fi
if [[ $skip != 2 ]]
then
gaim-remote "setstatus?status=available&message=$msg"
else
skip=0
fi
sleep "${sleep_time}s"
#Checking if gaim is allive or not.
if ! `pgrep -x gaim >/dev/null`
then
exit 0
fi
done
Don't forget to set the permission of the script to allow execution. If the script is stored in /usr/bin then write
sudo chmod +x,u+x,o+x /usr/bin/gaim-status
Enter your account's password when asked.
Make the Gaim entry in the menu to trigger
gaim-status startgaim
instead of
gaim
Note you will need to give path to gaim-status if you haven't stored gaim-status in /usr/bin.
That's it! Note if you donot want random quotes be set in status while Amarok is not playing then pass another argument nofortune. So it becomes
gaim-status startgaim nofortune
Current unresolved issues:-
gaim-status doesn't close when gaim is closed. (Resolved in version 1.1.0)
Gaim's status shows that I am playing a song or video when in fact it is paused.
This isn't an issue of the script. Actually Kaffeine's isPlaying method returns true even when it is paused, and there isn't any other method to know the true state of Kaffeine. If you have any way then please suggest.
gaim-status polls at specified time and updates the status then. It would be lot better if the script is notified when status of Amarok and Kaffeine changes.
The script will always set status to Available. Is there a way to query the status? So that Away or Idle don't get reset to Available.
Problem with non-UTF-8 encoded fortune cookies. Fortune messages which are not in UTF-8 will make gaim-remote generate error messages like the one below in the console.
No handlers could be found for logger "dbus.proxies"
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "/usr/bin/gaim-remote", line 208, in <module>
output = execute(arg)
File "/usr/bin/gaim-remote", line 123, in execute
gaim.GaimSavedstatusSetMessage(saved, message)
File "/var/lib/python-support/python2.5/dbus/proxies.py", line 155, in __call__
message.append(signature=introspect_sig, *args)
UnicodeError: String parameters to be sent over D-Bus must be valid UTF-8
Also the output may contain incomplete messages. e.g. All message from bofh-excuses will generate the above error and the out will contain only the message BOFH only.
Hope this helps. Please give suggestions, because the above is just a dirty hack. And since this is a dirty hack so I may not be able to support you. Use at your own risk!
------------
Change Log:-
Version 1.2.4
Last version failed to start the 1st time it was started after a computer boots - complaining about multiple instances of gaim-status running, even though pgrep -c gaim-status[/B returned 0]! Anyway storing the output of the aforementioned pgrep command in a variable then comparing that as if [ $theVariable -ge 2 ] seems to resolve the problem. Any idea why writing the pgrep command directly instead of the variable does not work the 1st time after a computer boot? Note after the 1st try after boot, all later execution of the script worked without hitch.
Version 1.2.3
Last version had serious bug which prevented gaim-status from starting at all.
Version 1.2.2
Added -u switch to fortune command, to force it not to convert UTF-8 characters to locale one. I once spotted an error by gaim-remote, complaining about non-UTF-8 character.
Added -e switch to fortune command, to display messages from all fortune data files with equal probability.
Added restriction that only one instance of gaim-status can run.[B] Note for this to work the script must be exactly named gaim-status.
Added code so that gaim-status doesn't try to launch another instance of Gaim when it is supplied with startgaim switch.
Version 1.2.0
Major change. Code re-write.
Added support for Kaffeine too.
Version 1.1.0
Now gaim-status automatically closes when Gaim closes.
A tip. If you need to install new fortune data then I have a how to on it here at http://applegrew.blogspot.com/2007/08/installing-new-fortune-data-for-fortune.html .
--------------------------------------------------------
Updated to version 1.2.4. See change log below.
Like me many others might have tried to display currently played song in Gaim's status. The AmarokPidgin no longer works with Gaim and the Autoprofile plugin for Gaim is broken for Feisty. So, below I introduce a hack that actually works!
Features:-
Can change status of Gaim to currently played song in Amarok. The status of Gaim changes to the form...
♫ The Song Artist- Song Title
Can change status of Gaim to currently played song or video in Kaffeine. The status of Gaim changes to the form...
same as above if music file is being played. For video files the status become...
⚇♪ Video Title
When Amarok and Kaffeine are not playing or are closed then it can display random messages from fortune.
Tested on system with:-
Kubuntu 7.04 Feisty Fawn
Gaim 2.0.0beta6
Amarok 1.4.7 (optional)
Kaffeine 0.8.5 (optional)
fortune-mod version 9708 (optional)
KDE 3.5.7
Intel Pentium (32-bit)
Depends upon gaim-remote (probably gets installed with Gaim, can anyone confirm this?).
The following code is based on code from http://gentoo-wiki.com/TIP_Gaim_Autoprofile_plugin .
Copy the following shell script code and save it as gaim-status, anywhere you feel like. I am assuming you copied it to /usr/bin so that it is accessible just by typing gaim-status.
You can also download this code from the attachment section (below). Note the attached file is named gaim-status.sh, but this guide assumes its name is gaim-status.
#!/bin/bash
#Filename: gaim-status
#Version: 1.2.4
#License: GPL version 2
#Code by AppleGrew
#Based on code from http://gentoo-wiki.com/TIP_Gaim_Autoprofile_plugin.
sleep_time=90 #Adjust the timer to suit your likings.
