[PATCH] Improve AppData and Desktop file

[Erik Johansson]

Got the below email to the webmaster email:

First, apologies for the direct email. I'm emailing you directly as you've been listed as the update contact in one or more AppData files. In the software center we allow the user to search using case-insensitive keywords, for instance searching for 'excel' could match Libreoffice Calc or many other free software spreadsheet applications. At the moment we use the translated keywords set in the desktop file, any extra <keyword> entries in the AppData file, and then fall back to generating tokens from the name, summary and description using a heuristic. This heuristic works most of the time, but a human can often do much better when we know what the most important words are. I've noticed your application does not have any manually set keywords and thought I should bring this to your attention.

So, what do I want you to do? Basically, I would like you to add some keywords in the 0ad.desktop file or the 0ad.appdata.xml AppData file. If you want the keywords to be used by GNOME Shell as well (which you probably do), the best place to put any search terms is in the keywords section [1] of the desktop file. This can also be marked as translatable so non-English users can search in their own language. This would looks something like Keywords=3D;printer; (remember the trailing semicolon!)

The alternative is to put the keywords in the AppData file so that they are only used by the software center and not the desktop shell. You can of course combine putting keywords in both places. The AppData keywords can also be translated, and would look like this:

<keywords>
<keyword>3D</keyword>
<keyword>printer</keyword>
</keywords>

Of course, you don't have to do a release with this fix straight away, and if you have a stable branch it would be a good thing to backport this as well if it does not add translated strings or you have no string freeze policy. Nothing bad will happen if you ignore this email, but please be aware that matches from keywords are ordered higher in the search results than other partial matches from the name or summary. You also don't have to add keywords that are the same as the application name or package name, as these are automatically added as case insensitive search tokens.

When you've changed the file(s) and committed, please email me back and I'll mark your application as completed. If you don't want to hear from me ever again just edit the <update_contact> in the AppData file and change it to somebody else. I'm not planning on emailing more than once every 6 months, so don't worry about me spamming you with even more work to do. If you don't add the keywords then your application will still be visible in the various software centers, but it may be harder to find.

Thanks,

Richard

[1] http://standards.freedesktop.org/desktop-entry-spec/desktop-entry-spec-latest.html#recognized-keys

To verify the appdata file:

LANG=CC appstream-util validate-strict build/resources/0ad.appdata.xml

To verify the desktop file:

desktop-file-validate build/resources/0ad.desktop

[Erik Johansson]

Some more additions:

Hi again! First, apologies for the direct email. I'm emailing you directly as you've been listed as the update contact in one or more AppData files. We've been busy building an awesome software center, and we've been adding more and more metadata fields that upstream authors can set. The software center is now being used in Fedora, Opensuse, Ubuntu, Debian and Arch, with many millions of happy users. Some of the newest features include a way to make it easy for translators to contribute new translations of your applications by specifying a URL in the 0ad.appdata.xml AppData file that tells them where to start looking. This can be specified by adding: <url type="translate">http://the-web-site-with-translation-instructions/</url> Another useful tag to add is to tell end-users where to donate, for instance: <url type="donation">http://www.gnome.org/friends/</url> Also, by including keywords into either the desktop file or the AppData file you can increase the number of search matches you get in the software center. Adding application-specific keywords like "editor" or "vhdl" means that we can provide better search results for common queries. Keywords are also stemmed, so searching for "edit" will also match "editor" and "edits" so there's no need to add every variant. You can add keywords using: <keywords> <keyword>something</keyword><keyword>anotherthing</keyword> </keywords> If it's been some time since you updated the AppData file (and hey, you've got an app to write!) you can get add the latest metadata fields by doing appstream-util upgrade 0ad.appdata.xml and then replacing any FIXMEs in the file with actual data. We'll be putting more functionality into the software center in the future that uses this extra data, but we need more upstream software to opt-in before we can enable features, for instance, providing a button for users to donate to specific apps. You can also use appstream-util validate-relax on your AppData file to check the various fields meet our style guidelines. If you disagree with any of the validation warnings, please let me know! Of course, you don't have to do a release with these enhancements straight away, and if you have a stable branch it would be a good thing to backport this as well if it does not add translated strings or you have no string freeze policy. When you've changed the file(s) and committed, please email me back and I'll mark your application as completed. If you don't want to hear from me ever again just edit the <update_contact> in the AppData file and change it to somebody else. I'm not planning on emailing more than once every 6 months, so don't worry about me spamming you with even more work to do. Thanks, Richard

[Erik Johansson]

