Web Search : allow basic {query} string manipulation

[benjamin74]

Hello,

 

I love the "Web Search" functions but I'm really missing a simple way to "manipulate" the {query} string parameter...

 

e.g.: lots of my "Web Search" are based on a URL, so my {query} parameter is something like this "http://www.alfredforum.com/index.php"...

 

but my "Web search" (i.e. the service I'm using) only needs :

 

- the URL without http://www. in front of it

OR

- the root domain

- ...etc

 

Unfortunately there is no way to do basic string manipulation with the "Web Search" functionality... so I have to manually delete the "http://www."everytime which is time consuming and defeats the purpose of Alfred...

 

Could you add such a function ??

 

Thanks,

 

Cheers,

[deanishe]

You can do this with a workflow easily enough.

 

Keyword -> Run Script -> Open URL.

 

URLs can be manipulated much more powerfully in Python or Ruby than via some additional options in the Web Search dialog.

 

Here are a few examples in Python:

from urlparse import urlsplit, urlunsplit

url = "{query}"
parsed = urlsplit(url)

# Domain
print(parsed.netloc)

# Without scheme://
print(urlunsplit(('',) + parsed[1:]).lstrip('/'))

# Hostname
print(parsed.hostname)

# Resolve URL redirects / Expand shortened URLs
import urllib2
print(urllib2.urlopen(url).geturl())

Edited October 16, 2015 by deanishe

[benjamin74]

And how would a simple Python manipulation looks like in the case of : Keyword -> Run Script -> Open URL

 

By that I mean how is the {query} string manipulated and transfered from the Run Script to the Open URL ?

 

Cheers,

[deanishe]

You put url = "{query}" at the top of your script, and print the altered URL. This script takes the URL the user entered and expands any shortened URLs.

from urlparse import urlsplit, urlunsplit
from urllib2 import urlopen

url = "{query}"

# Expand short URL/resolve redirects
print(urlopen(url).geturl())

Edited October 26, 2015 by deanishe

[benjamin74]

Thanks, but somehow I still can't connect the dots...

 

I would have expectected to be able to "pass" the manipulated string to the next block "Open URL", but that doesn't seems possible :

 

http://screencast.com/t/uKPwhljiwkxP

 

It's so basic it's driving me crazy not to have this in the standard doc (well if it is, I haven't found it, AlfredApps example workflows are lame lame lame... and don't help in anyway).

 

Any idea ?

 

Thanks,

 

Cheers,

[deanishe]

From a Run Script action, any output to STDOUT is sent to the next action as {query}.
 
That means, as demonstrated above, what you print or echo in your script becomes {query} for the next action.
 
In the case of Script Filters, the arg parameter of their results becomes the {query} of the following action.

[benjamin74]

So it's sent to the next action without actually having to connect the "script" box with the "open URL" Box ??

 

I still can't get this to work.

 

http://screencast.com/t/pCXg1dsDy

 

I'm using this as script:

 

from urlparse import urlsplit, urlunsplit

url = "{query}"
parsed = urlsplit(url)

# Hostname
print(parsed.hostname)

 

in an attempt to the OpenURL with the hostname instead of the long URL but it doesn't seem to work.

 

Another tip ?

 

Thanks !

[deanishe]

You still have to connect the actions together in Alfred. How would Alfred know where to send the output otherwise?
 
I'm not sure if a hostname alone will be enough. You'll probably need to put an http:// in there, too.

[benjamin74]

Yes that's what i TRIED to do... but this bloody Alfred doesn't let me connect script with openURL !!!

[deanishe]

You have to use Actions > Run Script, not Outputs > Run Script.