Scripted "Find & Replace"?

[beiti]

Sometimes I need to do a long list of "Find & Replace" actions (changing formatting for various image sizes, deleting unwanted formatting in css files etc.). These actions always stay the same (at least for a specific sort of EPUBs I usually have to deal with).
At the moment I use a text file as a "cheat sheet" so that I can work through the list step by step (and be able to use Copy & Paste). Thats okay, but It always takes some extra time.
Is there a way to automate this, so that a list of replace actions can be done by itself?

[doubleshuffle]

No idea about automating a sequence of Find&Replace actions, but it will certainly save you some time if you use the Saved Searches function of Sigil. (Ctrl+Alt+F, or in the Tools menu). You can save all the entries from your cheat sheet there and just load them from there.

[beiti]

Originally Posted by doubleshuffle

it will certainly save you some time if you use the Saved Searches function of Sigil.

Thanks for the hint. 'Saved Searches' is a part of Sigil I may have underestimated and therefore not used until now. It's not really what I was looking for but could be a step forward.

[doubleshuffle]

Perhaps when the experts chime in, someone will be able to come up with some kind of script. That's beyond my capabilities. But Saved Searches will at least save you the trouble of doing Copy&Paste each time.

[najgori]

I do it in Notepad++ with Pythonscript plugin
In one window is modified Python Regex Replacement script in another xhmtl file I work on.
In script window you edit and save regex.
In xhtml file window you run script from first window.
Also very useful is Notepad++ Compare plugin because... regex.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by beiti

Thanks for the hint. 'Saved Searches' is a part of Sigil I may have underestimated and therefore not used until now. It's not really what I was looking for but could be a step forward.

Create a GROUP (of) saved searches: move (drag) all those individual, saved into the group. Execute The Group. It sequences thru the group

1)Saved search does NOT save the S&R mode or scope , so you need a separate groups for CSS, REGEX and Normal mode. Watch out for the Scope Gotcha if your S&R has needed restrictions.

[DiapDealer]

As theducks has mentioned, you can create a group of saved searches. Then when you highlight/load the group in the Saved Searches dialog (make sure Find & Replace widget is open), the Find/Replace operations of the Saved Searches dialog will sequentially go through each individual F&R expression in the group.

[Doitsu]

Originally Posted by beiti

Is there a way to automate this, so that a list of replace actions can be done by itself?

If you're familiar with scripting languages, you might be able to create an ad-hoc plugin. See this post for a very simple example.

[beiti]

Thank you, theducks and DiapDealer, for explaining the group option! I just did some quick tests and will try it out in detail very soon. That is actually close to what I was looking for (except for the need to do it separately for CSS and HTML files and keep an eye on the scope setting; I think I can live with that).

Originally Posted by najgori

I do it in Notepad++ with Pythonscript plugin

Your method would be editing single xhtml files outside of Sigil? And I had to learn some Pythonscript first?

Originally Posted by Doitsu

If you're familiar with scripting languages

To be honest, I was trying to avoid this.

[najgori]

Originally Posted by beiti

Your method would be editing single xhtml files outside of Sigil? And I had to learn some Pythonscript first?

No python script - just vanilla regex, and this script is part od plugin samples. It's trivial for anyone with basic knowledge of regex.
My "method" was to FIRST "regex" indesign exported single xhtml epub and THAN to split it to chapters.

[Tex2002ans]

Just to explain Groups/Saved Searches with pictures:



1. Press Ctrl+F to open Find/Replace.

Change the Mode + All HTML Files to what you want use. In this case, I have "Regex" + "All HTML Files".

2. Press Tools > Saved Searches.

In the Saved Searches window, you're able to create Groups of searches (groups appear Bold).

Create your entire set of Find/Replaces.

3. When you're ready to run the entire batch of Find/Replaces at once:

Highlight the group you want to run (#2 in the image).

Then press Replace All (#3 in the image).

[hobnail]

Originally Posted by Tex2002ans

Just to explain Groups/Saved Searches with pictures:

Could you attach your .ini file here? I could make use of stuff in it.

[Tex2002ans]

Originally Posted by hobnail

Could you attach your .ini file here? I could make use of stuff in it.

No. But feel free to look through my old posts. I've posted a ton of the Regex I use over the years, like this post from 2019.

Any in particular you're looking for?

[beiti]

Yesterday I spent the evening putting the entries from my cheat sheet into the saved searches mask. I even added a few more details and tested it thoroughly.
It now works great and will save me a lot of time in the future!
I still need a checklist to edit my EPUBs because I need to do three separate runs of 'saved searches' for different kinds of files and with different Regex/Normal and AllFiles/CurrentFile settings. There are also some more things to do that can't be part of find&replace operations (like adding an HTML TOC, adding a cover, editing metadata). But these things are quickly done (unlike a long list of manual replace operations).
So I'm very happy with what I learned in this thread.

[Tex2002ans]

Originally Posted by beiti

Yesterday I spent the evening putting the entries from my cheat sheet into the saved searches mask. I even added a few more details and tested it thoroughly.

[...]

So I'm very happy with what I learned in this thread.

There's also the Sigil Manual (User Guide).

There's lots of other helpful functionality you'll run across to make your life easier.