hackertray/README.md

HackerTray
==========

[![HackerTray on PyPi](https://pypip.in/v/hackertray/badge.png)](https://pypi.python.org/pypi/hackertray/)
[![HackerTray on PyPi](https://pypip.in/d/hackertray/badge.png)](https://pypi.python.org/pypi/hackertray/)
[![Build Status](https://travis-ci.org/captn3m0/hackertray.png)](https://travis-ci.org/captn3m0/hackertray)

HackerTray is a simple [Hacker News](https://news.ycombinator.com/) Linux application
that lets you view top HN stories in your System Tray. It relies on appindicator, so
it is not guaranteed to work on all systems. It also provides a Gtk StatusIcon fallback
in case AppIndicator is not available.

The inspiration for this came from [Hacker Bar](http://hackerbarapp.com), which is Mac-only.

##Screenshot

![HackerTray Screenshot in elementaryOS](http://i.imgur.com/63l3qXV.png)

##Installation
HackerTray is distributed as a python package. Do the following to install:

``` sh
sudo pip install hackertray
OR
sudo easy_install hackertray
OR
#Download Source and cd to it
sudo python setup.py install
```

After that, you can run `hackertray` from anywhere and it will run. You can
now add it to your OS dependent session autostart method. In Ubuntu, you can
access it via: 

1. System > Preferences > Sessions  
(OR)
2. System > Preferences > Startup Applications 

depending on your Ubuntu Version. Or put it in `~/.config/openbox/autostart` 
if you are running OpenBox. [Here](http://imgur.com/mnhIzDK) is how the 
configuration should look like in Ubuntu and its derivatives. 

###Upgrade
The latest stable version is [![the one on PyPi](https://pypip.in/v/hackertray/badge.png)](https://pypi.python.org/pypi/hackertray/)

You can check which version you have installed with `hackertray --version`.

To upgrade, run `pip install -U hackertray`. In some cases (Ubuntu), you might
need to clear the pip cache before upgrading:

`sudo rm -rf /tmp/pip-build-root/hackertray`

HackerTray will automatically check the latest version on startup, and inform you if there is an update available.

##Options
HackerTray accepts its various options via the command line. Run `hackertray -h` to see all options. Currently the following switches are supported:

1. `-c`: Enables comments support. Clicking on links will also open the comments page on HN. Can be switched off via the UI, but the setting is not remembered.
2. `--chrome PROFILE-PATH`: Specifying a profile path to a chrome directory will make HackerTray read the Chrome History file to mark links as read. Links are checked once every 5 minutes, which is when the History file is copied (to override the lock in case Chrome is open), searched using sqlite and deleted. This feature is still experimental.
3. `--firefox PROFILE-PATH`: Specify path to a firefox profile directory. HackerTray will read your firefox history from this profile, and use it to mark links as read.
4. `--dnt`: Disable analytics. Hackertray will no longer collect any sort of analytics. I'd prefer it if you left out this switch, as it helps me improve hackertray by understanding how its being used.

Note that the `--chrome` and `--firefox` options are independent, and can be used together. However, they cannot be specified multiple times (so reading from 2 chrome profiles is not possible).


###Google Chrome Profile Path

Where your Profile is stored depends on which version of chrome you are using:

- `google-chrome-stable`: `~/.config/google-chrome/Default/`
- `google-chrome-unstable`: `~/.config/google-chrome-unstable/Default/`
- `chromium`: `~/.config/chromium/Default/`

Replace `Default` with `Profile 1`, `Profile 2` or so on if you use multiple profiles on Chrome. Note that the `--chrome` option accepts a `PROFILE-PATH`, not the History file itself. Also note that sometimes `~` might not be set, so you might need to use the complete path (such as `/home/nemo/.config/google-chrome/Default/`).

###Firefox Profile Path
The default firefox profile path is `~/.mozilla/firefox/*.default`, where `*` denotes a random 8 digit string. You can also read `~/.mozilla/firefox/profiles.ini` to get a list of profiles.

##Features
1. Minimalist Approach to HN
2. Opens links in your default browser
3. Remembers which links you opened
4. Shows Points/Comment count in a simple format
5. Reads your Google Chrome History file to determine which links you've already read (even if you may not have opened them via HackerTray)

###Troubleshooting

If the app indicator fails to show in Ubuntu versions, consider installing 
python-appindicator with

`sudo apt-get install python-appindicator`

###Development

To develop on hackertray, or to test out experimental versions, do the following:

- Clone the project
- Run `(sudo) python setup.py develop` in the hackertray root directory
- Run `hackertray` with the required command line options from anywhere.

##Analytics
To help improve the project and learn how its being used, I've added Analytics in hackertray. The `--dnt` switch disables all analytics so that you can opt-out if desired. All data is collected anonymously, with no machine id or user-identifying information being sent back. To learn more, and see which events are being tracked, see the [Analytics](https://github.com/captn3m0/hackertray/wiki/Analytics) wiki page.

##Credits

- Mark Rickert for [Hacker Bar](http://hackerbarapp.com/).
- [Giridaran Manivannan](https://github.com/ace03uec) for troubleshooting instructions.

##Author Information
- Abhay Rana (<me@captnemo.in>)

## Donating
Support this project and [others by captn3m0][gratipay] via [gratipay][].

[![Support via Gratipay][gratipay-badge]][gratipay]

[gratipay-badge]: https://cdn.rawgit.com/gratipay/gratipay-badge/2.0.1/dist/gratipay.png

[gratipay]: https://gratipay.com/captn3m0

##Licence
Licenced under the [MIT Licence](http://nemo.mit-license.org/).