CHECK FOR UPDATES IN A THIRD-PARTY FREEWAY ACTION

Freeway
1

Many people use Freeway in combination with the Actions from ActionsForge.

ABOUT: Updating Freeway actions versus updating ActionsForge actions

In Freeway - which has a “sparkle feed” to make it check online each time it is launched - it isn’t possible to do that with the individual Actions that Freeway ships with (as these are part of the overall “bundle” that comes with the app itself). However, when a core Freeway Action (i.e., one that’s built into the app bundle) is updated, this will simply be updated so you get it with the next Freeway update.

At this moment, for the ActionsForge users, the user has to check manually for updates for almost all the ActionsForge actions. In the installed actions list in Freeway you cannot see the version of the active ActionsForge Action. You can only see the version if you open the ActionsForge action in Freeway. Also, if you update some actions, it is possible that several actions with the same name are activated in a Freeway file (like Carousel) at the same time.

My question is how can it be improved? My proposal is to do it by:

  1. Integrating it in Freeway by adding the version number of all installed Third-party Action in the Freeway Actions list;
  2. Integrating it in ActionsForge by adding the date of the last version at the right hand side of the list (like “Actions Master” (2009-03-19), “Add code” (2010-10-22);
  3. Integrating it in ActionsForge by adding a possibility to select “Sorted by date”, “Sorted by name”, “Sorted by newest action”,….
  4. Adding a RSS feed in ActionsForge with an automatic link in Apple “Mail”. All members automatically receive a message if a Third-party Action is updated.
  5. Integrating it in Freeway by adding the same code that Max Izzit uses with other code in the item “Freeway Actions List” and add “Check for updates of Third-party Actions in ActionsForge”.

I saw the Third-party Actions on ActionsForge “Email Ready HTML Action”. It has a button “Check for updates”. This is a good example:
Result (using this button):
“A new version of Email Ready HTML.fwaction is available”.

Now you have to check manually if there exists a new version of the already installed action. My proposal is that Third-party developers could use the code that Max Izzat uses for his Email Ready HTML Action. It would be a big improvement if all actions in ActionsForge could have this bit of code.

So I post a message on FreewayTalk.net to get a discussion going on this - I’m sure it could be a lively discussion.

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On Mar 30, 2012, at 3:19 AM, VH wrote:

Many people use Freeway in combination with the Actions from ActionsForge.

ABOUT: Updating Freeway actions versus updating ActionsForge actions

In Freeway - which has a “sparkle feed” to make it check online each time it is launched - it isn’t possible to do that with the individual Actions that Freeway ships with (as these are part of the overall “bundle” that comes with the app itself). However, when a core Freeway Action (i.e., one that’s built into the app bundle) is updated, this will simply be updated so you get it with the next Freeway update.

At this moment, for the ActionsForge users, the user has to check manually for updates for almost all the ActionsForge actions. In the installed actions list in Freeway you cannot see the version of the active ActionsForge Action. You can only see the version if you open the ActionsForge action in Freeway. Also, if you update some actions, it is possible that several actions with the same name are activated in a Freeway file (like Carousel) at the same time.

My question is how can it be improved? My proposal is to do it by:

  1. Integrating it in Freeway by adding the version number of all installed Third-party Action in the Freeway Actions list;
  2. Integrating it in ActionsForge by adding the date of the last version at the right hand side of the list (like “Actions Master” (2009-03-19), “Add code” (2010-10-22);
  3. Integrating it in ActionsForge by adding a possibility to select “Sorted by date”, “Sorted by name”, “Sorted by newest action”,….
  4. Adding a RSS feed in ActionsForge with an automatic link in Apple “Mail”. All members automatically receive a message if a Third-party Action is updated.
  5. Integrating it in Freeway by adding the same code that Max Izzit uses with other code in the item “Freeway Actions List” and add “Check for updates of Third-party Actions in ActionsForge”.

I saw the Third-party Actions on ActionsForge “Email Ready HTML Action”. It has a button “Check for updates”. This is a good example:
Result (using this button):
“A new version of Email Ready HTML.fwaction is available”.

This was one of the reasons for me to build ActionsForge in the first place (the other was to provide a guide to the tower of Babel of competing Action sources). I actually built version-checking into the site, and it’s been there since day one.

http://actionsforge.com/articles/view/3-version-checking

The problem with this otherwise fool-proof scheme is that hardly anyone (I’m a huge offender) uses it. I even built in a code generator in ActionsForge (only registered developers can see it) that writes out the proper Action JavaScript to create the button. I still don’t use it, and haven’t pushed it very hard with my peers.

However, your point is incredibly valid – if you have to push the button after the Action has been invoked in the page, you’re not getting the benefit of the feature. You’re playing software “Battleship”. (“G:9” “Miss!”)

Now you have to check manually if there exists a new version of the already installed action. My proposal is that Third-party developers could use the code that Max Izzat uses for his Email Ready HTML Action. It would be a big improvement if all actions in ActionsForge could have this bit of code.

Hey, thanks Max!

So I post a message on FreewayTalk.net to get a discussion going on this - I’m sure it could be a lively discussion.

I hope so.

Walter (ActionsForge benevolent dictator)

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