maybecoding

Frogtab update: Improved keyboard shortcuts and new offline version

2025-04-12T15:44:17.918381+00:00

Frogtab is a browser-based task manager that helps me prioritize my daily work. I recently released the following changes:

You can now use Ctrl+X or ⌘+X to cut tasks, even if no text is selected.
You can now use Ctrl+A or ⌘+A to select all tasks, even if your cursor isn't in the task editor.

I also updated Frogtab Local, the version of Frogtab that you can run on your computer:

Replaced the frogtab command (provided by the Linux snap) by an entirely new frogtab command. Instead of starting Frogtab Local, frogtab now sends tasks to Frogtab. To start Frogtab Local, run frogtab start.
Published a Python package that also provides the new frogtab command, as an alternative to the Linux snap.
Auto-backup is now enabled by default.
Removed the ability customize backup methods with Python code. You can use the new frogtab command to control the location of the Frogtab backup file. To learn more, run frogtab help.

To get Frogtab Local, install the Linux snap or install the Python package.

It's been a while (6 months!) since I last posted about Frogtab. I haven't had a huge amount of time to work on it - but the app itself has been pretty stable for a while now. The new version of Frogtab Local is also much closer to "finished", so I'm not planning any major updates in the near future.

As usual, please let me know if you find Frogtab useful, or if you have any other feedback. Thank you so much to everyone who has reached out with notes of support ☺️

Frogtab update: Refreshed menu and improved keyboard navigation

2024-10-18T23:48:03.085131+00:00

In the latest update to Frogtab, I've adjusted the menu so that Achievements always appears. Previously, Achievements only appeared if the feature was enabled. I've also reorganized the docs for Achievements to make it easier to learn how to complete tasks.

While I was updating the menu, I removed Send to Frogtab from the menu. You can still access Send to Frogtab at frogtab.com/send - I removed it from the menu because Send to Frogtab is intended for when you aren't already looking at Frogtab.

Lastly, I've made sure that every part of Frogtab can be used without a mouse. If you find anything that behaves in an unexpected way, please let me know!

Making a command-line tool for your Frogtab personal link

2024-12-26T14:26:41.383572+00:00

Frogtab is a browser-based task manager I built to help me stay organized at work. Frogtab can't sync data between devices, but it's possible to register for a personal link that you can use to send tasks to Frogtab from any device.

This post explains how to send tasks to Frogtab via a terminal instead of your personal link.

To customize this post for your personal link, enter your personal link:

If you don't have a personal link, see Registering for a personal link.

Prerequisites

You'll need a UNIX-like environment (e.g., macOS or a Linux distribution) with the following commands:

gpg (GnuPG) - If you don't have GnuPG, see https://gnupg.org/download/index.html
curl - If you don't have curl, see https://curl.se/download.html
jq - If you don't have jq, see https://jqlang.github.io/jq/download/

Step 1 - Import your public key into GnuPG

Download your public key:
```
curl https://frogtab.com/key_00ee411a-5702-4c8d-ac35-74cf7376acb7.asc > frogtab.asc
```
where 00ee411a-5702-4c8d-ac35-74cf7376acb7 is the ID from your personal link.
Import the key:
```
gpg --import frogtab.asc
```
GnuPG displays the message public key "Frogtab (4c0-c38)" imported.
Change the trust level of the key:
```
gpg --edit-key "Frogtab (4c0-c38)"
gpg> trust
gpg> 5
gpg> quit
```
Setting trust level 5 enables GnuPG to use the key without asking you for confirmation each time.

Here's a demo of the procedure:

Step 2 - Make a tool to send tasks to Frogtab

Create a file called send.sh with the following contents:

#!/bin/sh

ID="00ee411a-5702-4c8d-ac35-74cf7376acb7"
KEY="Frogtab (4c0-c38)"

TASK="$1"
if [ -z "$TASK" ]; then
  echo "Error: No task" >&2
  exit 1
fi

ENCRYPTED_TASK="$(echo "$TASK" | gpg --armor --encrypt --recipient "$KEY")"
if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
  echo "Error: gpg error" >&2
  exit 1
fi

POST_URL=https://frogtab.com/open/post-add-message
POST_TYPE="Content-Type: application/json"
POST_BODY="$(jq -n --arg p1 "$ID" --arg p2 "$ENCRYPTED_TASK" '{user_id: $p1, message: $p2}')"
curl -s -X POST -H "$POST_TYPE" -d "$POST_BODY" "$POST_URL" | jq -e '.success == true' > /dev/null
if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
  echo "Error: Unable to send task" >&2
  exit 1
fi

Run chmod +x send.sh to make send.sh executable.

You can then send tasks to Frogtab by running send.sh. For example:

./send.sh "Record a new product demo"

Frogtab dev plan October 2024

2024-10-18T12:43:59.578065+00:00

I'm planning to release several improvements later this month:

Send to Frogtab – I'm removing Send to Frogtab from the menu. The main purpose of Send to Frogtab is to enable you to capture tasks without revealing your inbox, so it doesn't really make sense to open Send to Frogtab via the menu.

Also, for a first-time user exploring the menu and clicking through to Send to Frogtab, there's no obvious reason for Send to Frogtab to exist. To summarize, it's a niche feature, and I don't think it belongs in the menu.
Achievements – I'm reorganizing the help page so that the Achievements feature is explained in a more approachable way. Currently, the docs for Achievements bury the simple method of completing tasks (⌘+K or Ctrl+K) inside a discussion of the more complicated method (text-based commands that begin with "x").

