I've developed a Google Drive app called VideoNot.es (http://videonot.es).
When users try to open files directly from Drive, without installing the Chrome app, it shows up an overlay saying "No preview". In consequence, they don't really understand how to open it with my app and I have to explain that they need to go to Manage Apps and make VideoNot.es the default app for this kind of files.
How can I improve this flow?
Thanks for your help!
Provide a file thumbnail, it should appear on the file preview if Google Drive can't render a thumbnail itself. Details are on https://developers.google.com/drive/file at the "Uploading thumbnails" section.
Related
this is question related to google apps script and Google Drive.
Is there any way to construct a URL for a file that causes opening that file in desktop application?
I'm basically asking whether it is possible to access "Open With" application list programmatically and pick up one from listed applications.
Now, when I get the URL, it causes opening another screen where I need to pickup an application and only then it starts opening. I would like to skip that step and open the file directly in a given desktop application.
Thank you!
Petr
"Open Width" requires having Google Drive for Desktop installed, having installed a Chrome extension and using Chrome.
Considering the above, since Google Apps Script server side code hasn't access to user environment it's not possible to
"Open With" application list programmatically and pick up one from listed applications.
I have created a realtime document on Google Drive. When I attempt to share this file with someone who doesn't have my app installed, the file shares successfully, but when they click the file it says "Sorry, no preview is available".
This realtime document is a shortcut file. How do I get it to prompt the person to authorize my app?
I'm using the Realtime Playground as my example as I'm not sure of the specifics of your application.
App authorisation
When you created your application you visited the Google API Console and created a project with Drive API enabled. At some point you copied "Client ID" from the Google API Console into you application ID code.
In the realtime-playground case APP_ID is set in the javascript file rtpg.js (you might not be using JavaScript but there will be an equivalent step for other languages).
rtpg.APP_ID = '840867953062';
File creation
I believe that any drive realtime document/shortcut you created with your application will contain a reference to the creating application (mostly likely in the form of the client/application ID you obtained above).
File sharing
Once you can see your newly created Google Drive Realtime document/shortcut you can share this with somebody else using the normal Google Drive sharing methods. At this point they can see it but cannot do anything apparently useful with it. This is where I believe your application may differ from the realtime-playground example.
Integration with Chrome Web Store
On the GitHub repository for realtime-playground you'll notice a cws (Chrome Web Store) directory containing the stuff necessary to deploy the realtime-playground as Google Drive application in the Chrome Store including screenshots to be used. If you look at the manifest.json file you will see another reference to the client id:
"api_console_project_id" : "840867953062"
So if I share a realtime-playground file with somebody who doesn't have it installed, then clicking on the file in Google Drive will result in a "Connect app" popup which will try to locate the corresponding Chrome Web Store Drive app (using the common id as the key) and this will show something similar to what you might see if you found this application directly in the Chrome Web Store.
The manifest.json also contains:
"app" : { "launch" : {
"web_url" : "https://realtimeplayground.appspot.com/" } }
which tells Google Drive what to do when the installed app is called.
So my guess is that your application doesn't work like this as you don't yet have public visibility of your app in the Chrome Web Store.
See also: Create a Chrome Web Store Listing
I hope this helps.
That is fine. If you open your eyes, you will notice that Playground demo does not provide any preview either
Yet, you see, the associated app is available. You can click it and open-with works normally. Your app-created files operate similarly. They are associated with your app by default. You can open them by open with rather than by preview. Can you? No, you cannot. But that is another question.
Otherwise, I see no cleverness in associating your file with chrome extension rather than with your app.
How do I get it to prompt the person to authorize my app?
I recently had a similar question. Instead of linking your files with extension in chrome, pass the direct link, like http://your-app#fileId=..., as playground demonstrates to your shared fellow if open-with fails.
The preview seems to be another story.
Wait, Do you mean that I need to create a new fresh account to test how your file is unassociated with your app? How do you preview the files in your primary account? If you know how to preview you may answer my question, at least partially. But why do you associate authorization with preview?
I have hosted a HTML file created on my PC (along with a stylesheet) on Google Drive using the script described here.
I have given out the link and it seems to be working fine (no reported issues from those I've sent it to).
I have just discovered a minor omission from the file, I need to add another sentence. This should be ridiculously easy on a PC, I could just open it on notepad!
I can't find a way to edit it on Google Drive, the only connected apps are the viewer and Docs.
The viewer, as the name suggests, will only let me view the HTML, and the docs app won't let me save it back to the original file.
Obviously I could download it then upload again, but from experience it will probably give me a different URL.
Is there any way for me to do this while keeping the link the same, as I have already given the address out?
Currently you can't. You can only preview html files, that is preview the code or preview the rendered content, but you cannot natively edit the code. You have two options:
use a third party extension, such as Neutron Drive or Drive Notepad.
install the Google Drive Desktop App, edit your files locally and save. Changes will be uploaded automatically.
I have just used HTML Editey chrome app
You can do this through file revisions. Hopefully, Google adds another way, but using the revision feature works for me. To revise your file, click the check mark in the Google Drive file list, click more, and then click "Manage revisions...". In the box that pops up, click upload new revision and then you're set.
You may also be able to edit html files stored in google drive through other plugins, but I do not use any at this time to know of them.
Update!
go to drive right click your html file
choose "open with" then "connect more apps"
when app library pop up search for "notepad" then choose "drivenotepad"
after it connect to drive, select it, you will get code editor.
Can a google drive application generate a preview for a file (which is not handled by google drive by default) when a file of that type is uploaded by the user, rather than creating it using that application?(Assuming the user has authorized that application)
Unfortunately, no, sorry.
The closest we have is being able to generate a third party thumbnail for a file. Your app can decide how the file will appear in the Google Drive thumbnail view by uploading the necessary image(s).
The video here explains it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jG5-9zlaPL8
Good day! I am currently developing a website using Google Drive API. However, I am wondering if is it possible to know if a certain file is created/uploaded/shared by the project using an App Id. I was thinking if it is belong to the attributes of a file. But, when i checked, it seems that, there's no such thing.
What I am trying to do, is to filter the files' shared by the other user to the owner of the account using my web site. Is it possible? Any suggestions on how to do it?
Thank you in advance.
File metadata doesn't contain this information unfortunatelly, therefore you can't know if some file was created by your app or not. But FYI Google store it somewhere, if you will try to upload somefile without providing its content type (* / *) and after that try to open this file through browser you will see the message:
No preview available
This item was created with YourAppName, a Google Drive app.
Download this file or use one of the apps you have installed to open it.