Invoking browser from Ruby script with URL argument: How?

rubyonrails-talk
1

Hi,

I've got the folowing script: require "fileutils"

path = "K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/" FileUtils::cd path names = Dir.glob("**/index.html") (0..4).each { |i|       name = names[i]       address = "file://" + path + name       puts address       exec address }

It runs fine without line 10, "exec address", and produces: file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/apache/htdocs/index.html file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/htdocs/index.html file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/htdocs/restricted/index.html file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/licenses/gd/index.html file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/php/docs/Structures_Graph/docs/html/index.html

But with line 10 active, I hang with: K:\>ruby K:\_Projects\Ruby\_Ruby_Tests\TestDirTraversal \TestDirTraversal.rb file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/apache/htdocs/index.html K:/_Projects/Ruby/_Ruby_Tests/TestDirTraversal/TestDirTraversal.rb: 10:in `exec': Invalid argument - file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/apache/htdocs/in dex.html (Errno::EINVAL)         from K:/_Projects/Ruby/_Ruby_Tests/TestDirTraversal/ TestDirTraversal.rb:10:in `block in <main>' [snip]

Of course, if I pasted these addresses on successive lines of Word (with space characters appended to each), I'd have a series of hyperlinks that could control-click to invoke the respective URLs in Firefox.

Is there a way I can repair the code here to achieve the equivalent effect with Ruby?

Thanks in advance for any education you may offer, Richard

2

exec([env,] command... [,options]) Replaces the current process by running the given external command

but

file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/apache/htdocs/index.html

isn't a command.

3
4

Possibly exec "firefox #{address}"

Colin

5

Hi 7-stud,

Long time no "see". Thanks for looking into my question.

file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/apache/htdocs/index.html

isn't a command.

Yeah, I know, but my question is how to repair my code so that it works. Or more specifically, what command can I take which accepts the text of a URL as an argument and invokes my browser with that command as an argument?

Do you have a further idea? I greatly appreciate learning any other idea you might have on the question.

Best wishes, Richard

6

Colin,

exec "firefox #{address}"

You're my hero!! I couldn't think of what command I could use to invoke the browser on my machine. I wish I had possessed enough imagination to at least try that idea before posting my question. I did harbor the fancy of poking through Rails source code, thinking I might find a clue there. But that seemed daunting to me.

Best wishes, Richard

7

Colin,

> exec "firefox #{address}"

I don't think this would work on a max, since GUI apps aren't normally in $PATH. You might be interested in the launchy gem.

Fred

8

Hi Fred,

I'm happy our paths crossed again.

The launchy gem looks cool. The page I found it on also advertised Process Explorer from SysInternals that replaces Window's StartMenu ... something I've wanted for a long time. So, it's a double-hitter.

Thanks and best wishes, Richard

9

RichardOnRails wrote in post #1015562:

Hi 7-stud,

Long time no "see". Thanks for looking into my question.

file://K:/_Utilities/Apache/xampp/apache/htdocs/index.html

isn't a command.

Yeah, I know, but my question is how to repair my code so that it works. Or more specifically, what command can I take which accepts the text of a URL as an argument and invokes my browser with that command as an argument?

Do you have a further idea?

Well, I provided a link.

10

On a Mac, you don't need launchy, just do:

open http://example.com/whatever

11

You don't need launchy on any platform but it takes away from you the hassle of deciding which strategy to use for a given environment.

Fred

12

Hi again,

Do you have a further idea?

Well, I provided a link.

Thanks for that link in your second post. I only received it about an hour after your original response, which only pointed out that I lacked a function reference. Hence my request for further idea(s).

Now I have a wealth of good solutions: Yours, Colin's and Fred's

Thanks to you and them, Richard