Any way to View and/or Edit FLO file on a PC?

[Victor]

While being able to manipulate Flows on Android is great (most of the times), there are situations when even big phone screens are getting really hard to handle some complex Flows with big number of blocks.

It would be great to be able to have an option to view (or even better edit) flows on a much bigger screen.

Do FLO file have a proprietary format or is there a way to use some other tools to look into FLO file on a PC?

Thanks.

[Automate developer]

This is recurring feature request. It would basically require a complete reimplementation of the editor as a webapp. That's a lot of work, maybe in the future. However you should be able to run Automate in an Android emulator.

[Dave F.]

With regard to the original inquiry, is the binary file format of the FLO file available in the documentation somewhere? I too am having issues creating "large" flows - and the only way to currently manipulate them externally is to create the flows with an external flowchart editor - and then "transform" those flowcharts via visual scripting to an Android Emulator screen. It would be much more convenient to simply translate them to a "useable format" directly from the flowchart to the "flow" format - but I can't seem to locate the file structure documentation.

[Automate developer]

No documentation. A .flo file contain binary object serialization, very complex, and changing with every version as blocks and functions are added and modified.
The binary format are used for speed, since flows and fibers may get flushed from memory and reloaded quite often.
In the future, i may add a flow "source code", but i haven't figured out how to structure the branching and infinite loops.

[alsa...@gmail.com]

I know this topic is a little old, but why wouldn't you export the flow to XML format and then give the possibility to import it afterwards? It would make the process of creating a web app to edit the flows much easier, I think...

Anyway, congrats for the excellent application! Just bought it and immediately felt the need to edit the flows in a big screen...

Att.,
Alexandre Santos

[k.sc...@gmail.com]

I agree with Alexandre. If there were a way to export to an XML document that essentially only describes each node's position/options/connections that would be plenty sufficient. And interface wouldn't even be entirely necessary as I'm sure others can create something. The WatchMaker app does something similar, and it didn't take long for someone to create a Java applet to edit them on PC.

That being said, I completely understand that there may be much more involved here that meets the eye!

[Henrik "The Developer" Lindqvist]

"Source code" export/import are already on the to-do list, but at low priority:
https://groups.google.com/d/topic/automate-user/ieFxvzSiWkA/discussion

Until then use an Android emulator, like Bluestacks:
http://www.bluestacks.com/

[Franz Alex Gaisie-Essilfie]

If you could elevate the priority of the to-do item, I will be glad to develop a tool for editing flows on PC.

At the barest minimum, given the draft specifications of the import/export file, I can start working on the tool until you finalise the code to do this.

[brand...@gmail.com]

Is there a spec/doc for the binary format?

[Henrik "The Developer" Lindqvist]

No, it's using a custom binary serializer.

[loicg...@gmail.com]

+1 for this feature. With that we can make online flow editor

[sergio....@gmail.com]

+1
It would be very nice being able to edit a flow on a pc
thanks

[vpfe...@gmail.com]

To be honest, editing on PC would be fine, but the possibility at least to be able to export/visualize flow in an xml-editor/parser would be great for start.

+1 for this feature

Dne čtvrtek 14. prosince 2017 0:42:57 UTC+1 Sergio Parreira napsal(a):

[suporte...@gmail.com]

I'm trying to import the .flo file from the phone to the emulator bluestack but always from the error. First it says the extension is not supported, and then a red message in the app with "fibers may've been halted due to earlier failure." I want to edit the flow in bluestack and then import it into the phone, is it possible?

[Henrik "The Developer" Lindqvist]

Importing or "opening" a .bak file wont work, use the Restore backup in settings instead.

Only .flo files can be imported via the Import menu on the flow list screen.

Ensure you're using teh same Automate version on the emulator and device.

[suporte...@gmail.com]

Same version 1.15.0.

I have tried the two options, backup/restore and share/import. They worked on the same plataform, but between emulator and device not working.

[Henrik "The Developer" Lindqvist]

Ensure the files are transferred correctly.

Does the editor work if you create a new flow, not an imported one?

[lesi...@gmail.com]

+1 from me also.

It is great great app and PC/Web editor would make it even greater :)

[gaf...@puzzle.ch]

+1 for this feature :)

[klokhui...@gmail.com]

+1 from my

[veselov.m...@yandex.ru]

+1

[cefa...@gmail.com]

+1

[alex.des...@gmail.com]

+1 !

[marvinb...@gmail.com]

+1 would be awesome

[Ethan (TheBooker66)]

A bit old, but still +1.