#Setting it to too lower value will consume CPU cycles
#and the script may also exit if Gaim fails to load in the above time.
if [[ $1 == "startgaim" ]] || [[ $2 == "startgaim" ]]
then
#Checking if gaim is allive or not.
if `pgrep -x gaim >/dev/null`
then
echo "Gaim already running, continuing to load gaim-status..."
else
gaim &
fi
fi
#Checking if the script is already running or not. If yes then exitting.
gaimstatus_proc_count=`pgrep -c gaim-status`
if [ $gaimstatus_proc_count -ge 2 ]
then
echo "Only one instance of the script can run at a time."
exit 1
fi
skip=0
while [[ 1 == 1 ]]
do
player_title=""
isVideo=0
player_artist=""
player_song=""
#Checking if Amarok is allive and kicking or not.
if `dcop | grep amarok >/dev/null` && [[ `dcop amarok player isPlaying` == "true" ]]
then
player_artist=`dcop amarok player artist`
player_song=`dcop amarok player title`
fi
#Checking if Kaffeine is allive and kicking or not.
if `dcop | grep kaffeine >/dev/null` && [[ `dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface isPlaying` == "true" ]]
then
if [[ `dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface isVideo` == "true" ]]
then
player_title=`dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface title`
isVideo=1
else
player_artist=`dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface artist`
player_song=`dcop kaffeine KaffeineIface title`
fi
fi
if [[ $isVideo == 0 ]]
then
if [[ $player_artist == "" ]] && [[ $player_song == "" ]]
then
player_title=""
else
player_title="$player_artist- $player_song"
fi
fi
if [[ "$player_title" != "" ]]
then
if [[ $isVideo == 1 ]]
then
msg="⚇♪ $player_title"
else
msg="♫ $player_title"
fi
fi
if [[ "$player_title" == "" ]]
then
if [[ $1 != "nofortune" ]] && [[ $2 != "nofortune" ]]
then
if [[ $skip == 1 ]]
then
skip=2
else
# Displaying random messages.
msg=`fortune -ue|cat`
msg=`echo -en "Auto Message (Ignore if offensive): \n$msg"`
skip=1
#Comment out the line above if you donot want fortune
#messages to change at twice the period of song messages.
fi
else
msg=""
fi
else
skip=0
fi
if [[ $skip != 2 ]]
then
gaim-remote "setstatus?status=available&message=$msg"
else
skip=0
fi
sleep "${sleep_time}s"
#Checking if gaim is allive or not.
if ! `pgrep -x gaim >/dev/null`
then
exit 0
fi
done
Don't forget to set the permission of the script to allow execution. If the script is stored in /usr/bin then write
sudo chmod +x,u+x,o+x /usr/bin/gaim-status
Enter your account's password when asked.
Make the Gaim entry in the menu to trigger
gaim-status startgaim
instead of
gaim
Note you will need to give path to gaim-status if you haven't stored gaim-status in /usr/bin.
That's it! Note if you donot want random quotes be set in status while Amarok is not playing then pass another argument nofortune. So it becomes
gaim-status startgaim nofortune
Current unresolved issues:-
gaim-status doesn't close when gaim is closed. (Resolved in version 1.1.0)
Gaim's status shows that I am playing a song or video when in fact it is paused.
This isn't an issue of the script. Actually Kaffeine's isPlaying method returns true even when it is paused, and there isn't any other method to know the true state of Kaffeine. If you have any way then please suggest.
gaim-status polls at specified time and updates the status then. It would be lot better if the script is notified when status of Amarok and Kaffeine changes.
The script will always set status to Available. Is there a way to query the status? So that Away or Idle don't get reset to Available.
Problem with non-UTF-8 encoded fortune cookies. Fortune messages which are not in UTF-8 will make gaim-remote generate error messages like the one below in the console.
No handlers could be found for logger "dbus.proxies"
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "/usr/bin/gaim-remote", line 208, in <module>
output = execute(arg)
File "/usr/bin/gaim-remote", line 123, in execute
gaim.GaimSavedstatusSetMessage(saved, message)
File "/var/lib/python-support/python2.5/dbus/proxies.py", line 155, in __call__
message.append(signature=introspect_sig, *args)
UnicodeError: String parameters to be sent over D-Bus must be valid UTF-8
Also the output may contain incomplete messages. e.g. All message from bofh-excuses will generate the above error and the out will contain only the message BOFH only.
Hope this helps. Please give suggestions, because the above is just a dirty hack. And since this is a dirty hack so I may not be able to support you. Use at your own risk!
------------
Change Log:-
Version 1.2.4
Last version failed to start the 1st time it was started after a computer boots - complaining about multiple instances of gaim-status running, even though pgrep -c gaim-status[/B returned 0]! Anyway storing the output of the aforementioned pgrep command in a variable then comparing that as if [ $theVariable -ge 2 ] seems to resolve the problem. Any idea why writing the pgrep command directly instead of the variable does not work the 1st time after a computer boot? Note after the 1st try after boot, all later execution of the script worked without hitch.
Version 1.2.3
Last version had serious bug which prevented gaim-status from starting at all.
Version 1.2.2
Added -u switch to fortune command, to force it not to convert UTF-8 characters to locale one. I once spotted an error by gaim-remote, complaining about non-UTF-8 character.
Added -e switch to fortune command, to display messages from all fortune data files with equal probability.
Added restriction that only one instance of gaim-status can run.[B] Note for this to work the script must be exactly named gaim-status.
Added code so that gaim-status doesn't try to launch another instance of Gaim when it is supplied with startgaim switch.
Version 1.2.0
Major change. Code re-write.
Added support for Kaffeine too.
Version 1.1.0
Now gaim-status automatically closes when Gaim closes.