translate 0.1.6 -> 0.1.7: translate as you type, and say what was detected

Typing never triggered a translation. The input handler was wired only to the
language detector, so nothing happened until Enter, the Translate button or a
language change -- the panel looked broken to anyone who simply typed and
waited. Translation now runs 500 ms after the text settles.

Each request carries a sequence number. Typing outruns the network, and
without that guard a slower earlier response paints its stale text over a
newer one.

Detection already worked, but wrote its answer only into the text of the
collapsed "Auto-detect" option, which a closed select hides -- so it read as
"detection is broken" when it had in fact succeeded. Name the language in a
row under the selects, and lower the 12-character floor to 5, since short
phrases never cleared it. With translate-as-you-type on, skip the standalone
detect call: the translation response already carries the detected language,
so asking twice only doubled the load on a public mirror.

Two of the three fallback mirrors were dead, checked by posting to both
endpoints: translate.plausibility.cloud answers 405, and lingva.ml serves an
HTML page because it is not a LibreTranslate API at all, so it could only ever
produce the "HTML instead of JSON" failure. Drop both and add
silentmode.st/libre, which stays a fallback rather than the default because it
covers six languages against disroot's fifty.

Auto-translate sends text to a translation server as it is typed, so it is a
visible toggle rather than silent behaviour. Default on.

PENDING.md

@@ -16,6 +16,36 @@ Releases are no longer recorded here: the live version and hashes are in
 `../site/releases-manifest.json` and `https://dl.silentmode.st/releases-manifest.json`,
 and each release commit is `Theseus 0.3.x: ...` in git history.
 
+## session: `2026-10-22:translate-auto`
+
+translate 0.1.6 → **0.1.7**. **PUBLISHED 2026-10-22** to the extension OTA
+channel (`bns/theseus/extensions/translate/`), no Theseus release needed —
+but the source is **still uncommitted**, so git does not yet contain the code
+that is live. Commit before anyone rebuilds from this tree.
+
+- [bundled-addons/translate/panel.html](bundled-addons/translate/panel.html) —
+  translate-as-you-type (500 ms debounce, sequence-guarded so a slow earlier
+  request cannot paint over a newer one), a visible "Detected: German" row
+  under the selects, `DETECT_MIN_CHARS` 12 → 5, a "Translate as I type" toggle
+  (default on, persisted in `ui`).
+- [bundled-addons/translate/index.js](bundled-addons/translate/index.js) —
+  fallback mirrors corrected: dropped `translate.plausibility.cloud` (405) and
+  `lingva.ml` (serves HTML; it is not a LibreTranslate API), added
+  `silentmode.st/libre`.
+
+**Why:** typing never triggered a translation at all — only Enter, the button
+or a language change did. Detection *did* work, but was written only into the
+text of the collapsed `<option>`, where nothing shows it.
+
+Verified against a real Theseus, 6/6 checks (`scratchpad/tr-verify.mjs`), and
+the published artifact was pulled back over the network and staged by a real
+Theseus (`scratchpad/tr-ota2.mjs`).
+
+Noticed while publishing, **not fixed**: `consent` and `blocker` both carry an
+`updateURL` with no channel behind it, so every update check spends two
+requests on a guaranteed 404:
+`https://navigate.st/bns/theseus.x/extensions/{consent,blocker}/updates.json`.
+
 ## session: `parallel:collision-policy`
 
 Owner's focus: BCNR ↔ ICANN name collision handling. Not mine — leave for

bundled-addons/translate/addon.json

@@ -1,14 +1,18 @@
 {
   "id": "translate",
   "name": "Translate",
-  "version": "0.1.6",
+  "version": "0.1.7",
-  "description": "Right-click a selection to translate it. Sidebar panel with LibreTranslate or Google as the backend.",
+  "description": "Translate as you type, with the detected language named in the panel. Right-click a selection to send it here. LibreTranslate or Google as the backend.",
   "author": "Silent Mode",
   "icon": "data:image/svg+xml;base64,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",
   "main": "index.js",
   "activation": "on-demand",
   "panels": [
-    { "id": "main", "title": "Translate", "page": "panel.html" }
+    {
+      "id": "main",
+      "title": "Translate",
+      "page": "panel.html"
+    }
   ],
   "capabilities": [
     "sidebar-panel",

