NAME

X11::FreeDesktop::DesktopEntry - an interface to Freedesktop.org .desktop files.

SYNOPSIS

use X11::FreeDesktop::DesktopEntry;

my $entry = X11::FreeDesktop::DesktopEntry->new_from_data($data);

print $entry->get_value('Name');

DESCRIPTION

This module provides an object-oriented interface to files that comply with the Freedesktop.org desktop entry specification. You can query the file for available values and also get locale information as well.

CONSTRUCTOR

my $entry = X11::FreeDesktop::DesktopEntry->new_from_data($data);

If there is an error reading or parsing the file, the constructor will carp() and return an undefined value.

METHODS

$entry->is_valid($locale);

Returns a true or false valid depending on whether the required keys exist for the given $locale. A list of the required keys can be found in the Freedesktop.org specification. If $locale is omitted, it will default to 'C'.

This returns an array of scalars containing the group names included in the file. Groups are defined by a line like the following in the file itself:

[Desktop Entry]

A valid desktop entry file will always have one of these, at the top.

$entry->has_group($group);

Returns true or false depending on whether the file has a section with the name of $group.

my @keys = $entry->keys($group, $locale);

Returns an array of the available keys in $group and the $locale locale. Both these values revert to defaults if they're undefined. When $locale is defined, the array will be folded in with the keys from 'C', since locales inherit keys from the default locale. See the get_value() method for another example of this inheritance.

$entry->has_key($key, $group);

Returns true or false depending on whether the file has a key with the name of $key in the $group section. If $group is omitted, then the default group ('Desktop Entry') will be used.

my $string = $entry->get_value($key, $group, $locale);

Returns the value of the key named by $key. $group is optional, and will be set to the default if omitted (see above). $locale is also optional, and defines the locale for the string (defaults to 'C' if omitted). If the requested key does not exist for a non-default $locale of the form xx_YY, then the module will search for a value for the xx locale. If nothing is found, this method will attempt to return the value for the 'C' locale. If this value does not exist, this method will return undef.

my @locales = $entry->locales($key, $group);

Returns an array of strings naming all the available locales for the given $key. If $key or $group don't exist in the file, this method will carp() and return undef. There should always be at least one locale in the returned array - the default locale, 'C'.

CONVENIENCE METHODS

my $name		= $entry->Name($locale);
my $generic_name	= $entry->GenericName($locale);
my $comment		= $entry->Comment($locale);
my $type		= $entry->Type($locale);
my $icon		= $entry->Icon($locale);
my $exec		= $entry->Exec($locale);
my $url			= $entry->URL($locale);
my $startup_notify	= $entry->StartupNotify($locale);

These methods are shortcuts for the mostly commonly accessed fields from a desktop entry file. If undefined, $locale reverts to the default.

NOTES

Please note that according to the Freedesktop.org spec, key names are case-sensitive.

TODO

• Support modification of values, and writing back.

SEE ALSO

The Freedesktop.org Desktop Entry Specification at http://www.freedesktop.org/Standards/desktop-entry-spec.

AUTHOR

Gavin Brown <gavin.brown@uk.com>.

COPYRIGHT

Copyright (c) 2005 Gavin Brown. This program is free software, you can use it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself.

cpanm X11::FreeDesktop::DesktopEntry

perl -MCPAN -e shell
install X11::FreeDesktop::DesktopEntry