Further additions:

	Hi again!
	First, apologies again for the direct email. I'm emailing you directly as you've been listed as the update contact in one or more AppData files.
	We've been busy building an awesome software center, and we've been adding more and more metadata fields that upstream authors can set. The software center is now being used in Fedora, Opensuse, Ubuntu, Debian and Arch, with many millions of happy users.
	The latest feature we want to support is age classifications for games. As your application is listed in the games category we wanted to ask if you could generate some OARS metadata and add it to the 0ad.appdata.xml file. It's really as simple as visiting http://apps-xdgapp.rhcloud.com/oars then answering about 20 questions with multiple choice answers, then pasting the output inside the <component> tag.
	Using the <content_rating> tag means we can show your game with an appropriate age rating depending on the country of the end user. If you have any comments about the questions on the OARS page please do let me know.
	Of course, you don't have to do a release with these enhancements straight away, and if you have a stable branch it would be a good thing to backport this as well as it does not add translated strings.
	When you've changed the file(s) and committed, please email me back and I'll mark your application as completed. If you don't want to hear from me ever again just edit the <update_contact> in the AppData file and change it to somebody else. I'm not planning on emailing more than once every 6 months, so don't worry about me spamming you with even more work to do.
	Thanks,
	Richard

[Erik Johansson]

  <content_rating type="oars-1.0">
    <content_attribute id="violence-cartoon">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="violence-fantasy">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="violence-realistic">intense</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="violence-bloodshed">moderate</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="violence-sexual">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="drugs-alcohol">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="drugs-narcotics">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="drugs-tobacco">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="sex-nudity">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="sex-themes">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="language-profanity">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="language-humor">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="language-discrimination">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="social-chat">intense</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="social-info">intense</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="social-audio">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="social-location">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="social-contacts">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="money-purchasing">none</content_attribute>
    <content_attribute id="money-gambling">none</content_attribute>
  </content_rating>

[Erik Johansson]

Suggested addition by Aviv (Jeru).

[elexis]

Refs ​https://odrs.gnome.org/oars

[elexis]

In 18885:

Add Open Age Ratings Service metadata to the appdata file, allowing the Gnome Software Center to show an accurate age rating depending on the country of the user. Patch by Jeru, reviewed by feneur, refs #3734.

[elexis]

​https://wiki.gnome.org/Initiatives/GnomeGoals/DesktopFileKeywords

Some samples:

