wb web browser

[Brandon McGinty-Carroll]

Responses are below.
Kirk, if you read this, feel free to correct me as needed.

Brandon McGinty-Carroll

On Tue, Jun 04, 2013 at 11:47:54AM -0400, Doug Smith wrote:
> Hi, everyone.  I have recently heard about a javascript/ajax capable browser somehow associated with the speakup project.  I cannot find out anything 
> about it on the web, but i am wondering if it would be ok to ask for some information.  
Ask away.
> 
> You don't know how much this will help me out.  If this works, I will soon be free from the evils of the graphical world.  You don't know what a 
> blessing this will be.  I have a few questions I need to ask about this browser before I remove my gnome desktop and the rest of what goes with it and 
> have to try to reinstall.  
First, don't remove Gnome, GDM, or the like.
This solution isn't going to fix you right up, and I'd hate to put you in the position of not being able to access what you need to.
The old project was called wb. It was a hand-crafted monstrosity, running Google's JS engin, and a python-based HTML parser.
Imagine trying to catch an eliphant in a butterfly net. That was what wb was trying to do with the web.
It worked, but not for the needed sites.
Let's not relive those days, shall we?
The new browser is called Clifox.
It is a layer between your text-based console and the firefox web-browser.
Firefox runs via xvfb, and runs a plugin called MozRepl, that gives access to Firefoxes internal structure.
> 
> 1. Do you have distribution-specific packages available for wb? I am using debian testing and everything that works in the console is working like a 
> dream on here, but the desktop screenreader is out.  
Sounds familiar. I've got GUI issues you wouldn't want to believe on this debian stable machine.
We don't have OS specific packages as of now. We've got a shell script that installs the browser.
> 
> 2. What all kinds of media and whatever can this browser handle? 
Currently, it handles webpages, no more, no less.
When I get someone with a working copy of Orca and a GUI, we'll figure out how to get a CLI copy of flash installed, and what we need to do to play other media types.
> 
> 3. Is wb as capable of handling imbedded multimedia as, for example, firefox or something like that? 
See above.
> 
> 4. What about multimedia streams like radio stations and the like? 
See above. If firefox can do it, clifox should be able to, given a way to install multimedia plugins without an interactive GUI installer.
> 
> 5. Does wb use helper programs like vlc or mplayer to handle all the different kinds of media that can be found on the web?
See above.
> 
> 6. Does it have integration for starting mutt on mailto links on web sites? 
It does not currently, though there is code for content-type detection and mailcap usage.
> 
> 7. How well does wb work with speakup? 
It's cli based, so as well as can be expected. We need to add in highlighting for better cursor tracking.
> 
> 8. Is the interface more like w3m which I am really familiar with or does it resemble some other browser such as links or lynx, the cat or whatever?
If you have used windows, it is an attempt to emulate browsers on that platform.
Images and links are positioned on new lines; keystrokes will be used to move from element to element.
W3M is _probably the closest in my opinion.
> 
> 9. I hope wb will have some way to keep all those nose-pieces that run the web sites from trying to track the movements on their sites.  I don't 
> personally think they have the right to people's browsing habits.
We can do only what Firefox allows for privacy.
However, feel free to add functionality as you need it.
> 
> 10 Can wb be used with surfraw as the browser used when you do a, for example, 
> 
> google fusion reactor
> 
> Will wb come up as the browser for this search?
> 
Probably not. We use NCurses as our GUI toolkit, and I haven't enabled other modes of webpage output.
The surfraw project looks awesome, though. Hadn't heard of it before.
Again, feel free to add features, or pay me to add them.
I happily accept bribes, or coffee. Large amounts of coffee.
> 11. If wb is not in a stable version yet, do you have an expected time frame for when it will be? 
Time frames are nasty things to commit to, especially with something this large.
Development is ongoing.
Feel free to pull changes from git, and poke and prod me as needed.
Kirk Reiser has also been developing Clifox.
> 
> 12. If wb is in a currently stable release, where can I get it? 
It isn't "stable,", but feel free to give it a shot.
You will need git and python2.6+.
git clone http://bmcginty.hopto.org/clifox.git
Be warned.
Because of the configuration that Clifox uses, your current Firefox profiles will be erased.
I will work on this soonest, as I can see it becoming quite an issue.
Your settings/cookies/passwords Will Be Completely Gone, Forever.
Begging nor bribes will get them back.
Backup your ~/.mozilla directory before running the install.sh script!
> 
> Thank all of you for any information you can give me.  I just heard about this a few days ago and have been on a quest for it ever since.  I hope to 
> have it on here and working as soon as possible.  I hope to see wb packaged for various distributions as soon as possible so that others can enjoy the 
> freedom to, as the song says, "Say goodbye to guiwood." 
That's the goal for sure.
In the long run, though, I'd love to see GUI's get fast enough so that we can mainstream our software usage.

> 
> 
> 
> Thanks. 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Doug Smith: Special Agent
> S.W.A.T  Spiritual Warfare and Advanced Technology
> Forever serving our LORD and SAVIOUR, JESUS CHRIST.
> 
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