Mend and Prettify frequently fails to run after splitting a file in v2.8.0

[byword]

While editing a book, I have frequently encountered an issue where the "Mend and Prettify" function does not execute. This behavior started occurring after upgrading to version 2.8.0, so I am reporting it as a potential bug.

Symptoms:
"Mend and Prettify" does not work (the tags are not cleaned up/formatted).

Sigil Version: 2.8.0

Steps to Reproduce (Context):

1. Have multiple XHTML files in the project.
2. Split a file at an arbitrary point using Ctrl+Enter.
3. Run "Mend and Prettify" in the newly split file, and the tag formatting/cleanup fails to apply.

This does not happen 100% of the time, but it occurs frequently during actual book editing. When I try to deliberately replicate the bug by creating a mock scenario and pressing Ctrl+Enter to split a file, it sometimes works normally. While I haven't figured out the exact, definitive steps to reproduce it consistently yet, I am reporting this since it happens so often in practice. I will provide additional details as soon as I identify the precise triggering conditions.

[DiapDealer]

You're absolutely certain that there is something for Mend & Prettify to do when it appears nothing happens? I ask because Split relies pretty heavily on code already being well-formed before the split can be performed.

Curious what you have to do to get it to work again after it seemingly fails to work.

[KevinH]

Mend and Prettify will no longer make changes to any xhtml that uses the css white-space property or has a css file linked to it that uses the white-space property. This was turned on in Sigil 2.8.0 to prevent Prettify from condensing text that the css says should not be.

Instead of using css white-space, you can of course use the xhtml pre tag to mark text where whitespace should not be changed. Unlike css, the pre tag carries semantic information that can be important for Accessibility.

So please search both your xhtml and all linked css for any use of the white-space property. My guess is you will find it.

As a quick test, since style tags and style attributes directly in xhtml are rare directly, simply unlink your css file and try Mend and Prettify again. But be careful to save first as css white-space property must have been set for a reason and Mend and Prettify will condense newlines and other whitespace.

[byword]

Please Check this video

I know exactly how Mend and Prettify works. This is not a case where nothing changes after the tags are cleaned up.

If you watch the video (the menus are in Korean), you'll see that Mend and Prettify does not reformat the code. However, if I close the XHTML tab, reopen it, and then run Mend and Prettify again, the code is formatted correctly.

I didn't use the CSS white-space property or the <pre> tag that KevinH mentioned.

It doesn't happen every time. Sometimes I perform the exact same split, edit the code, and then run Mend and Prettify, and it works as expected. However, in some cases, it behaves like it does in the video and doesn't reformat the code. Once it gets into this state, Mend and Prettify won't work until I close the tab and reopen it. Editing the code or switching to another tab and then coming back doesn't make any difference.

I haven't found a way to reproduce the issue 100% consistently yet, but it occurs frequently during normal editing. Once I figure out the exact steps to reproduce it, I'll share them with you.

Screen capture was blocked, so I recorded the video with my phone instead. The quality isn't great, but you should still be able to clearly see the issue.

[byword]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

You're absolutely certain that there is something for Mend & Prettify to do when it appears nothing happens? I ask because Split relies pretty heavily on code already being well-formed before the split can be performed.

Curious what you have to do to get it to work again after it seemingly fails to work.

I've uploaded a video showing the malfunction. Please see my reply.

[KevinH]

Okay, I can recreate this if the split piece does not need to create a new tab (ie. an old tab gets a new name). The Tab tells CodeView what its bookpath is and that only gets set once when the tab was first created.

I will look into why.

[KevinH]

Okay, here is a way to 100% recreate the problem.

1) open an empty epub
2) in Section0001.xhtml add the following snippet to the body:

<h1>title with extra newlines


and                spaces 
</h1>

3. While leaving that CV tab open rename the file in BookBrowser to Section0002.xhtml (or any other *new* name).

4. In CV, use its pop-up menu and try running Mend and Prettify from it

You should see no change (ie. the bug)

[KevinH]

This should now be fixed in master. Thank you for your bug report!

[DNSB]

For anyone running Windows and interesting in testing this fix, you can get a copy of the installer from Sigil-2.8.1-Windows-x64-Setup.exe.

[byword]

Originally Posted by KevinH

This should now be fixed in master. Thank you for your bug report!

Thank you for the quick fix. I'll build it on Windows 11 and test it.

[KevinH]

Or you can simply grab DNSB's build for Windows above. It has all the bug fixes since Sigil 2.8.0 (thus the updated version number to 2.8.1 which I set in case of a bug fix only follow-up release, which we simply have not decided upon yet.)