bluefish.desktop:Keywords=programming;code;html;php;python;
bluefish.desktop:Keywords[ca]=programació;codi;html;php;python;
bluefish.desktop:Keywords[cs]=programování;kód;html;php;python;
brasero.desktop:Keywords=disc;cdrom;dvd;burn;audio;video;
ca.desrt.dconf-editor.desktop:Keywords=settings;configuration;
cheese.desktop:Keywords=photo;video;webcam;
deja-dup-preferences.desktop:Keywords=déjà;deja;dup;
display-im6.desktop:Keywords=Image;Slideshow;View;Transform;Enhance;F/X;Special Effects
display-im6.desktop:Keywords[fr]=Image;Diaporama;Visualiser;Transformer;Améliorer;Effets spéciaux
display-im6.q16.desktop:Keywords=Image;Slideshow;View;Transform;Enhance;F/X;Special Effects
display-im6.q16.desktop:Keywords[fr]=Image;Diaporama;Visualiser;Transformer;Améliorer;Effets spéciaux
easytag.desktop:Keywords=mp3;tag;audio;music;
easytag.desktop:Keywords[bs]=mp3;tag;audio;music;
easytag.desktop:Keywords[cs]=mp3;štítek;tag;audio;zvuk;hudba;skladba;
empathy.desktop:Keywords=chat;talk;im;message;irc;voip;gtalk;facebook;jabber;
eog.desktop:Keywords=Picture;Slideshow;Graphics;
etr.desktop:Keywords=game;tux;3D;pinguin;race;arcade;
evince.desktop:Keywords=pdf;ps;postscript;dvi;xps;djvu;tiff;document;presentation;
file-roller.desktop:Keywords=zip;tar;extract;unpack;
firefox.desktop:Keywords=Internet;WWW;Browser;Web;Explorer
firefox.desktop:Keywords[hr]=Internet;WWW;preglednik;Web
funguloids.desktop:Keywords=space;flying;mushroom;picking;simulator;game;
gedit.desktop:Keywords=Text;Editor;Plaintext;Write;
ghex.desktop:Keywords=binary;debug;
gltron.desktop:Keywords=tron;lightcycle;3D;action;
gnome-calculator.desktop:Keywords=calculation;arithmetic;scientific;financial;
gnome-mahjongg.desktop:Keywords=game;strategy;puzzle;board;
gnome-mines.desktop:Keywords=minesweeper;
gnome-power-statistics.desktop:Keywords=battery;consumption;charge;
gnome-sudoku.desktop:Keywords=magic;square;
gnome-system-log.desktop:Keywords=logs;debug;error;
gnome-system-monitor.desktop:Keywords=Monitor;System;Process;CPU;Memory;Network;History;Usage;Performance;Task;Manager;
gnome-system-monitor-kde.desktop:Keywords=Monitor;System;Process;CPU;Memory;Network;History;Usage;
gnome-terminal.desktop:Keywords=shell;prompt;command;commandline;cmd;
gnome-tweak-tool.desktop:Keywords=Settings;Advanced;Preferences;Extensions;Fonts;Theme;XKB;Keyboard;Typing;
gnome-user-share-webdav.desktop:Keywords=share;files;bluetooth;obex;http;network;copy;send;
gparted.desktop:Keywords=Partition;
gqrx.desktop:Keywords=SDR;Radio;HAM;
gramps.desktop:Keywords=Genealogy;Family History;Research;Family Tree;GEDCOM
gucharmap.desktop:Keywords=font;unicode;
ibus-setup.desktop:Keywords=keyboard;input;
im-config.desktop:Keywords=keyboard;input
kazam.desktop:Keywords=screenshot;screencast;videorecord;desktop recording;
kde4/okularApplication_comicbook.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=cbr, cbz, cbt, Comic Book
kde4/okularApplication_dvi.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=dvi
kde4/okularApplication_pdf.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=PDF, Portable Document Format
kde4/okularApplication_xps.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=XPS
kde4/okularApplication_ghostview.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=PS, PostScript
kde4/okularApplication_mobi.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=mobipocket
kde4/okularApplication_plucker.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=plucker
kde4/okularApplication_txt.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=txt
kde4/okularApplication_fb.desktop:X-KDE-Keywords=FictionBook, e-book, fb2
language-selector.desktop:Keywords=Language;Input method;Region;Format;
libreoffice-calc.desktop:Keywords=Accounting;Stats;OpenDocument Spreadsheet;Chart;Microsoft Excel;Microsoft Works;OpenOffice Calc;ods;xls;xlsx;
libreoffice-draw.desktop:Keywords=Vector;Schema;Diagram;Layout;OpenDocument Graphics;Microsoft Publisher;Corel Draw;cdr;odg;svg;
libreoffice-impress.desktop:Keywords=Slideshow;Slides;OpenDocument Presentation;Microsoft PowerPoint;Microsoft Works;OpenOffice Impress;odp;ppt;pptx;
libreoffice-math.desktop:Keywords=Equation;OpenDocument Formula;Formula;odf;MathML;
libreoffice-writer.desktop:Keywords=Text;Letter;Fax;Document;OpenDocument Text;Microsoft Word;Microsoft Works;Lotus WordPro;OpenOffice Writer;CV;odt;doc;docx;rtf;
lifeograph.desktop:Keywords=journal;note;to-do;tag;statistics;
lyx.desktop:Keywords=WYSIWYG;WYSIWYM;TeX;LaTeX;GUI;frontend;editor;
