8kun Launcher

Release notes for v3x (unofficial release)

Just a few quick notes because this is not an official version. I have implemented a new remote proxy server based on Kraker. This allows the app to work without installing a local proxy. It works quite nicely because the Launcher does not require streaming support from the proxy (unlike Alleycat Player). Scroll down to the Video Player section for more.

This app is broken into modules for improved browser compatibility. There are three modules for loading breads, for media support and for moderator login. The media support includes support for reading Twitter threads. I don't feel like writing documentation for that right now. Just put a Twitter link in the URL input and press Go. You can enter a full URL or just the tweet number.

Have fun and please be kind enough to provide feedback on my Alleycat board.

Release notes for versions 1b to 2e

Introduction

The 8kun Bread Launcher is an app for reading threads on the free speech web site 8kun.top without the speed drawbacks of the site's normal client. Improved handling of images, headers and text makes for a sharper and more customizable appearance. The term "bread" is not a synonym for "thread" but I like the sound of "Bread Launcher" so I'm using my creative license.

This app, while it is quick, gets most of its speed advantage by allowing you to retrieve an individual post and its replies instead of the entire thread (which is a capability not supported by the current 8kun client). Threads are also kept in cache (memory) to reduce the need to access the site. There is no mouse hover functionality so reply links must be clicked on and viewed in a new tab.

To access 8kun, you need a URL with or without the domain name. The ".html" extension is not required. Examples are below. If you wish to see a specific post, then append "#" and the post number. To view a thread beginning at a certain post, append "$" and the post number. To view a board catalog, just type the name of the board. Note: do not close the Launcher while daughter tabs are still open because they link to the code inside the Launcher.

Full URL: https://8kun.top/alleycat/res/10.html Partial URL: /alleycat/res/10 Catalog: alleycat

If you are not familiar with the need for a proxy server, then please refer to the Alleycat Player installation instructions here for an explanation. The most reliable way to use this app is to install the local proxy server. The remote proxy server currently running as a Vercel cloud application is intended for those users who cannot install the local proxy or as a backup when you need to access 8kun while you are away from your machine.

The Menu Options

To access the bread options menu, click on the status bar at the top. These are the options:

Update - refresh the page with new posts
Reset - reset the post counter to zero (this value appears in the window title)
Go Live / End Live - starts or ends auto-updating. The window title will show the number of new posts loaded, the number of posts loaded in total and the current time base (which depends on posting frequency). Only one auto-update session is permitted per thread. Slices in the same thread are included in the auto-update.
Mark / Restore - marks or restores your current position on the page. This is useful if you wish to explore the thread and then return to your current position.
Post Office - opens the Post Office in a new tab (instructions below).
Quick Reply - opens a reply box to reply to the thread. You are permitted one image or file. You can also embed from Youtube and other sites. There is an input for a name and a text area for your message. When you press the Reply button, your post will be submitted and a progress bar will appear near the bottom of the screen to report on the progress.

In a Slice tab, only the Post Office and Quick Reply options are available.

Hints on Posting

The 8kun captcha has gone away but, in times of stress, you may be required to use a Proto Pass (get it here). To activate your Proto Pass, type your email address and password (**email_address**proto_password) in the URL input line and press Go.
There is a button at the right side of each post header. Click this to open the Quick Reply box while adding the post number to the text input.
You can add an image to your reply and the chosen image will appear in the reply box. The supported formats are: jpg, jpeg, png, gif. You can also attach the following file types: mp4, webm, pdf. Non-image files have no associated thumbnail but the file name will be shown.
There is limited space for the file name so a long name will be truncated. To see the full name, hover your mouse over the file name box.
A progress bar will appear when you hit the Reply button. It will disappear once the post submission has completed. If an error is returned by the server, the bar will remain on the screen but you can click on it to hide it.
The Clear button will clear the input fields except for the Name field. The Copy button will copy the text inside the text area.
If you post a reply from a Slice tab, it is safe to close the tab while your post is being submitted. This is not recommended since the Bread Launcher will be unable to notify you of a posting failure.

The Post Office

When you first open the Post Office, it will be tied to the thread that you opened it from. You can open the menu by clicking on the status bar at the top. You can prepare up to 6 posts in a single instance of the Post Office. Each post can have up to 5 images/files (this may be restricted to a lesser number by the board owner).
The Clear and Copy buttons work the same as in a Quick Reply box.
The current thread number can be changed by entering the number in the input line and pressing Change. The Launcher does not verify that the thread number is correct. You will be notified by the server if you try to post. You can test the thread number by sending a blank post.
You can create a new thread with the New Thread button. Caveat: this will not work if the board requires a captcha to create a thread. When the new thread has been created, the Post Office will be tied to it and additional posts will go to that thread.

Video Player

A special feature is available for viewing videos via Alleycat Player. In order for this to work, both apps must be opened in the same domain (due to browser restrictions). Each app loads a small Javascript shared worker which allows the Bread Launcher to send commands to Alleycat Player. Select one of the three Alleycat viewers and prepare your options in that viewer. It is best to configure the player to open the video in a popup.

