File	Date	Author	Commit
docs	2022-02-10	Chris Parker	[712d48] One minor tweak to index.html
python	2018-10-16	Clemmitt Sigler	[3a089b] Initial addition of Python2/Python3 support
src	2022-02-07	Chris Parker	[84ca9b] This compiles, but the Python code doesn't work
.gitignore	2022-02-07	Chris Parker	[84ca9b] This compiles, but the Python code doesn't work
COPYRIGHT	2014-09-06	chris_parker,xautomation	[d34377] Recapturing the project
Makefile.in	2014-11-09	chris_parker,xautomation	[4b606a] Added directory for Raspberry Pi and made minor...
README	2022-02-10	Chris Parker	[b132f4] Forgot that README doesn't wrap on SourceForge
config.h.in	2014-09-06	chris_parker,xautomation	[d34377] Recapturing the project
configure	2022-02-07	Chris Parker	[84ca9b] This compiles, but the Python code doesn't work
configure.ac	2022-02-07	Chris Parker	[84ca9b] This compiles, but the Python code doesn't work
install-sh	2014-09-06	chris_parker,xautomation	[d34377] Recapturing the project

Read Me

=== IMPORTANT MESSAGE ===
I am in the process of abandoning this code, and I am restarting
from the ground up using Perl 5.x as the glue language.  The code
as you see it here will always be available in tag v.0.5.0 - but
it will not receive any new work from me.

I anticipate that over the course of the next few weeks (or whatever),
I will be checking in more and more Perl enabled code.  See the tag
message in "v.0.5.0" for more details.


=== Preamble ===
This software is intended to help users of XWindows automate basic windowing
tasks.  For example you can open, move, and close windows based on title,
you can move the mouse, or send keystrokes.

I provide this software free of charge without warranty of any type.  I
provide this in the hopes that it will be useful.  In the event you break
this software, you are entitled to a full refund of the amount I charged. :)


=== My Rationale ===
There are a few X11 control libraries out there.  My basic problem with
most of them  are that they are all called from the bash prompt.  This is fine,
but it makes it difficult to do things like track window state.  At each call
to the program, window information is gathered again, and the request is
processed.


=== What you'll need to compile this ===
Note that Ubuntu (along with some other distributions of Linux) do not come
with a development environment installed.  You'll need to install a development
environment if you do not already have one.  You'll also want to install the
development library for Python which corresponds to your installed version of
Python.  You can get that entering "python -V" (on my computer, it returns
Python 2.6.6).

Ubuntu (and similar):
 -- build-essential

Programs:
 -- swig

Libraries for Ubuntu (and similar):
 -- x11proto-xext-dev
 -- libx11-dev
 -- libxtst-dev

Libraries for Fedora:
 -- xorg-x11-proto-devel
 -- libX11-devel
 -- libXtst-devel

Specifically if you are using Ubuntu and wish to compile this software, you can
use the following command:

$ sudo aptitude install build-essential swig x11proto-xext-dev libx11-dev \
  libxtst-dev pythonN.N-dev

(Where N.N matches the library version returned from "python -V")


Or for Fedora use can use the following commands:

$ sudo yum groupinstall \"Development Tools\"
$ sudo yum install xorg-x11-proto-devel libX11-devel libXtst-devel pythonN.N-dev

(Where N.N matches the library version returned from "python -V")


=== If you want to modify the build ===
 -- autoconf
 -- automake
 -- libtool


=== What you'll need to run this ===
This software was originally written against Python 2.6.  It's likely that
there are few (if any) things which will prevent this code from running in
Python 3.x.  However, I do not have Python 3.x installed, and cannot test it.

To run this software - like say for example you compile it on one machine, and
then transport the binary to another machine - make sure you have the following
libraries installed (Ubuntu or similar):
 -- libx11-dev
 -- libxtst-dev

(Fedora or similar)
 -- libX11-devel
 -- libXtst-devel


=== Installing this software ===
I highly recommend that you do not install this software.  It is simply beyond
my resources to test this software in a wide variety of environments, and it's
likely that automated update tools and the like will cause problems on your
computer if you ignore this advice.  Note that there is a "make install" build
target, which is installed for completeness sake, but I suggest you ignore it.

All you need to do to use this software is make sure that xaut.py and
_xautpy.so are in the same directory as your script.


=== Thanks ===
Many thanks to a person named Max Shalenyi.  Max sent me patch that showed me
the following cool things:
 1) Which libraries are needed for 64 bit.  I'm still using 32 bit Debian.
 2) The commands necessary compile this library in Fedora.
 3) Max reminded me of the -fPIC flag - which I should have included.  <:O)
 4) My Python version stopped at 2.6 - which is what I have.  I added up to 2.9

Thank you Max!!


Thanks also to Beat Master Bob who found a bug in the mouse.move() code which
manifests when the mouse is moved precisely 1 pixel in both the x and y
directions simultaneously.  E.g. mouse.move(mouse.x() + 1, mouse.y() + 1).

Thank you Beat Master Bob!!


Thanks also to Chris Gagnon who had some problems in 64bit Ubuntu which lead
me to find 3 problems:
 1) I was using XKeycodeToKeySym which was recently deprecated.  Too recently
    for me to know about it in Debian Stable.
 2) I was printing a size_t incorrectly.  I was using %d when I should have
    used %zu.
 3) Ubuntu puts their 64bit libraries someplace I wasn't looking.  I corrected
    the build such that it looks in the proper place, and reorganized it such
    that it will be easier to modify if there are other 64bit locations about
    which I know nothing (I use 32bit Debian Stable).

Thanks Chris!!


Blain Lee recently sent me a note that he had to modify the Make file for his
Raspberry Pi.  Not having one myself, I have no idea where the X11 libraries go.
I've added what I think will work, but again, I don't have one, so I can't
test it.  Feel free anyone to let me know if I didn't get it right.

He also pointed out that the documentation for (window) wait_exists did not
match what happens when the window does not appear.  The documentation said
that it returns "None" (which is what I wanted), but in fact the function
returned "False" which was a copy/paste error.  I've corrected that.  He also
pointed out that find_window did not specify what happens when the window wasn't
found.

While I was there, I also added what happens when search_for_window finds no
matches, just to be thorough.

Thanks Blain!!



Want to see your name in bright lights (well, not that bright, but still)?
The following are welcome:
 -- Patches
 -- Bug Reports
 -- How to compile or install on your favorite distro
 -- Any other useful suggestions

Note also that I don't get much traffic related to this library, so I don't
watch the forums or my email that closely simply because it's unnecessary.
Rest assured that if you email me, or if you post to the forum (nobody has as
of the day that I'm writing this), you WILL get a response.  It may take a few
days - but I WILL respond.  Even though this code doesn't move very fast, I
actively maintain it.  I use it daily.

Also, I've had the experience where someone emails me with questions or similar
and my response bounces.  If you are going to email a question to me from the
SourceForge site, please make sure your email address is in the body of the
email so I can copy and paste it into a response if "reply-to" fails.  I'm
not sure whether it gets munged on the SourceForge side or the GMail side, but
the reply address fails frequently.

Chris Parker
email:      chrsprkr3@gmail.com
Main Site:  http://xautomation.sourceforge.net
Help Forum: https://sourceforge.net/projects/xautomation/forums/forum/924563