How to open PDF file in browser (firefox) using static file path and tiddler's title?

#1

Hello,

my goal is to open a PDF within my browser (firefox) via TiddlyWiki. The PDF is stored locally (static file path) and has the same name as the tiddler’s title. Here is my code:

\define filepath() file:///C:/Users/Patrick/MyFiles/{{!!title}}.pdf

<$button>
<$action-sendmessage $message="tm-open-external-window" $param=<<filepath>> windowName="_tiddlywiki"  windowFeatures="height=1000, width=1250, top=0, left=0"/>
Open ~TiddlyWiki - Action
</$button>

However, the output is this:

image

Even though the command <<filepath>> outputs the correct file path, it is not recognized by my code above.

I would be glad about any kind of help:)

OS: Windows 10, Browser: Latest Firefox, Tiddlywiki: 5.2.0-prerelease

#2

Hello @TiddlyPatrick
Tobias Beer has a lot of solutions to a variety of questions on TiddlyWiiki.
I think this may help.

https://tobibeer.github.io/tb5/#External%20Image%20Path:Solutions%20[[External%20Image%20Path]]%20[[Embedded%20External%20PDF]]%20[[Local%20Folder%20Contents]]

Scot

#3

Macros only do two things:

  1. replace instances of $arg$ with values passed into the macro
  2. replace instances of $(var)$ with values defined as variables outside the macro.

It is up to the “calling context” to determine what to do with the macro’s “return” value. When you display <<filepath>> as wikitext it is being “wikified” by the TWCore’s parser and {{!!title}} is replaced by the current tiddler’s title, as expected.

However, when you use <<filepath>> as the $param value in the <$action-sendmessage> widget, it is not “wikified”, and is simply passed along to the widget for further processing. Thus, the {{!!title}} syntax in the macro definition isn’t being replaced by the current tiddler’s title, giving the erroneous results you have observed.

Fortunately, for your specific use-case, the current tiddler’s title is always automatically defined as a variable, <<currentTiddler>>, which can be referenced inside the macro using $(currentTiddler)$, which IS replaced by the macro processing, as noted above.

Give this a try:

\define filepath() file:///C:/Users/Patrick/MyFiles/$(currentTiddler)$.pdf

Alternatively, you could leave the filepath() macro as-is, and use the $wikify widget to explicitly force the {{!!title}} reference to be parsed before passing it along as the $param value, like this:

\define filepath() file:///C:/Users/Patrick/MyFiles/{{!!title}}.pdf

<$button>
<$wikify name="thispath" text=<<filepath>> >
<$action-sendmessage $message="tm-open-external-window" $param=<<thispath>> windowName="_tiddlywiki"  windowFeatures="height=1000, width=1250, top=0, left=0"/>
Open ~TiddlyWiki - Action
</$wikify>
</$button>

enjoy,
-e

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Transclude File Path - One File Path for all Images
#4

I’ve thrown out the concept before but it’s been a little while :slight_smile: An enhancement to the macro syntax that added wikification would probably solve a lot of these new-user needs. I suspect it’s a bad idea (I know the wikify widget has performance implications…), but just to throw it back out there:

Meaning:
<<<mymacro>>> would be the equivalent to:

<$wikify name="mymacro-wikified" text=<<mymacro>> >
<<mymacro-wikified>>
</$wikify>
#5

Stobot, Totally agree with the approach, any acceptable delimiters. For inline wikify.

Even just a short cut as {{tiddler}} is a short form of "$transclude tiddler="but one that wikifies the content first, we need it inside filters to.

@TiddlyPatrick I have not used tm-open-external-window yet and there is a gap in the doco which never details the use of paramObject and the statement “Hashmap of Variables”. Is it working for you except for the problem Eric solved?

#6

Thank you all for the help and sorry for the delayed response.

Since I am a noobie, I tested the solution by @EricShulman and created a summary (Version 3 and Version 4 are my favorites):

Summary

Note: The the tiddler has the same title as the PDF (without the ending .pdf).

Version 1: Using variable $(var)$ and absolute file path :+1: :green_circle: works perfectly!

\define filepath_v1() file:///C:/Users/Patrick/MyFiles/$(currentTiddler)$.pdf

<$button>
<$action-sendmessage $message="tm-open-external-window" $param=<<filepath_v1>> windowName="_tiddlywiki"  windowFeatures="height=1000, width=1250, top=0, left=0"/>
Open filepath_v1
</$button>

Version 2: Using transclusion {{!!title}} with $wikify widget and absolute file path :+1: :green_circle: works perfectly!

\define filepath_v2() file:///C:/Users/Patrick/MyFiles/{{!!title}}.pdf

<$button>
<$wikify name="thispath" text=<<filepath_v2>> >
<$action-sendmessage $message="tm-open-external-window" $param=<<thispath>> windowName="_tiddlywiki"  windowFeatures="height=1000, width=1250, top=0, left=0"/>
Open filepath_v2
</$wikify>
</$button>

Version 3: Same as Version 1 just with relative path according to docu under External Links. The PDF is in the folder assets :+1: :green_circle: works perfectly!

\define filepath_v3() ./assets/$(currentTiddler)$.pdf

<$button>
<$action-sendmessage $message="tm-open-external-window" $param=<<filepath_v3>> windowName="_tiddlywiki"  windowFeatures="height=1000, width=1250, top=0, left=0"/>
Open filepath_v3
</$button>

Version 4: Alternative to </$button> using rectangle shape with href
:+1: :green_circle: works perfectly!

\define filepath_v4() ./assets/$(currentTiddler)$.pdf

<div style="font-size:0.5em;text-align:left;margin:0em auto;">
<a href=<<filepath_v4>> class="tc-btn-big-green" style="border-radius:4px;background-color:#696969;" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">
{{$:/core/images/file}} ''Open File''
</a>
</div>

Rendered as:
image

Extra note:

  1. The same also works for images. Only the file ending under the command /define has to be changed to .png, .jpg, etc.

  2. Using \define filepath() $(currentTiddler)$.pdf automatically creates the full file path to the TiddlyWiki.html file adding $(currentTiddler)$.pdf to the file path.
    For example:
    define filepath() $(currentTiddler)$.pdf
    results in
    file:///C:/Users/Patrick/MyFiles/$(currentTiddler)$.pdf
    and if the PDF is in a subfolder
    define filepath() assets/$(currentTiddler)$.pdf
    results in
    file:///C:/Users/Patrick/MyFiles/assets/$(currentTiddler)$.pdf
    Both examples work.

  3. Using the latest Firefox version under:
    Windows: The file opens in a new window.
    MacOS: The file opens in a new tab using the same code (I do not know why).

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