Mumble shortcuts export/import

[bbosen]

Hi. I would like to see an enhancement that would allow me to "export" the elaborate set of Mumble "shortcuts" that I have been using so I can distribute that exported file to others for their use. Of course, a corresponding "import" facility would also be needed....

(Background: I have written an open-source flight simulator for Linux and it includes a very powerful interface with Mumble that relies upon creation of 26 Mumble shortcuts. My new sim is named "Linux Air Combat" and people are beginning to download and test it among other online players. However, most of them are not using Mumble very effectively because they are intimidated by the task of configuring 26 Mumble shortcuts. Without those 26 shortcuts, Linux Air Combat cannot synchronize with Mumble-related player activities like switching channels, etc. With those 26 shortcuts, I am able to transmit all Mumble-related activities to all players in a mission, eliminating the need for the Mumble "overlay" and/or Mumble's "pop-ups". This helps with the sim's frame rate, and the Mumble information is presented on the aircraft's cockpit panel as if it were an aircraft radio.)

[kissaki]

You can place a mumble.ini next to the mumble executable, which will make Mumble use it to store its settings (portable mode).

On Windows this will make Mumble not use the registry but the ini.

Not sure how regular storage is on Linux.

You could then copy&paste the shortcuts section of the ini.

I implemented export and import functionality for shortcuts.

My first implementation ignores server-specific shortcuts though (they are saved through a different mechanism).

I guess your use case also sets up server specific (whisper to) targets?

[kissaki]

My PR: https://github.com/mumble-voip/mumble/pull/3244

[bbosen]

kissaki:

Thanks. I had seen mention of "portable mode" but always in the context of Windows users, so I hadn't paid attention because I only use Linux. I will try it.

As you surmised, it's true that I am using server-specific keyboard shortcuts based on "Whisper To" logic. I will experiment with your approach to see if I can use it on Linux in a server-specific, "Whisper-To" situation. Thanks for the pointer.

[bbosen]

You can place a mumble.ini next to the mumble executable, which will make Mumble use it to store its settings (portable mode).

On Windows this will make Mumble not use the registry but the ini.

Not sure how regular storage is on Linux.

You could then copy&paste the shortcuts section of the ini.

 

I tried it as you described, but Linux is different. As I see it, "portable mode" as you describe it makes no sense in a Linux context, since Linux configuration is already much simpler than the "registry" concept used in Windows. In Linux, all of the shortcuts are stored in a file named "Mumble.conf". For each Linux user, separate copies of "Mumble.conf" are stored in a hidden folder named ".conf/Mumble".

Nevertheless, your guidance to copy/paste the shortcuts section out of that file seemed interesting. I tried that. Right now I am using two murmur servers in support of the "Linux Air Combat" community (one for development, and one for public use). I went to one of the development computers in my lab that already had all of the shortcuts working correctly with both of those servers, and I copied the entire "[shortcuts]" section from that computer and pasted it over the corresponding "[shortcuts]" section of a different computer that didn't have such a complete configuration yet. None of the new shortcuts worked on the target computer afterward. I don't know why (those shortcuts were not even visible through the "Configure->Settings->Shortcuts" menus).

Incidentally, I have tried this approach before (several times) during the last couple of years, because it sure seems like it ought to work. Because of your report of success with a similar approach, this time I was very diligent and paid tedious attention to every detail, thinking that all of my prior attempts must have missed something. But no, it just doesn't work on Linux as it seems it should. I don't know why.

[kissaki]

As I briefly mentioned, server-specific shortcuts are handled separately (which was very surprising to me as well).

When you go into the configuration and list your shortcut, it will always display global (=those not specific to a server) shortcuts. However, it will only show those server-specific shortcuts ([whisper to] with a channel as the target) for the server you are currently connected to.

This is very unexpected and confusing. I briefly started trying to list them separately to make it clear there are both of them, and that the second kind of are only displayed for the current connected to server. (That requires some more thought about the UI, specifically adding shortcuts, at which point I stopped).

The server specific shortcuts are stored in the database mumble.sqlite.

On Windows some/most settings are stored in the registry, but others are stored in a database file mumble.sqlite in %LOCALAPPDATA%\mumble\mumble.sqlite.

On Linux I would expect the mumble.conf to be the equivalent to the Windows registry, and there to also exist a separate mumble.sqlite which stores the server specific shortcuts in the shortcuts table (with a server public key hash in the column `digest` as key).

You may want to continue this road as a workaround, or wait and hope for a better solution within Mumble.

I created https://github.com/mumble-voip/mumble/issues/3245 to keep track of it.

I may be able to spend some more time tomorrow or next weekend - *fingers crossed*.

[bbosen]

Thank you very much kissaki. Your insights are very useful, and I will play around more on Linux with the benefit of your new information. Maybe I can cobble together a work-around, but I do hope your inspiring idea for "a better solution within Mumble" grows to fruition. If I am able to develop something that is at least somewhat practical, I will post a description in this thread.