mediator

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#+TITLE: Mediator

Emacs open-with dialog for opening files in mime-type fitting application.

• Description This package uses [[https://specifications.freedesktop.org/desktop-entry-spec/0.9.5/ar01s07.html][xdg mime type information]] (which works only on [[https://www.freedesktop.org/wiki/][freedesktops]] like those on GNU/linux) to present an =open-with= menu for opening files in an external application as a separate process. Additionally it provides some handy tools to associate applications with mime-types.

• Installation Until this package is available on MELPA, this package can be installed by downloading the =mediator.el= file and loading with adding #+begin_src emacs-lisp (load-file "/mediator.el") #+end_src to your init file.

You can also install it using straight: #+BEGIN_SRC emacs-lisp (use-package mediator :straight '(mediator :type git :host github :repo "dalanicolai/mediator") ) #+END_SRC or you could use a [[https://github.com/quelpa/quelpa][Quelpa recipe]].

On Spacemacs you can install the package by adding the following to your list of additional packages: #+begin_src emacs-lisp (mediator :location (recipe :fetcher github :repo "dalanicolai/mediator")) #+end_src

Additionally you may be be interested in installing [[https://github.com/oantolin/embark][embark]] and/or [[https://github.com/abo-abo/swiper][ivy]] and [[https://github.com/seagle0128/all-the-icons-ivy-rich][all-the-icons-ivy-rich]] (see [[https://github.com/dalanicolai/mediator#complementary-packages][Complementary packages]]).

• Usage From a file-visiting buffer invoke =M-x mediator-open-with=. Select the desired application to open the file with. The command prints the chosen application and the command used to launch the application.

Comment

• To retrieve the shell command to launch the application, the package simply uses the first 'word' in its desktop-icon's Exec field. If the app does not launch then, in the message buffer, check the command that was used to launch it.
• If the XDG_DATA_DIRS environment variable is not defined on your system then either set it using =setenv= or set the =mediator-data-directories= variable directly in your init file.

** Associating an application with a mime-type If your desired application is not in the list, then add the file its mime-type to the =MimeType= field in its desktop file. Use =M-x mediator-get-mime-type= to print the file its mime-type. Then use =M-x mediator-get-desktop-file= to quickly navigate to the desktop (if you don't know where the desktop file is located then you could first use the =locate= command, in Emacs or otherwise in the terminal to locate the file). To insert the mime type run =mediator-get-mime-type= with a prefix argument =C-u M-x mediator-get-mime-type= (if the buffer is read only then use =mediator-sudo-edit= to sudo edit the file). Finally, after saving the file, =M-x mediato-update-mime-database= and type your sudo password to update the desktop database(s).

See the next section for extended features using complementary packages.

** Spacemacs Spacemacs users might like to define a keybinding in the user-config section of their init file, for example: #+begin_src emacs-lisp (spacemacs/set-leader-keys "fo" 'mediator-open-with) #+end_src

• Complementary packages ** Embark The =Embark= package allows for executing actions on various objects (e.g. on filenames). You can add the =mediator-open-file= action to the embark keymap by adding the following lines to your init file: #+begin_src emacs-lisp (with-eval-after-load 'embark (define-key embark-file-map "o" 'mediator-open-file)) #+end_src

** Ivy If you are using Ivy, then you can add the =mediator-open-file= command as an ivy action (e.g. under =m=) as follows: #+begin_src emacs-lisp (ivy-add-actions t '(("m" mediator-open-file "mediator-open"))) #+end_src

** all-the-icons-ivy-rich This package support icons with [[https://melpa.org/#/all-the-icons-ivy-rich][all-the-icons-ivy-rich]]. It is important that this package gets loaded before =all-the-icons-ivy-rich-mode= gets activated (or otherwise, re-activate it).

You use =all-the-icons-ivy-rich= then you can set icons for application by adding definitions to =all-the-icons-app-icon-alist=.

** Helm/Selectrum etc. This package should work with all completion frameworks, but it does not add support for icons. PR's are welcome!

• Feedback Any feedback, suggestions, PR's are welcome...