.tw as a wiki file extension and browser specific wikis

#1

I just thought I would share this experiment in case someone has a reason or interest in this.

On Windows it is possible to add file associations to .tw files that open in the default browser and despite not having the html extension they are identified as working html files/wikis. As local files they also work out of the box with the Timimi saver.

I also just experimented with and created additional extensions as follows;

  • .twc open in Chrome
  • .twf open in FireFox
  • .twe open in Edge
  • .two open in Opera

It is possible to install each just by opening a .reg file to put the required entries into the registry.

  • a r-click “open with” also allows you to open the wiki in any nominated browser.

This makes it possible to ensure, by default, a particular wiki opens in a particular browser. especially if you open your wikis from the file manager.

  • I for one do keep wikis in specific browsers for different work environments and opening the same wiki in a different browser is unwise as it lets changes in one save over the other.
  • Perhaps with a little work we could also open wikis in TiddlyDesktop @jeremyruston ?

This also allows such wikis to be sent as attachments in some email clients without them being dumped as a risk.

This allows tiddlywikis to be treated more like documents, opened by the specific browser as if it were the application like .docx opens word.

  • One advantage being you can more readily use the operating system search for tiddlywikis without having to see all html files, or backups if they exist, because you can limit the search to .tw* files.

Given we have access to the filename and extension within tiddlywiki it would be possible to include TiddlyWiki script in a wiki to detect if it has being opened in the implied browser and warn the user to open it in the indicated browser.

  • Ideally if there were a way to open such files from a browser url (with custom filename) in an external and appropriate browser, given the extension, it would be great. I believe this is possible but still not sure how to do this.
#2

I appreciate your info as experiments, but I do not really see an advantage for me personally.

In my system .html it is defined to be used with FF by default.

If I need an other browser (for testing), the browser has a link in the OS bottom toolbar. The wiki is dragged and dropped from a file-explorer into that browser.

Windows 11 second option with file explorer – I use: right click → Open with → Choose a browser or Dev-tool

The advantage here is, if there is the same browser with different versions.

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#3

Thanks for your feedback @pmario

Yes, on my desktop, this functionality you illustrate, is now also available on each of the extension types, with the default the matching browser.

This is to me the clear differentiation between my use and yours.

  • I use a chrome profile for me key wikis, and other profiles for specific activities and tasks allowing a different set of bookmarks and extensions.
  • I also use FireFox for my TiddlyWiki development and resources
  • I access edge occasionally for specific tasks and to test TW (Chrome extensions can be installed like Timimi)
  • I recently installed Opera (Chrome extensions can be installed like Timimi) and may use this for VPN mediated browsing.

So the above facilities can assist using the above environment.

Please also consider;

This is an as yet less developed use of tiddlywiki as smart documents. A user installs TiddlyWiki (Actually only the aformentions file type(s) ). Now if a user receives a .tw file or what they may understand as a TiddlyWiki smart document, they can download it and open, read (in its application, the browser) and save the document locally, we may package Timimi with this as well.

  • TiddlyWiki smart documents can be saved to the local Desktop and opened with a click while being disambiguated from regular html files.
  • This approach is not dissimilar to a word or excel document
  • TiddlyWiki smart documents can be specifically searched including the content (if not encrypted)
  • It would be possible to do this on other OS platforms
  • It would be great to do this for TiddlyDesktop as well.

I am trying to make this work, how did or do you setup for this?

  • I wonder if we could do similar from file urls (found in a browser) even provide a utility app on which to drop such links including from the file manager? This would then open in the default or specified browser/TiddlyDesktop.

TiddlyWiki Smart documents

I wont detail it here but Imagin the power possible to encode functionality within such documents?

#4

One clear advantage of using TiddlyDesktop rather than a general browser is we should be able to save documents without the separate installation of Timimi. I can Imagin .tw files being defaulted to TiddlyDesktop but also the introduction of .twd files as well that only open in TiddlyDesktop.

