Tickr for Windows

Tickr is an impressive piece of software, but due to unclear labels, a long setup process, and no obvious options panel, it is also very frustrating to use. After the installation process is complete, however, the resulting news ticker is intrinsically cool. Sliding across the top of the screen with headlines from your personally selected RSS feeds, you can keep up with news in your circle without interrupting your work.

The biggest obstacle to using Tickr is installation. It is a long, arduous process. Once the tool is finally installed, you will be asked to input information on no less than eight menus, with things like X and Y positioning. While every option is important, they are labeled in such a way that it is hard to know exactly what you are selecting. At the same time, it is unnecessarily complicated to go in and change those options once they are set. The only thing that is easy is changing your RSS feeds, though you'll need an OPML formatted file to do it, and Tickr doesn't help you create one, nor does it elaborate on what that means.

Tickr is a useful tool that can free you from digging through your favorite blogs and news sites while working, but it is also a needlessly complicated piece of software to set up. With the right GUI and easier options, it would be a great application that many people would enjoy. As is, we feel few will put up with the installation process to get that far.

• In pref windows, some setting changes (like 'read n items per feed')need the stream to be reloaded, so now we use: current_feed();instead of: update_pixmap_from_opened_stream();
• Fix 'quick feed picker (selected feeds) closes when pointer leaveswin area' and implement it as a setting.
• In pref window, disabling screen limits updates win_y and win_wlimits on the fly.
• Max options number now set to 128.
• Pref win changes:- remove 'system' colors buttons- increase gtk table row spacings
• If gradient bg set, compute text shadow color no longer frombg_color but from gradient.
• Quick feed picker (selected feeds) closes when pointer leaves winarea. Plus: quick feed picker opened *also* by Ctrl + mouseright-click.
• Complete RSS 1.0 support (Closes: #688099) and fix/rewrite a fewthings in feed parser code.
• In tickr_feedparser.c: ending '\n' removed when adding string toXML_DUMP (left when adding string to XML_DUMP_EXTRA).
• Replace update_win_dims() with update_win_dims_and_loc() so that ifticker location happens to be wrong, it's always and quickly reset.
• Add RSS 1.0 (RDF) support.
• In tickr_main.c / main(), change: gtk_widget_show_all(env->win); update_win_dims(); gtk_main();to: gtk_widget_show_all(env->win); gtk_widget_set_size_request(env->win, 1, 1); gtk_window_resize(GTK_WINDOW(env->win), 1, 1); gtk_main();to try to get rid of "ghost" square window at startup (but is thisfully effective ?)Also change: gtk_widget_set_size_request(env->win, 0, 0)to: gtk_widget_set_size_request(env->win, 1, 1)in update_win_dims().
• In feed picker - multiple selection mode: start reading selectionwith highlighted feed - more exactly url in entry (if any) / firstone otherwise.
• Remove (useless ?) app version number from exported OPML feed listtitle.
• If win_w = 0, win_w = detected screen width (same as 'full width'but from command line).
• Fix xml namespaces issue in tickr_feedparser.c, when, for instance,'media:title' exists along with 'title' and we then get 'title'twice. Now, we make sure no extra namespace is used before comparingstrings with 'title', 'description', etc.
• Fix stupid bug in format_resource() 'translate html entities' when'&' alone is detected (ie without a following ';'). Also fix'translating' numerical entities with leading '0' in value string.
• New option 'disablescreenlimits' which allows win_y and win_w to begreater than screen dimensions.
• A few default settings changed.
• Gradient bg.