Option for showing a column for protocol on the main window

[merwin]

This patch does the following:
# Added "Show Protocol Icons" menu item. The setting is saved in the configuration.
# Added protocol icons on the buddy list that are displayed if the "Show Protocol Icons" menu item is checked.

The method of obtaining this result is the following:
A column is added on the right side of the buddy list, containing the protocol icon. If the contact contains multiple buddies in it, the "default" buddy's protocol will be shown.

[merwin]

The website going into details on the patch, with screenshots is: http://merwin.bespin.org/pidgin/

[rlaager]

Sean, you wanted this... so we can point people to it, I assume???

I think everyone would much rather see this as a plugin.

[seanegan]

Hehe, I knew I'd turn some heads requesting this be submitted.

There's a big difference between me writing code that I don't want because someone other people are insulting and beratng me about it, and me considering a feature and reviewing code that somebody else wrote because they want it. The latter is much more pleasant.

The implementation of this is done very well, I think. While I obviously find the feature useless myself, I don't find it any *more* useless than "Show idle times," which I've unsuccessfully tried to kill in the past. All of the defenses of "Show idle times" can pretty much be rebuked with the same points made against protocol icons. A "Show" submenu that allowed greater flexibility in the buddy list may not be a bad thing.

By asking that this be submitted, I'm merely saying that I think the patch deserves fair, proper consideration, putting aside all of the hot-tempered emotion from both sides of the debate.

[wehlhard]

I have tested this, and I think the way the protocol icon is displayed is a good way to do it. I would not mind seeing this functionality in the default build.

However, I believe I have found a bug, in that it causes a protocol icon to *not* be shown next to a chat entry in the Buddy List when "Show Protocol Icons" is enabled. When "Show Protocol Icons" is disabled, the protocol icon is present in the chatroom entry (this is also the case without the patch applied).

[merwin]

I agree with Sean on the point of having a Show submenu... even without this new item, it's big enough to deserve it's own submenu.

I've attached a new update that fixes the lack of protocol icons for chat. I had updated the buddy_node function, but not the pidgin_blist_update_chat function.

Whoops.

[deryni]

I would like to state again for the record that I think being able to provide arbitrary information in a buddy list view is a useful thing to be able to do and that I likewise think that information does not belong in our current buddy list. I would fully support either making this a plugin (which would likely require it over-writing the current available icon, as I don't believe GtkTreeModels? allow for dynamic adding/removing of columns) or working on creating an alternative buddy list UI which allowed for the arbitrary display of information relevant to a given buddy, which would allow plugins like this would become and Buddy Notes to insert the data into the buddy list.

Lastly, I would like once again to 'gratulate' merwin on stepping forward and producing this patch and responding to reasonable comments on it, if more people had acted like him originally this would have been a much less painful process all around.

[merwin]

I don't think that most people want to have the status icons overwritten with the protocol icon. They provide very different types of information. I really like the unified status icons, and would hate to see it overwritten by the protocol icon.

If it is not added as an option in the UI, then maybe consider providing a few columns in the buddy list that aren't used by anything and are hidden by default, but that plugins can have access to.

Each plugin then could provide a configuration option of which of the few "extra" columns they want to use.

This would satisfy everyone's needs, as well as pave the way for a number of different plugins that will utilize this new real estate.

I don't personally have the knowledge of how to do this, or how the plugin api works, but it seems feasable to me.

As a final note, I don't see the harm in pushing the different "Show XX" to their own submenu and leaving the protocol column there but hidden by default. As most people don't care about it, they will probably just leave it disabled. But it's such a small code change that I don't see the advantage to leaving it out. But nonetheless, I will still provide the custom version applied to the source on my website until it can be worked in properly as a plugin, or added to the main code.

[nix_nix]

Could we add a cell renderer to a new buddy list column and use a cell data function to retrieve the node from the model and produce a protocol icon on the fly? Performance allowing, of course.

[seanegan]

As this patch adds API, it cannot be added until 2.2.0

[merwin]

I have updated the diff to work with 2.1.0, as well as adding a relevant feature.[br] [br] The protocol mod now affects conversation windows as well. The icon is a medium sized protocol icon placed just to the left of the buddy icon, only when the "Show protocol icons" is active and you're not in a chat room (since the chat room already displays the protocol)

[seanegan]

Applied for 2.2.0, with a few alterations. Thanks for the patch!

[seanegan@…]

(In [94992c974e7a4eec0ac0f35b8db1ac816590cb56]) Fixes #2146. Adds a Show Protocol Icon option and groups related Show menu items into a submenu. Patch from Justin Heiner

[seanegan@…]

(In [94992c974e7a4eec0ac0f35b8db1ac816590cb56]) Fixes #2146. Adds a Show Protocol Icon option and groups related Show menu items into a submenu. Patch from Justin Heiner