0capture

Maintainer: Bastian Eicher
License: GNU Lesser General Public License
Source: https://github.com/0install/0capture
Zero Install feed: https://apps.0install.net/0install/0capture.xml

0capture is a command-line tool for generating Zero Install feeds with metadata for desktop integration. This currently only works on Windows.

To setup 0capture on your system you can run:

0install add 0capture https://github.com/0install/0capture

If you prefer a GUI, you can use the "New Feed Wizard" in the Windows version of 0publish-gui, which provides similar functionality.

Usage

First snapshot

First you need to capture a snapshot of the current state of your system by running:

0capture start myapp.snapshot

This will create a file named myapp.snapshot storing information such as the currently installed binaries, registered file handlers, etc..

App installation

Now you can install the app you wish to capture using its regular installer.

Second snapshot

Once the app is installed you can run:

0capture finish myapp.snapshot myapp.xml --collect-files=myapp.zip

This create another snapshot of the system state and compare it with the previously stored one. By comparing the two snapshot, 0capture can then infer which capabilities the app has and uses this to generate the feed file myapp.xml along with an archive containing the app's binaries named myapp.zip.

FAQ

Do I need to repeat this for each release of the app I captured?

If the app provides non-installer archives, you can modify the feed to use those instead of the archive generated by --collect-files. Then you'll only need to run 0capture once to get the desktop integration capabilities.

The generated feed seems to be missing some capabilities. How can I improve the quality of the generated feed?

Try running 0capture and the app's installer in an otherwise pristine VM.