Chrome-based browsers present two potential problems. Autoplay should work if you configure your browser to allow it but some Chrome versions (Brave, for example) may be stubborn about it. Also, the Chrome browsers that I have tested disallow focusing an already opened popup (this is stupid but I think it has to do with the fact that the user action occurs in a tab that is not the tab which wants to operate the popup). For this reason, the popup will be destroyed on each iteration. If you wish to keep the popup open beside your browser window then check the "No Play" option in the Alleycat viewer.

To play a video in Alleycat Player, click on the red or green banner below the embed thumbnail. This capability is not implemented for videos with a blue banner. Instead, click on the thumbnail to play the embedded video in a new tab. These are the currently supported sites: YouTube, BitChute, Rumble, Vimeo and Twitter. You can also open videos from the URL input, including mp3, mp4, webm, m3u8 and mpd.

If you are using the Kraker remote proxy server, there are some limits on YouTube videos. Some videos will not play due to an IP address mismatch (the proxy server IP is different from yours). Also, the DASH format will be unavailable.

Special note about YouTube livestreams

It may take three to four hours for YouTube to move a finished livestream to VOD (video on demand) status. Until that happens, only the last minute of an ended livestream will be viewable. This is a known issue with Alleycat Player.

Hints on Baking with the Launcher

This is not a general lesson on baking. Only issues relevant to the 8kun Bread Launcher are discussed here. You should already be thoroughly familiar with the features of the Launcher. If you are not, then go practice for a while before attempting to bake.

The first step to baking is to retrieve the dough for the current bread (which should already be open in the Launcher). Copy the dough from the upload site to a text editor (Notepad works fine). Open the Post Office and copy each section from the dough to a post. The first post is the intro which seldom changes from bread to bread. Add an image or YouTube link to the post. The second post may be the globals or the tool links. Not all bakers post the globals and it may be missing from the current dough. The next few posts will contain the notables.

At this point, you have the posts prepared in the Post Office and you will begin scanning the current bread for notables. It is advisable to not get too far ahead with the notables since you want to also monitor the replies. Anons may want to warn about the credibility of a potential notable or supply additional information. You should be making liberal use of the Launcher's slicing feature to open a notable post and check for replies. Auto-update should be enabled for the bread so that any Slices will also auto-update (you can update manually if you prefer). If you are uncertain about a potential notable, then leave the Slice open for a while to collect replies.

The Quick Reply box in the main bread tab should be used to collect the notables. To collect a notable, open the post in a Slice, gather the information in the Quick Reply box (including any anon replies that may be helpful) and then copy the information to your main reply box (this is why there is a Copy button). Close the Slice if you're done with it. From time to time, you should copy your collected notables to the dough and save the dough file just in case you have a system failure. Also, you will at certain points post your collected notables to the bread to inform the anons of your progress. Before you post, copy the notables to your dough. After the post has been submitted, don't forget to re-open the Quick Reply box and paste your notables back in (because, unlike the Post Office, there is no option to prevent auto-clear).

When the bread is nearly full, begin preparing for the next bread. Complete whatever changes you need to make to the dough and then save the dough on the dough upload site. Leave the site open in a tab. Make sure that your posts in the Post Office are the same as what you have in the dough. Now create a new thread with your intro post.

Special note: you may get a server error upon creating the new thread. I have tested this a few times on the /test/ board and got no errors. Perhaps this problem occurs due to the high level of traffic on the /qresearch/ board. If you get an error, then the Launcher won't have the thread number so you will need to go get it. Open the catalog and look for the new thread. If you can't find it, then you may need to retry the post. If you find it, then open the thread in the Launcher and copy the thread number from the status bar. Change the current thread number in the Post Office. This is not necessary if the thread was created without error since the Post Office will be tied automatically to the new thread.

Finish posting the remainder of your posts. You can prepare up to 6 posts in the Post Office. If you need more space, then open another copy of the Post Office (warning: remember to change the thread number before you start posting from this extra copy). Lastly, you need to post the link for your saved dough. If you have not already opened the new thread, then do so now and check to make sure that everything posted correctly. Copy the dough link from the upload site that you left open in another tab. Make a Quick Reply with the new dough link.

One final note. You are using the Quick Reply box in the main bread tab for your notables. If you want to post any other reply to the bread, then open a Slice in order to get a fresh reply box. This might seem obvious but it is easy to overlook this shortcut. Trust me, I had to learn this the hard way, kek.

Oh, one more thing. The font used on the default 8kun client is Helvetica. You can select this font in the Launcher in order to see your posts in the Post Office as they would be seen in the default client. I mention this due to the usage of spaces and hyphenation characters to line up some items. Select Helvetica before you open the Post Office. You can change back to another font afterward without affecting the Post Office.

8kun Bread Launcher v3x

Kraker Local Proxy Server Control Panel