bundled-addons/translate/index.js

@@ -12,10 +12,19 @@
 // user's chosen URL fails. Kept short on purpose — three tries is plenty to
 // route around one mirror being down, and we don't want to spam a chain of
 // public instances for one click.
+// Checked 2026-10-22 by POSTing /translate and /detect to each:
+//   translate.disroot.org      200, detects + translates, 50 languages
+//   silentmode.st/libre        200, our own instance, 6 languages (en/fr/de/el/ru/es)
+// Removed at the same time, both verified broken rather than merely slow:
+//   translate.plausibility.cloud  405 on both endpoints
+//   lingva.ml                     200 but serves an HTML page — it is not a
+//                                 LibreTranslate API at all, so it could only
+//                                 ever produce the "HTML instead of JSON" error
+// Our own instance is second, not first: it answers reliably but only covers
+// six languages, so it is the right safety net and the wrong default.
 const LT_FALLBACKS = [
   "https://translate.disroot.org",
-  "https://translate.plausibility.cloud",
+  "https://silentmode.st/libre",
-  "https://lingva.ml",
 ];
 
 function looksLikeHtml(s) {

bundled-addons/translate/panel.html

@@ -51,6 +51,13 @@
   .langs .swap { padding: 6px 8px; background: var(--btn); color: var(--ink);
                  border: 1px solid var(--line); border-radius: 6px; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; }
   .langs .swap:hover { background: var(--btn-h); }
+  /* The detected language used to live only in the text of the collapsed
+     "Auto-detect" <option>, where a closed <select> hides it — which is why
+     detection looked broken even when it had worked. Say it in the open. */
+  .det { padding: 6px 12px; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--line);
+         background: var(--panel2); color: var(--mut); font-size: 11.5px; }
+  .det b { color: var(--ink); font-weight: 600; }
+  .det .q { color: var(--dim); }
   .body { flex: 1; display: flex; flex-direction: column; overflow: hidden; }
   .zone { display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex: 1; min-height: 0; }
   .zone + .zone { border-top: 1px solid var(--line); }
@@ -90,6 +97,11 @@
   }
   .settings.open { display: flex; }
   .settings label { display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 4px; color: var(--dim); font-size: 11px; }
+  /* Checkbox rows read as a row, not a stacked field like the text inputs. */
+  .settings label.chk { display: grid; grid-template-columns: auto 1fr; gap: 2px 8px;
+                        align-items: center; color: var(--ink); font-size: 12px; }
+  .settings label.chk input { width: 15px; height: 15px; padding: 0; accent-color: var(--acid); }
+  .settings label.chk .hint2 { grid-column: 2; color: var(--dim); font-size: 11px; }
   .settings input, .settings select { padding: 6px 8px; font: inherit;
                                        background: var(--bg); color: var(--ink);
                                        border: 1px solid var(--line); border-radius: 6px; }
@@ -117,6 +129,7 @@
   <button class="swap" id="swap" title="Swap languages">⇄</button>
   <select id="tgt" title="Target language"></select>
 </div>
+<div class="det" id="det" hidden></div>
 
 <div class="body">
   <div class="zone">
@@ -135,6 +148,11 @@
 </div>
 
 <div class="settings" id="settings">
+  <label class="chk">
+    <input type="checkbox" id="autoTranslate" checked />
+    Translate as I type
+    <span class="hint2">Off means nothing is sent until you press Translate or Enter.</span>
+  </label>
   <label>
     Backend
     <select id="backend">
@@ -147,8 +165,7 @@
     <input id="ltUrl" type="url" placeholder="https://translate.disroot.org" list="ltMirrors" />
     <datalist id="ltMirrors">
       <option value="https://translate.disroot.org"></option>
-      <option value="https://translate.plausibility.cloud"></option>
+      <option value="https://silentmode.st/libre"></option>
-      <option value="https://lingva.ml"></option>
     </datalist>
   </label>
   <label id="ltKeyLabel">
@@ -158,7 +175,9 @@
   <div class="hint">
     LibreTranslate is a free MIT-licensed engine. Public instances rate-limit — if you
     hit "too many requests" or a mirror is down, pick another URL from the list or
-    self-host. Google (unofficial) uses
+    self-host; Theseus falls through to the others automatically.
+    <code>silentmode.st/libre</code> is ours and answers reliably, but only covers
+    English, French, German, Greek, Russian and Spanish. Google (unofficial) uses
     <code>translate.googleapis.com/translate_a/single</code> — no key, but unofficial
     and Google can break it at any time.
   </div>
@@ -170,7 +189,7 @@
   const srcSel = $("src"), tgtSel = $("tgt");
   const goBtn = $("go"), swapBtn = $("swap"), gearBtn = $("gear");
   const settings = $("settings");
-  const backendSel = $("backend"), ltUrl = $("ltUrl"), ltKey = $("ltKey");
+  const backendSel = $("backend"), ltUrl = $("ltUrl"), ltKey = $("ltKey"), autoChk = $("autoTranslate");
   const ltUrlLabel = $("ltUrlLabel"), ltKeyLabel = $("ltKeyLabel");
 
