Sigil 2.8.0 Released

[DiapDealer]

Sigil 2.8.0

Sigil 2.8.0 is a mixture of bugfixes and new features.

New Features

• create a separate Change Reading Order dialog for those who can not use drag and drop
• create a Drop Zone for users who want to use drag and drop to add files to their epub
• rewrite ImageTab to allow for basic image adjustments: rotate right, rotate left, crop, resize
• allow users more control over Prettify using prettyprint.xml created in Sigil prefs.
• update all CI github actions to the latest versions
• add cability to de-nest the newly native nested CSS so that it will work with e-readers
• in ImageViewer move image description to the top (Thank you BeckyEbook)
• make ImageView open images fitted to its window automatically (Thanks BeckyEbook)
• recognize more core mediatypes for image/jxl and imaage/avif from epub 3.4 spec
• recognize json as a mediatype in Sigil in prep for epub 3.4 spec (Thanks drmhessler)
• support json syntax highlighting in CodeView to support epub 3.4 spec (Thanks drmhessler)
• add new epub3 tool menu items to safely add and remove the nav from the OPF spine

Bug Fixes

• make sure assigned clip number is not editable in ClipEditor
• greatly speed up All Files report generation in epub3s with manifest properties
• greatly speed up Delete Used Media by caching current cover image
• greatly speed up adding bulk resources to the OPF to speed up Add Existing ...
• fix bug in Open With on MacOS not properly parsing arguments
• fix bug in refreshing plugin toolbars (Thank you BeckyEbook)
• fix bug in GetInfo not using the proper times symbol (Thanks BeckyEbook)
• fix stripping out of css selectors with non properites (empty)
• use resizeColumnsToContents to set DeleteUnunsedMedia and DeleteUnusedStyles column width
• prevent user created custom metadata elements from breaking the lxml parser badly (Thanks BeckyEbook)
• fix bug that stripped out custom metadata from epub before a save
• use more standard shortcuts for for Previous and Next tab
• stop Sigil tools from implicitly adding back nav to spine if not present

--------------------------------Notes -----------------------------------

The Sigil Linux AppImage is built on Ubuntu Jammy (22.04) and is targeting glibc 2.35 and higher. Use ldd --version to see if your system at least has a shot at being able to use the AppImage. Don't forget to make sure the AppImage is executable after downloading. Trouble is not expected but be safe and backup your existing Sigil preferences (if you have any) before trying the AppImage.

The latest version of the Sigil User Guide can always be downloaded from the Sigil website, or from its own GitHub repository.

Please check the Sigil website for important Sigil support links, additional resource downloads, and platform-specific trouble-shooting tips/requirements.

The MacOS builds are signed AND notarized.

PGP Fingerprint (for signed tags and source archives): `B5A5 6206 AB0F BC1A 24EF AB8A A166 D29A 8FCD AC63`

All Sigil binary (and source) downloads can also be found as assets at the bottom of The Sigil-2.8.0 Github Release page.

[DiapDealer]

** Post reserved for future use **

[KevinH]

Looking for volunteers to help update the Sigil User Guide up to the Sigil 2.8.0 level to include the many new user interface changes, new tools, new menus, new dialogs, we have made over the last handful of releases.
This includes new screen caps and things.

If anyone is willing to help, please grab the very very latest version of the guide from its github repo. I will also build the latest version of the manual and post it as an attachment here.

Please post here (in this thread or PM KevinH) first to lay claim to a specific chapter or section of the guide to prevent any duplication of efforts!

Please note, larger screen cap png images should be converted to jpgs to save space, as the guide is getting a bit overweight. Feel free to do that to any large image.

Any help to bring the guide text and images up to Sigil 2.8.0 would begreatly appreciated (as my writing style is horrible!)

Thanks

[odamizu]

I may have found a bug. Not sure if this is the same bug mentioned in the bug fixes.

I am on macOS 15.7.7.

Open With appears to only work when external editor is closed (not launched, quit). If BBEdit has already been launched, even with no open files, I have to quit BBEdit before using Open With.

• Launch BBEdit so it is active in the Dock, but do not open any files, i.e., no files are open in BBEdit
  
• Open an epub in Sigil
  
• Right-click on a file and choose Open With > BBEdit
  
• Nothing happens
  
• Quit BBEdit
  
• Try again, right-clicking on a file and choosing Open With > BBEdit
  
• This time, file opens in BBEdit as expected
  
• Close BBEdit file window (click red dot in upper left corner of document window), but leave BBEdit open (active in Dock), do not quit BBEdit
  
• Right-click on a file and choose Open With > BBEdit
  
• Nothing happens
  
• Quit BBEdit
  
• Try again, right-clicking on a file and choosing Open With > BBEdit
  
• This time, file opens as expected
  

In previous Sigil versions, it was not necessary to quit BBEdit before using Open With.

Thank you

[KevinH]

Using Command-Q to exit an app is how OpenWith on a Mac was designed to work. Even BBEdit on my machines. This is because of how Apple handles multiple instances of the same gui app being launched with open and because of more recent sand-box related issues having multiple instances trying to open the same file at the exact same time, and because of changes in how Apple handles its "open" command.

On a Mac, when done with "open with", you must actually Quit out of the App (Command-Q) and not just close its window if that app allows multiple main windows like PageEdit and BbEdit do.

