WhatsApp web app (bauh) only works after fresh installation

[lfom]

First of all, thanks a lot for this incredible tool. I was able to install it on Pop!_OS 19.10 after some trials (it was missing some deb packages, as well as some other for Python that needed to be installed using pip3 instead of pip), and it is great! I didn't want to use flatpacks on Pop because they would not be integrated properly with the user interface (automatic .desktop file creation, GUI management, etc) and bauh handled these very nicely!

After adding sqlt3 packaged for AppImages and the other dependencies for web apps using pip3, I could install the web app for WhatsApp, both by using the search and typing the URL, but it worked only after the fresh installation. If I quit the app completely then it will not load any more and it will show a message that it requires Chrome 49+. Is this a known limitation? Can it be fixed?

Thanks again, it is a great utility for Manjaro and other distros!
Regards

[vinifmor]

Hello @lfom , it's nice to hear that bauh has been useful for you. I've just tested here and could reproduce the same behavior you described. Bauh already provides a custom fix for WhatsApp when you install it, but it seems this fix is not working anymore. I'm going to study a new way to handle this issue and publish it as soon as possible.

Regards

[vinifmor]

@lfom I fixed here. Please, try the staging branch and let me know if works on your end now. To install the staging branch type the following on a terminal:

git clone https://github.com/vinifmor/bauh.git
cd bauh
git checkout staging

If you just want a quick try type the following commands within the cloned bauh folder:

python3 -m venv env
env/bin/pip install .
env/bin/bauh  # launches bauh

If you want to install globally on your system forget the last steps and just type the following commands within the cloned bauh folder:

sudo pip3 install .
bauh  # launches bauh

[lfom]

@vinifmor Yes, it seems that it is working fine now. Although the window displays the error for a fraction of a second, it auto-refreshes and loads the app correctly. Thanks!

PS: I upgraded to staging (0.8.5) in a slightly different way as using pip/pip3 fails for me while using venv... What I did (may help someone else, that installed directly using pip3):

git clone https://github.com/vinifmor/bauh.git
cd bauh
git checkout staging
python3 -m venv env
env/bin/pip install .  /-- install fails --/
pip3 install .

After that, I get:

Successfully built bauh
Installing collected packages: bauh
Found existing installation: bauh 0.8.4
Uninstalling bauh-0.8.4:
Successfully uninstalled bauh-0.8.4
Successfully installed bauh-0.8.5

PS2: if you need any further tests or info about running/installing bauh on Pop!_OS (similar to Ubuntu eoan), please let me know.

Regards

[vinifmor]

Great. I'm going to publish the offical 0.8.5 in a few days.

About the issue you had installing, perhaps you have to use the virtualenv command. When you install directly with pip3, it will be using the global environment. You can try this inside the bauh folder after cloning:

virtualenv -p python3 env
env/bin/pip install .  # this line ensures you are using the isolated Python environment created within the env folder instead of the system's
env/bin/bauh

[lfom]

@vinifmor Neither virtualenv nor python3-virtualenv are pre-installed on Pop!_OS 19.10, so I guess I will leave it as it is now to avoid problems. The python3 -m venv command works, but installation fails with an error message about pyqt5, which is installed (simply using pip3 install works).

Anyway, when new official updates are available do I need to do anything special or simply pip3 install bauh will be enough?

Thanks again!

[vinifmor]

Ok. To ensure the latest release will be installed, type: pip3 install bauh --upgrade