   // ISO-639-1 short list. First `auto` for source only. Users can add more
@@ -220,6 +239,25 @@
   function paintAutoLabel() {
     const opt = srcSel.querySelector('option[value="auto"]');
     if (opt) opt.textContent = autoLabel();
+    paintDetectRow();
+  }
+  // The row under the selects. Only meaningful while the source is Auto —
+  // with an explicit source there is nothing to detect.
+  function paintDetectRow() {
+    const el = $("det");
+    if (!el) return;
+    if (srcSel.value !== "auto" || !detectedCode) { el.hidden = true; el.textContent = ""; return; }
+    const name = LANG_NAME.get(detectedCode) || detectedCode;
+    const low = detectedConfidence !== null && detectedConfidence < 60;
+    el.innerHTML = "";
+    el.append("Detected: ");
+    const b = document.createElement("b"); b.textContent = name; el.append(b);
+    if (low) {
+      const q = document.createElement("span");
+      q.className = "q"; q.textContent = " — not certain, set the language if this is wrong";
+      el.append(q);
+    }
+    el.hidden = false;
   }
 
   function fillSelect(el, includeAuto) {
@@ -260,7 +298,7 @@
   // current working default so the panel isn't broken out of the box.
   const DEAD_LT_URLS = new Set(["https://translate.argosopentech.com"]);
   const settingsState = { backend: "libretranslate", ltUrl: DEFAULT_LT_URL, ltKey: "" };
-  const uiState = { src: "auto", tgt: defaultTarget, zoom: 100, recent: {} };
+  const uiState = { src: "auto", tgt: defaultTarget, zoom: 100, recent: {}, autoTranslate: true };
 
   // Populate the selects now that uiState exists — fillSelect reads the
   // frequency table to build the pinned group, so it cannot run before this.
@@ -301,8 +339,11 @@
     ltKey.value = settingsState.ltKey;
     srcSel.value = uiState.src;
     tgtSel.value = uiState.tgt;
+    if (typeof uiState.autoTranslate !== "boolean") uiState.autoTranslate = true;
+    autoChk.checked = uiState.autoTranslate;
     applyZoom();
     onBackendChange();
+    paintDetectRow();
   }
   async function saveSettings() {
     settingsState.backend = backendSel.value;
@@ -327,7 +368,11 @@
   // is not enough for a detector to be right, and firing per keystroke would
   // hammer a public mirror for no benefit. Nothing here blocks translating —
   // a failed or slow detect just leaves the label alone.
-  const DETECT_DEBOUNCE_MS = 700, DETECT_MIN_CHARS = 12;
+  // 12 characters was too strict — "Guten Morgen" barely cleared it and most
+  // quick one-word checks never detected anything, which read as "detection
+  // is broken". Short text detects less reliably, so the low-confidence
+  // qualifier on the label does the honest work instead of a blunt cutoff.
+  const DETECT_DEBOUNCE_MS = 700, DETECT_MIN_CHARS = 5;
   let detectTimer = null, detectSeq = 0;
   function setDetected(code, confidence) {
     if (code === detectedCode && confidence === detectedConfidence) return;
@@ -356,9 +401,36 @@
     clearTimeout(detectTimer);
     if (srcSel.value !== "auto") { clearDetected(); return; }
     if (inp.value.trim().length < DETECT_MIN_CHARS) { clearDetected(); return; }
+    // When translating as you type, the translation response already carries
+    // detectedLanguage. Firing /detect as well would double the traffic to a
+    // public mirror to learn something we are about to be told anyway.
+    if (uiState.autoTranslate) return;
     detectTimer = setTimeout(runDetect, DETECT_DEBOUNCE_MS);
   }
 