m64py.desktop:Keywords=Emulator;Nintendo64;Mupen64plus;
nautilus.desktop:Keywords=folder;manager;explore;disk;filesystem;
openjdk-8-java.desktop:Keywords=java;runtime
openjdk-8-policytool.desktop:Keywords=java;security;policytool
openscad.desktop:Keywords=3d;solid;geometry;csg;model;stl;
orca.desktop:Keywords=screen reader;speech;braille;
org.gnome.baobab.desktop:Keywords=storage;space;cleanup;
org.gnome.Cheese.desktop:Keywords=photo;video;webcam;
org.gnome.Contacts.desktop:Keywords=friends;address book;
org.gnome.DiskUtility.desktop:Keywords=disk;drive;volume;harddisk;hdd;disc;cdrom;dvd;partition;iso;image;backup;restore;benchmark;raid;luks;encryption;S.M.A.R.T.;smart;
org.gnome.FileRoller.desktop:Keywords=zip;tar;extract;unpack;
org.gnome.font-viewer.desktop:Keywords=fonts;fontface;
org.gnome.gedit.desktop:Keywords=Text;Editor;Plaintext;Write;
org.gnome.Nautilus.desktop:Keywords=folder;manager;explore;disk;filesystem;
org.gnome.Screenshot.desktop:Keywords=snapshot;capture;print;screenshot;
org.gnome.Totem.desktop:Keywords=Video;Movie;Film;Clip;Series;Player;DVD;TV;Disc;
poedit.desktop:Keywords=Translate;po;gettext;
qbrowser.desktop:Keywords=map;globe;postgis;wms;wfs;ogc;osgeo;
qgis.desktop:Keywords=map;globe;postgis;wms;wfs;ogc;osgeo;
qsynth.desktop:Keywords=audio;sound;jackd;midi;synth;
rapidsvn.desktop:Keywords=subversion;svn;revision control system
remmina.desktop:Keywords=remote desktop;rdp;vnc;nx,ssh;VNC;XDMCP;RDP;
rhythmbox.desktop:Keywords=Audio;Song;MP3;CD;Podcast;MTP;iPod;Playlist;Last.fm;UPnP;DLNA;Radio;
seahorse.desktop:Keywords=keyring;encryption;security;sign;ssh;
shotwell.desktop:Keywords=album;camera;cameras;crop;edit;enhance;export;gallery;image;images;import;organize;photo;photographs;photos;picture;pictures;photography;print;publish;rotate;share;tags;video;facebook;flickr;picasa;youtube;piwigo;
simple-scan.desktop:Keywords=scan;scanner;flatbed;adf;
software-properties-drivers.desktop:Keywords=Drivers;
software-properties-gnome.desktop:Keywords=Drivers;Repositories;Repository;PPA;
software-properties-gtk.desktop:Keywords=Drivers;Repositories;Repository;PPA;
sol.desktop:Keywords=solitaire;cards;klondike;spider;freecell;patience;
stellarium.desktop:Keywords=astronomy;planetarium;
system-config-printer.desktop:Keywords=Printer;Queue;Print;Paper;Ink;Toner;
thunderbird.desktop:Keywords=Email;E-mail;Newsgroup;Feed;RSS
totem.desktop:Keywords=Video;Movie;Film;Clip;Series;Player;DVD;TV;Disc;
transmission-gtk.desktop:X-AppInstall-Keywords=torrent 
ubuntu-software-center.desktop:Keywords=Sources;PPA;Install;Uninstall;Remove;Purchase;Catalogue;Store;Apps;
unity-activity-log-manager-panel.desktop:Keywords=privacy;activity;log;zeitgeist;diagnostics;error reports;
unity-appearance-panel.desktop:Keywords=Wallpaper;Background;Screen;Desktop;Theme;Appearance;Launcher;Unity;Menus;
unity-color-panel.desktop:Keywords=Color;ICC;Profile;Calibrate;Printer;Display;
unity-control-center.desktop:Keywords=Preferences;Settings;
unity-deja-dup-panel.desktop:Keywords=déjà;deja;dup;
unity-display-panel.desktop:Keywords=Panel;Projector;xrandr;Screen;Resolution;Refresh;
unity-info-panel.desktop:Keywords=device;system;information;memory;processor;version;default;application;preferred;cd;dvd;usb;audio;video;disc;removable;media;autorun;
unity-keyboard-panel.desktop:Keywords=Shortcut;Repeat;Blink;
unity-mouse-panel.desktop:Keywords=Trackpad;Pointer;Click;Tap;Double;Button;Trackball;
unity-network-panel.desktop:Keywords=Network;Wireless;IP;LAN;Proxy;
unity-power-panel.desktop:Keywords=Power;Sleep;Suspend;Hibernate;Battery;
unity-region-panel.desktop:Keywords=Language;Layout;Keyboard;Input Method;Text Entry;
unity-screen-panel.desktop:Keywords=Brightness;Lock;Dim;Blank;Monitor;
unity-sound-panel.desktop:Keywords=Card;Microphone;Volume;Fade;Balance;Bluetooth;Headset;
unity-universal-access-panel.desktop:Keywords=Keyboard;Mouse;a11y;Accessibility;Contrast;Zoom;Screen Reader;text;font;size;AccessX;Sticky Keys;Slow Keys;Bounce Keys;Mouse Keys;
unity-user-accounts-panel.desktop:Keywords=Login;Name;Fingerprint;Avatar;Logo;Face;Password;
unity-wacom-panel.desktop:Keywords=Tablet;Wacom;Stylus;Eraser;Mouse;
vlc.desktop:Keywords=Player;Capture;DVD;Audio;Video;Server;Broadcast;
grep: vlc.desktop.save: Permission denied
webbrowser-app.desktop:Keywords=Internet;WWW;Browser;Web;Explorer
xsane.desktop:Keywords=scannerfrontend
xzoom.desktop:Keywords=screen magnifier;
yelp.desktop:Keywords=documentation;information;manual;
zsnes.desktop:Keywords=emulator;snes;nintendo;super nintendo;super famicom;

