[Digikam-users] custom filter for files

[Jean-François Rabasse]

On Thu, 24 Oct 2013, Marie-Noëlle Augendre wrote:

> I'm not sure what you mean by 'custom tool'. It would be perhaps easier if
> you explain clearly what you want to do so we can answer with solutions
> Digikam can provide.
> The batch tool manager can put the output files anywhere in the Digikam
> collections. If you want to put them elsewhere, you have all the export
> functions to outside systems/galleries/whatever.


Hello,

Well, I think I see what Yuri means with « custom tool », for I happen
to have similar issues.
Custom tool could be any user defined processor, accepting one or more
images files on input, and producing ... something.

And, regarding to that definition, Digikam batch queue manager can't
run any processing, but only predefined processing tools, to choose
in a fixed list. But it's not possible to someone to invent a tool,
then run it from Digikam.

>From my point of view, there are two solutions, an elegant one and a
dirty one.

The elegant solution, not existing yet, would be that a future release
of DK provide a kind of user defined processing tool.
Il could be part of the batch manager, one should be able to select
a list of tools, existing ones and user supplied ones.
Registering a user supplied tool would be just specifying the path
of a user written script.
During batch queue processing, this script could be called for each
file in the selection queue.
(NB: registering a user supplied tool should probably ask for a path
and also an option, run tool for each image file or run tool once
with all the selected files.)

The dirty solution is to use the KDE clipboard. Primitive but working.
I use to do that when I want some « custom processing » the BQM can't
provide.
>From Digikam I select images, using search criteria, then I copy
the selection to clipboard (a simple Ctrl-C). Or, if the thumbnails
view is the result of a search, Ctrl-A to select all, then Ctrl-C to
copy to clipboard.

In a separate terminal window, I start a script then I paste from the
clipboard, Ctrl-V or Shift-Ctrl-V depending on the console program
used.
Of course the script has to be designed to read a list of images files
names on its standard input. (And removing the leading URI notation
from clipboard, file:/the/path/of/the/image...)

I agree it's not that great, but it's a very fast way to use Digikam
to select images, then provide the list of matching files to any kind
of personal tool.
And it works exactly the same with a file browser like Dolphin.
The clipboard intends to share infos between applications,
why not use it.

Hope this could help, at least until a future more elegant solution.

Cheers,
Jean-François