[digiKam-users] flatpak instructions (for the README file)

[Peter Teuben]

I wanted to start a new thread, with the intend to spiffing up the 
README file that Gilles started on 
https://invent.kde.org/graphics/digikam/-/tree/master/project/bundles/flatpak

Here is my writeup, still a little KDE (kubuntu w/ plasma) centric, but 
with the intent to be command line driven as much as possible. I invite 
anybody to comment and me or somebody will edit the README.md file




You need admin permission to install the flatpak infrastructure

       sudo apt install flatpak
       flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub 
https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo

and on Kubuntu there is a optional GUI based discovery tool

       sudo apt install plasma-discover-flatpak-backend

after rebooting (it claims), you can then do your user installs

       flatpak install flathub org.kde.digikam

This will install your apps in ~/.var/app.   Also perhaps import that 
note that any config
files live there (e.g. ~/.var/app/org.kde.digikam/config/digikamrc and 
your settings in
~/.config/digikamrc are out of visibility)

running the app goes as follows

       flatpak run org.kde.digikam

Since flatpak's run in a restricted environment, you will find that not 
all directories
can be see by the digikam collections (/home and /media are exceptions), 
and you will not
be able to launch gimp for example. To edit these settings there is 
flatseal to the rescue:

       flatpak install flathub flatseal

which I then read you can either use a command line (but as root, this I 
still find confusing)

       sudo flatpak override org.kde.digikam --filesystem=/Photos

or use the GUI

       "launch flatseal, select digiKam", add to "Other files" or select 
"All system files"
       Those will be stored in 
~/.local/share/flatpak/overrides/org.kde.digikam

now you can run flatpack and see your oddly named /Photos directory

       flatpak run org.kde.digikam

More information on flatpak, and flatseal permission settings on

https://www.linux.com/training-tutorials/how-install-and-use-flatpak-linux/
https://docs.flatpak.org/en/latest/sandbox-permissions.html