I am not sure how it worked for you before with BBEdit. It never did for me. But the original design in Sigil was to just use Quit (Command-Q) to exit an app for Mac as that is the standard way (but File -> Quit should work too).

[odamizu]

Hi Kevin,

Not sure what to tell you, but I have never had to Quit out of BBEdit before using Sigil OpenWith. In fact, I can have BBEdit launched with an open file window, then go to Sigil and use OpenWith, and a new BBEdit window will open resulting in 2 open files/windows in BBEdit.

I just reverted to Sigil 2.7.6 to confirm, and indeed this is the case.

• Launch BBEdit so it is active in the Dock, but do not open any files, i.e., no files are open in BBEdit
• Open an epub in Sigil
• Right-click on a file and choose Open With > BBEdit
• Sigil file opens in BBEdit
• Right-click on another file and choose Open With > BBEdit
• Sigil file opens in BBEdit so that 2 files are open in BBEdit
• Close Sigil window (click red dot in upper left corner) but leave BBEdit windows open
• Open another epub in Sigil
• Right-click on another file and choose Open With > BBEdit
• Sigil file opens in BBEdit so that 3 files are open in BBEdit
• Close BBEdit windows (click red dot in upper left corner) so that no BBEdit windows are open but BBEdit is still open
• Right-click on a file and choose Open With > BBEdit
• Sigil file opens in BBEdit

All of the above is accomplished on my Mac with BBEdit open the entire time, and I have always been able to do this from Sigil 2.7.6 and earlier and macOS 15.7.7 and earlier.

But if this is not expected behavior and I am an anomaly ... I am mystified.

Originally Posted by KevinH

Using Command-Q to exit an app is how OpenWith on a Mac was designed to work. Even BBEdit on my machines. This is because of how Apple handles multiple instances of the same gui app being launched with open and because of more recent sand-box related issues having multiple instances trying to open the same file at the exact same time, and because of changes in how Apple handles its "open" command.

On a Mac, when done with "open with", you must actually Quit out of the App (Command-Q) and not just close its window if that app allows multiple main windows like PageEdit and BbEdit do.

I am not sure how it worked for you before with BBEdit. It never did for me. But the original design in Sigil was to just use Quit (Command-Q) to exit an app for Mac as that is the standard way (but File -> Quit should work too).

[KevinH]

I will look into it, but there has not been any changes in regular "open with" after the bug fix for open mishandling of an app's command line parameters. Perhaps that is having secondary effects? I have always Apple/Command-Q out of apps when using normal "open with"after finishing editing. I thought that is what all "open with" users on Mac would do. So I have never see an issue with BBEdit.

Here is that bug fix:

https://github.com/Sigil-Ebook/Sigil...61cf9eb3746e28

Using --args is correct syntax for macOS open.

[KevinH]

Okay, I tested this in Terminal.app

1. Open BBedit.app and close the window but leave app running

2. In Terminal.app, type the following (assuming you have a file of text on your Desktop called junk.txt with text in it).

open -a BBEdit.app --args ~/Desktop/junk.txt

And a window opens but it is blank

3. Now Quit the BBEdit.app then run the same test in Terminal.app
open -a BBEdit.app --args ~/Desktop/junk.txt

and BBEdit nicely opens the file.

So something about BBEdit being already open means it will not parse its file arguments!

So strange.

If you repeat the test changing the open command to:

open -a BBEdit.app ~/Desktop/junk.txt

then all works as you said.

If you repeat the test again changing the open command to:

open -a BBEdit.app ~/Desktop/junk.txt --args ~/Desktop/junk.txt

you will see it will work no matter if BBEdit is already running or not.

So this is basically a bug/feature in how the BBEdit.app accepts its command line parameters.

If you check the man page for "open" the "--args" are supposed to be used according to the official syntax of the open command, thus the change.

Not sure if this is a bug in BBEdit or in Apple's open command.

Very strange.

If I revert that change, we are violating the spec/syntax for "open"; if I keep that change, then BBEdit has problems.

I do not see this at all as I always close out of BBEdit.app using Command-Q when I am finished with "Open With" and want to return control to Sigil so I never noticed this difference.

[GalacticHull]

There was a significant change to mend and prettify all html files. The new default prettify settings is incredibly disorienting for my purposes, so I came here and noticed a change to "allow users more control over Prettify using prettyprint.xml created in Sigil prefs."

Unfortunately, I'm not particularly adept with xml (among other languages), and have no clue how edit prettyprint.xml to return it to its 2.7.6 default. If anyone here knows how prettyprint.xml should read to return it to its former state, I'd be very grateful for your help.


I've played "guess and see what happens" a bit too long

[odamizu]

Originally Posted by KevinH

...

Not sure if this is a bug in BBEdit or in Apple's open command.

Very strange.

If I revert that change, we are violating the spec/syntax for "open"; if I keep that change, then BBEdit has problems.

I do not see this at all as I always close out of BBEdit.app using Command-Q when I am finished with "Open With" and want to return control to Sigil so I never noticed this difference.

Hi Kevin,

Everything you wrote above the preceding four paragraphs went right over my head

If you're interested in my 2¢, I would say don't revert and violate proper spec/syntax for "open".

I'll stick with 2.7.6 until I feel the need to upgrade, at which time I will adapt

Thank you,

~oda