I'm rewriting the "Tracking your completed tasks" topic so that it leads with the simple method and I'm moving the more complicated method to a new topic called "Completion commands".

As well as making Achievements more approachable, I want to make it more discoverable. So I'm giving Achievements a spot in the menu, regardless of whether the feature is enabled. Currently, Achievements only appears in the menu if the feature is enabled.
Keyboard navigation – Keyboard support in Frogtab has always been a mixed bag. There are keyboard shortcuts for most task-management actions, but many navigation actions (e.g., opening the menu) require a mouse. I want to do better on accessibility, and keyboard navigation feels like a great place to start. I'm making sure that every part of Frogtab can be used without a mouse.

Other things I'm working on this month:

The next version of Frogtab Local will include a way to stop Frogtab Local via your browser. This will be useful if you've set Frogtab Local to run at startup and want to stop it for some reason.
I'm working on a blog post that will explain how to send tasks to Frogtab via a terminal instead of your personal link. Look out for that later in October 🎃

Frogtab wrap-up July 2024

2024-07-30T22:39:11.940098+00:00

Released:

On Linux, you can install Frogtab Local as a snap instead of installing it from source. See Frogtab Local in the Snap Store or read my full explanation of how to set up Frogtab Local on Ubuntu
Support for self-hosting Frogtab on your own server, which enables you to use your own server for the Frogtab front-end and for personal links. See the instructions in GitHub
Support for configuring Frogtab Local to use your self-hosted server for personal links (instead of frogtab.com). To configure Frogtab Local, set the registration_server variable in config.py to the URL of your server

In development:

Support for self-hosting Frogtab via a Docker container. It's working on my computer, but I need to do more testing before I'm happy to call this ready. You can check out progress at spike-frogtab-docker. This is my first time using Docker in a project, so any tips/feedback would be very helpful!

Frogtab dev plan July 2024

2024-07-22T22:20:07.436152+00:00

Things I'd like to do by the end of this month:

Write a non-technical post about how to install Frogtab Local on Ubuntu and have it run at login
Frogtab Local v1.05:
- Add an option in config.py that specifies the registration server. Right now, you need to modify a bunch of HTML files if you want to point to a self-hosted registration server
- Add doc comments in config.py about the various options
- Update the README to explain how to specify the registration server using config.py. Add similar instructions to the docs for the Linux snap
- Link to the Ubuntu tutorial from the docs for the Linux snap
- Figure out how/where to include a changelog for the Linux snap
Experiment with dockerizing the self-hostable server and report back here 📝

Frogtab update: Installable and self-hostable versions

2024-07-19T09:54:20.215920+00:00

A quick post to share some things that I've been working on recently:

I wanted automatic backups to work in all browsers - currently only Chromium-based browsers support the necessary APIs. So I made a version of Frogtab that runs on localhost and lets me control how data is backed up. I'm calling it "Frogtab Local" 🐸

If you use Linux, you can install Frogtab Local from the Snap Store. Otherwise, you can download and run the latest release.

Frogtab Local doesn't include a registration server. So if you register for a personal link, your device will still be registered with frogtab.com. If you'd like to self-host the entirety of Frogtab, read on…
I reorganized my code to make it easier to self-host a copy of frogtab.com. If you're interested in setting up your own instance of Frogtab, including a registration server, take a look at the instructions in GitHub.

If you run into any issues, please let me know - thanks!

Scenes from Beijing

2024-05-31T06:01:07.530513+00:00

Some of my favorite 北京 scenes from the past year

Taoranting Park, June

Qianmen, August

World Grape Expo Garden, August

Nanhaizi Park, September

Tongrentang, September

Wangfujing, October

Testing booths - Olympic Forest Park, October

Capital Airport, December

Miaoying Temple, January

Liangma River, January

Outer City Watchtower (SE corner), April

En route to Lugouqiao - Fengtai Railway Station, May

Exploring Beijing (with photos)

2024-05-22T04:34:34.530571+00:00

One afternoon last week I decided to visit Lugouqiao, aka Marco Polo Bridge. You can read about the bridge and its significance here:

The subway has expanded in recent years, making the bridge quite easy to reach. It's located at the end of Line 16 (Wanpingcheng), which I picked up at Fengtai railway station.

The bridge:

And its surroundings:

After spending some time at the bridge, I decided that I'd cycle to Line 14 for the return leg.

The final station of Line 14 (Zhangguozhuang):

I spotted a hill just beyond the station and wondered whether it would provide an impressive view of the city. Well… it turns out the hill isn't very high, despite what my legs experienced… but the view of the station was interesting:

And if you look closely, you can see the TV Tower in the far distance!

Frogtab update: Track your completed tasks!

2024-04-30T02:57:01.016280+00:00

One of the most enjoyable things about building Frogtab has been the opportunity to develop features that make Frogtab more satisfying for other people to use.

Over the past few months, I've been working with my friend to make it possible to track completed tasks in Frogtab. It's taken some back-and-forth to get the feature working well - I wanted a solution that would honor the text-based nature of Frogtab - so I'm very pleased to report that the feature is now live!

To enable the feature, go to Tracking your completed tasks in the docs, then click Enable Achievements.

After you've enabled the feature, you can mark a task as complete by writing "x " in front of the task and pressing Enter. This approach was inspired by the todo.txt format for text-based task management. Your completed tasks will show up on the Achievements page.

Check out this quick demo and the docs to learn more - and please let me know if you have any feedback!