Amarok Blog

The amaroK script manager now offers more dynamic control over scripts in current svn. You can now run scripts against any selected track(s) in the playlist via the context menu. We have new DCOP calls to add and remove new playlist context items that can be used to control scripts using our existing script notification system. Keep an eye on http://amarok.kde.org/wiki/index.php/Script-Writing_HowTo#Notifications as we stabilize the feature.

Basically the way this works is we use a DCOP call to add items to a submenu, both of which are specified in the DCOP call. Now that the submenu and it's items are created, we can select items in the playlist and click one of the new items added to context menu. This makes amaroK send out a notification that includes the submenu and item titles (so we don't confuse other listening scripts) and the URLs of the selected playlist items.

This is good news for script writers as now there scripts will feel more like they are built-in features of amaroK. Scripts for transcoding tracks, uploading tracks, black listing tracks, and countless others will be better integrated into amaroK, allowing more control and looking good at the same time. So grab svn and your favorite editor and let's see what kind of scripts everybody can come up with.

I'd also like to thank eean for his help in making this new scripting interface system more featureful and functional. Thanks eean!