#5

Lest ye forget…

That’s from a year ago. I don’t think anything has changed.

#6

I think that’s like dropping a file on a shortcut… maybe.

#7

I think in someway that is the point, it (TiddlyDesktop) is technically a browser that acts to interpret html, css and javascript. But because it is not actively able to follow links to the internet, it is considered a safe local app and has full rights to the file system.

  • If you try and follow a link it should open in the default browser which is where all the save browsing checks occur.
  • If we associated .tw or .twd files with TiddlyDesktop then they would behave even more like word documents, because the open in TiddlyDesktop and not the traditional internet facing and secured browser TiddlyDesktop can save back wikis without a saver like Timimi or server like node.
    • I need to revisit but TiddlyDesktop should be more capable of local system access such as how the .hta files do/did.
  • Not withstanding the above I agree additional chrome in TiddlyDesktop would be nice.

Linguistically a browser is an animal that eats trees at eye level such as a Goat, a grazer is an animal that eats at ground level (Cow). So I suppose if you use a browser on a tablet you may actually be grazing. :nerd_face:

#8

Pay attention, Tones, it’s not a browser, it’s nw.js (unless something has changed). Under the (very thin) covers, it’s chromium+node.js End of story.

https://nwjs.io/

Funny, they’re still claiming it’s “new”. It’s gotta be over a decade old.

#9

This is a curious viewpoint, because TiddlyDesktop can open single file tiddlywiki’s in its own but limited html/css/javascript client (If you call that a browser or not). Personally I have not yet being able to use the node component to publish wikis at a local URL that the standard browsers can access (as I can with a node install) but I yhave a vague recollection this was possible.

#10

And yet it’s correct. I’m done with this.

#11

Unfortunately I am not and you are leaving me hanging :nerd_face:

#12

I do not understand why you would do all that work. To me it seems you are complicating things - sorry - my fault.
For tiddlydesktop, I just drag my tiddlywiki file onto the icon - and it opens with my wiki. For the browsers, I do exactly as explained by pmario, I am using Linux though. Linux Mint Mate.
I would grow totally senile if I had to keep track of all those file-endings.

#13

Firstly, many would possibly only use the single .tw extension.

  • The multiple extensions simply demonstrate you can have wikis target different browsers.

This may be as much for tiddlywiki naive people as a regular user. Support could be silently deployed to a team or an entire organisation.

Mostly to allow Tiddlywikis to be treated as documents themself. Just think of me wanting to use them like a word document, you don’t need to know the application for them and open it before it will work, just double click a file in the documents folder.

  • After installing support for them of course, although this could be delivered in an online tiddlywiki

The other powerful feature is if you have hundreds of tiddlywikis you can search them all via the file manager and not include the thousands of other html files you normally have.

  • For example you could find all such wikis and sort them in modified date order

Now consider that I may write a set of smart documents, tiddlywikis that not only have written content but can include any solution you can write in tiddlywiki including interactive forms, data collections, import and analyse data etc…

  • With a non html filename, I can send it to you as an attachment, as I could a word document and you can save it, and with the support installed also open and edit it in the browser of choice.
  • You may then save and email it back to me with your comments and keep your own copy.

I still have some work to configure support for “smart documents” based on tiddlywiki in the various browsers, and perhaps in different email inboxes, but I am researching this to explore a whole new paradigm perhaps outside how regular tiddlywiki users currently use tiddlywiki.

  • This new paradigm is rather than retain documents in a document management system to support metadata, but build the document management facility into the actual documents.

A related concept / new paradigm is the idea that documents can contain automation and freely distributed with bells and whistles currently not available because of the security concerns. Unlike other apps and document types, tiddlywiki is a rich environment which can also be secured by running in modern browsers, also called the “universal client” and as a result benefit from all the security relating to modern browsers.

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#14

Thank you for taking the time to explain further. Interesting- and I think my doubt were from a naive user view - of course in business use, that would be something else.