[elexis]

Not sure how to test the results, whether I spammed too many keywords or whether that atlas entry will work out.

[fabio]

IIRC the game has a translate link pointing to a wfg address, which in turn redirect to transifex. It would be nicer to use the wfg link also there, this way if we'll change translation platform we just have to update the wfg redirect and it will just work everywhere, even on older release.

[elexis]

In 18904:

Add URLs and keywords for the software search in the gnome software center and it's derivates used by many linux flavors, fixes #3734.
Add a menu entry for atlas.
Add some translations for the product description provided by native speaking players and contributors.

[elexis]

Not all operating systems do what gnome wants them to, but do something similar with it. For example Ubuntu 16.04 adds only a rightclick option for atlas as far as I can see.

• Russian translation by Vladislav
• Dutch translation by bb
• French translation by Itms and fatherbushido
• German translation by FeXoR, Imarok and me
• Polnish translation by arcadius
• Spanish translation by Ser3195
• Portuguese translation by MacWolf

[elexis]

ricotz found some more things to improve in the appdata file:

$ LANG=CC appstream-util validate-strict 0ad.appdata.xml
0ad.appdata.xml: FAILED:
? tag-missing           : <project_license> is not present
? tag-missing           : <translation> not specified
? value-missing         : <!-- Copyright [year] [name] --> is not present
? tag-invalid           : <updatecontact> should be <update_contact>
? attribute-invalid     : <screenshot> width too large [http://play0ad.com/wp-content/gallery/screenshots/athenian_gymnasion.jpg]
? attribute-invalid     : <screenshot> height too large [http://play0ad.com/wp-content/gallery/screenshots/athenian_gymnasion.jpg]
? tag-missing           : <name> is not present
? tag-missing           : <summary> is not present
? translations-required  : <description> has no translations
? attribute-invalid     : <licence> is deprecated, use <metadata_license> instead
Validation of files failed

The screenshots could be rescaled and uploaded to the webserver if we don't find new better ones (probably with the wfg logo).

[elexis]

Reported by: i.gnatenko.brain:

desktop-file-validate 0ad-0.0.21-alpha/build/resources/0ad.desktop:

key "URL" is present in group "Desktop Entry", but the type is "Application" while this key is only valid for type "Link"

Looks like the URL keyword has just to be removed from the desktop file, because the only way it can be used is by creating a desktop shortcut going to that URL and we don't really want to annoy players with that, like:

[Desktop Entry]
Encoding=UTF-8
Name=Link to Ask Ubuntu
Type=Link
URL=http://www.askubuntu.com/
Icon=text-html

[elexis]

In 18932:

Remove the URL entry of the desktop file, because that can only be used to create a desktop link to that URL (as of Desktop Entry Specification 1.1), refs #3734.

[elexis]

new screenshot

[elexis]

Resized screenshot - should not be added to the gallery directory unless hidden, since we'd have it twice in the gallery then

[elexis]

Shouldn't be committed before fixing the image URLs

[elexis]

Someone should upload one or both images, either replace the old athen screenshot, use a non-gallery path or hide the duplicate screenshot from the gallery and update- or alternatively remove the link to that screenshot; potentially upload the mauryan screenshot, review my summary proposal and commit it.

It were nice to extend extractors.py for these 2 file formats, though a lot of work for something that isn't that important.

[elexis]

Moving to the new WIP milestone.

[Stan]

Any update on this ?

[elexis]

I don't see any yet, but once there are, you will get a notification.

[Stan]

Was asking cause you set it to A22

[elexis]

For everyone who has been eagerly waiting the last 7 months for an update of the patch in the review queue: ​Phab:D683.

Should probably close it as an Alpha 21 ticket, since most of the improvements have been done back then.

[elexis]

The reported issue was addressed by the Alpha 21 commits above. The screenshot size warning is not relevant amymore. ​Phab:D683 updates the format further for Alpha 22.

[Itms]

In 21809:

Update AppData, fixes #5006, refs #3734.

Reviewed By: elexis
Differential Revision: ​https://code.wildfiregames.com/D683