TribExt is a Firefox extension. If you are not running Firefox, you can get it here. To install the new version download it, then open it with Firefox ("File" - "Open File" == Accel-O) which will install it in the appropriate place. A restart is then required.

New and Updated Features

Dynamic Ratings
Comment ratings have been made dynamic via the http-request object. This should mean that ratings happen dynamically in the background. The page does not wait for a response, so connection/server speed should not be an issue. When a response is received, the comment rating is updated instantly. With dynamic rating the 'Rate all' button is useless, and has thus been removed. If you rate a comment something other than '4', an alert window will pop up, asking you if this is really what you wish to do. Just to remind you that downrating comments is something you should not do very often, and not in a retaliatory manner. The dynamic process is usually quite quick. If you dislike these dynamic ratings for some reason, or find that they are slow, you may set ratings to non-dynamic by using the

TribExt Preferences
Some experimentation with the Firefox preference system has been carried out. Look under Tools->Add-ons (or Tools->Extensions). The TribExt extension entry will have a Preference button, which you may click. This brings up a preference window with a checkbox for dynamic ratings. Unchecking in disables the dynamic ratings. Ratings will now be carried out whenever you leave the current page, or reload it. The 'Rate All' button is again available, and will register your ratings for that page. There is a further option to display an Alert popup window upon rating completion. I see no great use of this feature, but left it in in case you'd like to see these 'non-dynamic' ratings actually take place. (The non-dynamic ratings operate via the http-request as well. It just happens at page unload or 'Rate All' click rather than immediately.)

Key Preferences
The preference window includes a button to set keyboard shortcuts. Clicking it will bring up a new preference window with all Firefox keyboard shortcuts involving the Accel or Accel-Shift keys and character keys. This means shortcuts involving PageUp/PageDown, etc. are excluded. (Accel is Ctrl in windows, and Open Apple on Mac. Accel is used throughout this diary to indicate Ctrl/Open Apple) You may now remap keyboard shortcuts by entering new keys in the textbox next to an old one. Each entry has a very short description which will hopefully indicate what it does. This description is generated automatically from part of the key specification, and may in some cases be a bit opaque. If you specify a key that is already in use, the window will display both entries with red boxes around them, for ease of resolution. You may also choose to deactivate a key should you wish to use the shortcut for someting else. When done defining new shortcuts, and when no more key conflicts exist, you can press the Apply button, which regesters the new keys. They will begin to work in any new Firefox winodw (File->New Window), or when you restart the application. This new feature is probably most useful for redefining the keys used for

Next New Comment, and Previous New Comment (old feature)
Accel- ' (single quote) will scroll the window to the next *[new] comment, and Accel- ; (semi-colon) to the previous *[new] one. These keys are conveniently placed on the english keyboard, but not so on other ones, I have heard. Pick some better ones according to your desires, as per instructions above.

Translate
Auto formated translation columns are available as before. Works like usual, but now with Google translate functionality. Also gives you the possibility to enter comments in between table rows ('comment' button), and delete rows ('DEL'). So, it should be possible to do a whole translation diary shabang right there. This feature uses EuroTrib style sheets, so the output should look a lot like the final version. Pick between comment more or diary mode if you want it to look correct on the screen. The interface is otherwise fairly self explanatory, or the same as before.

Copy HTML
Better support for copying parts of tables or lists.

: : :

First time using TribExt? Here is how it works. Largely copied from previous diaries on the topic.

• When text is highlighted the right-click context menu has an option to "Copy Html, URL, title" of the page, a command also available using Accel-Shift-C. If the selection is made wholly within one comment on the Eurotrib, we copy instead the selected html, name of the comment author, and link to the comment. These are wrapped up in a blockquote, with the author or title providing the text of the link. Under the "View" - "Sidebar" menu there is a new option called the "Copy Sidebar". It can also be toggled on and off with Accel-Shift-S. It contains all the things copied in this manner, and saves its info in a file for when you close the browser. It has a "clear" button, and each copied item has a small red "x" by which it can be discarded. Items are copied to this sidebar regardless of whether it is open or not, they will show when it is opened. The last copied item is also placed on the system clipboard for easy access. The items in the sidebar can be pasted within Firefox with a simple drag-and-drop action into a text area. Oh, and if you hover the mouse over an item it will popup as it would display when pasted. It is recommended to press the clear button every now and then. If the file holding all copied stuff gets very long it might slow down your browser. (I think this is only an issue if you keep the sidebar open.)
• You will find a new button for each comment, labeled '+4'. This will put a '4' rating in the pull down menu. Simpler than doing it directly, and avoids mouse slips, or page downs that accidentally downrates a comment.
• Upon loading an ET page, the border around the page will go red if there are any new comments.
• If there are new comments on the page, Accel-' (single quote key) will take you to the next new comment. Accel-; (semi-colon key) will take you to the previous new comment on the page. Nice for long comment threads
• An Idiotic Acronym Expander is provided. When you see IMHO, afaik, etc. in a page and don't know what it stands for, double click the word, and a span element appears, in green, informing you of its meaning. The span contracts to just the acronym on mouse-out, and expands again on mouse-over. It remains green and mouse-over active after the double click, until you reload the page.
• The translate feature. With some text selected, using the right-click context menu, or under 'Tools' in the menu bar, or the keyboard shortcut Accel-Shift-N, will open a new tab with a translation table. The elements in the sidebar copy tray will now also have a little 'T' symbol under the 'delete' symbol. Clicking it will open the item for translation.
  • Click on a table cell, any table cell, and the cell will spawn a textarea with the html contents of that cell in. The output html at the bottom will update itself when you navigate to another translation cell, or click any other part of the page, including the output area.
  • Borders are provided around cells to make it more clear where they begin and end, since the translation part of the table starts empty. A checkbox is provided to include or exclude these borders in your output html.
  • Navigation from a textarea to the neighbouring cells is also possible with Ctrl+arrowkeys. (This one uses the actual Ctrl key on a mac. That should probably be changed...)
  • A single linebreak in a textbox will become a <br> tag when the box is navigated away from
  • A double linebreak or a <p> will cause a new table row to be formed.
  • Shift+Enter also causes new row to be formed, but immediately, rather when you click away from the current textbox. The cursor is placed in the new box.
  • A double Backspace with the cursor at the beginning of a textbox will merge that cell with the previous one, placing your cursor in a new textarea, with both cell's content.
  • The way that <p> tags, <br><br>, and double linebreaks are treated in cells, allows you to just pase some html, or plain text into a textarea, and see it expanded to multiple rows when you click something else.