<!--
.. title: on the phone again
.. slug: on-the-phone-again
.. date: 2025-07-02 14:26:22 UTC-05:00
.. tags: python, debugging, questionable time management, android
.. category: computing
.. description: In which I try to automate things on my phone.
.. type: text
.. previewimage: assets/piggies.jpg
-->

What I'd like to be able to do here is to edit the blog on the phone.
But that's going to take a fair amount of automation, because doing
*anything* on the phone is hard.

However, I think I've gotten it.
<!-- TEASER_END -->

This was a surprisingly complicated tool to write, but I'm quite pleased with the outcome.  I have argument parsing:

```rst
usage: markor [-h] [--verbose | --quiet] [--remote REMOTE]
              [--create | --replace] [--create-local | --find-stub]
              [--fetch [FETCH]] [--paths PATHS [PATHS ...]] [--all-matches]
              nikola_file

Synchronize a nikola source file with a tree elsewhere.

options:
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  --verbose, -v         Talk more about what's happening.
  --quiet, -q           Talk less.

Remote file handling:
  --remote REMOTE       Remote directory, default '~/markor'
  --create              Create the remote directory, which must not exist.
  --replace             Replace the remote directory if it exists.

Local file handling:
  nikola_file           Name of the local file.
  --create-local        Create the local file if it doesn't exist yet.
  --find-stub           Use just the stub name and find the file in the local
                        tree.
  --fetch [FETCH]       Pull the remote data back to the local tree. With
                        nonzero ``--fetch=n``, pull every ``n`` seconds.

Search parameters:
  --paths PATHS [PATHS ...]
                        Paths in which to search for matching filenames.
  --all-matches         Print all matches returned by --find-stub
```

This is something that
1. I think I can remember how to use, and perhaps even to debug, since I wrote inline help while I was creating it
2. I think has enough sophistication that I can wrap it into a tool I can use while just touching the phone. 

But my real motivation, secretly, is that I want to be able to do bloggy things like post pictures from my phone.  Can I manage that?  Let's find out.

![Gertrude (grey) and Alice (calico) are guinea pigs.](assets/piggies.jpg)

<video
    alt="Alice and Gertrude disagree over who gets to eat which piece of lettuce."
    src="assets/lettuce_wars.mp4"
    controls></video>
    