+  // Translate as the text settles.
+  //
+  // Until now the panel only translated on Enter, the Translate button, or a
+  // language change — typing did nothing at all, which is what "it doesn't
+  // auto translate" meant. The debounce is deliberately shorter than the
+  // detect one: this is the thing the user is waiting to see.
+  const AUTO_DEBOUNCE_MS = 500;
+  let autoTimer = null;
+  // What the visible translation corresponds to. Guards against re-sending
+  // identical work when the text is edited back to where it was, or when a
+  // language change lands on a pair we already have.
+  let translatedKey = "";
+  const currentKey = () => `${srcSel.value}|${tgtSel.value}|${inp.value.trim()}`;
+  function scheduleAuto() {
+    clearTimeout(autoTimer);
+    if (!uiState.autoTranslate) return;
+    if (!inp.value.trim()) return;
+    if (currentKey() === translatedKey) return;
+    if (srcSel.value !== "auto" && srcSel.value === tgtSel.value) return;
+    autoTimer = setTimeout(() => doTranslate({ auto: true }), AUTO_DEBOUNCE_MS);
+  }
+  function cancelPending() { clearTimeout(autoTimer); clearTimeout(detectTimer); }
+
   function setStatus(text, cls = "") {
     status.textContent = text;
     status.className = "m" + (cls ? " " + cls : "");
@@ -370,9 +442,15 @@
   // "<!doctype …". Doing the fetch server-side (via the add-on's index.js)
   // sidesteps that whole class of problem and lets index.js fall through a
   // small mirror list if the user's URL is down.
-  async function doTranslate() {
+  // Every in-flight translation carries a sequence number. Typing fires these
+  // faster than the network answers, and without this the slower of two
+  // overlapping requests could paint its stale text over the newer one.
+  let translateSeq = 0;
+  async function doTranslate(opts) {
+    const auto = !!(opts && opts.auto);
+    clearTimeout(autoTimer);
     const text = inp.value.trim();
-    if (!text) { setStatus("nothing to translate"); return; }
+    if (!text) { if (!auto) setStatus("nothing to translate"); return; }
     const source = srcSel.value, target = tgtSel.value;
     if (source && source !== "auto" && source === target) {
       setStatus("source = target", "err");
@@ -380,9 +458,13 @@
       out.classList.remove("empty");
       return;
     }
-    goBtn.disabled = true; const orig = goBtn.textContent;
+    const seq = ++translateSeq;
+    const key = currentKey();
+    goBtn.disabled = true;
     goBtn.textContent = "Translating…";
     setStatus("translating…");
+    // Leave the previous translation on screen while the new one is in
+    // flight: blanking it on every keystroke made the pane flicker.
     out.classList.remove("empty");
     try {
       const res = await window.silentmode.invoke("translate", {
@@ -391,7 +473,9 @@
         ltUrl: settingsState.ltUrl,
         ltKey: settingsState.ltKey,
       });
+      if (seq !== translateSeq) return;     // a newer edit already superseded this
       out.textContent = res.text || "(empty response)";
+      translatedKey = key;
       const via = res.via || settingsState.backend;
       setStatus(res.detected ? `${via} · detected ${res.detected}` : via, "ok");
       // Count only translations that actually landed. Counting on every
@@ -407,12 +491,15 @@
       noteLangUse(source === "auto" ? res.detected : source);
       if (topLangs().join(",") !== before) refillLangSelects();
     } catch (e) {
+      if (seq !== translateSeq) return;
       out.textContent = "";
       out.classList.add("empty");
       out.textContent = "Failed: " + (e?.message || String(e));
       setStatus("failed", "err");
     } finally {
-      goBtn.disabled = false; goBtn.textContent = orig;
+      // Only the newest request owns the button, or an overlapping older one
+      // would re-enable it while a translation is still running.
+      if (seq === translateSeq) { goBtn.disabled = false; goBtn.textContent = "Translate"; }
     }
     saveUi();
   }
@@ -434,14 +521,18 @@
     inp.value = ""; out.textContent = "The translation will appear here.";
     out.classList.add("empty");
     setStatus("ready");
-    clearTimeout(detectTimer);
+    cancelPending();
+    translateSeq++;          // orphan anything still in flight
+    translatedKey = "";
     clearDetected();
     inp.focus();
   });
-  // Detect as the text settles, and on paste (which fires input too, but the
+  // Translate (and, when auto-translate is off, detect) as the text settles.
-  // value is only current after the event loop turn).
+  // Paste fires input too, but the value is only current after the event-loop
-  inp.addEventListener("input", scheduleDetect);
+  // turn, hence the deferred handler.
-  inp.addEventListener("paste", () => setTimeout(scheduleDetect, 0));
+  function onInput() { scheduleDetect(); scheduleAuto(); }
+  inp.addEventListener("input", onInput);
+  inp.addEventListener("paste", () => setTimeout(onInput, 0));
   $("copyOut").addEventListener("click", async () => {
     if (out.classList.contains("empty") || !out.textContent) return;
     try {
@@ -450,6 +541,12 @@
       setTimeout(() => setStatus("ready"), 1200);
     } catch (e) { setStatus("copy failed", "err"); }
   });
+  autoChk.addEventListener("change", () => {
+    uiState.autoTranslate = autoChk.checked;
+    saveUi();
+    if (uiState.autoTranslate) scheduleAuto();
+    else { cancelPending(); scheduleDetect(); }   // fall back to standalone detection
+  });
   gearBtn.addEventListener("click", () => settings.classList.toggle("open"));
   backendSel.addEventListener("change", async () => { onBackendChange(); await saveSettings(); });
   ltUrl.addEventListener("change", saveSettings);
@@ -463,6 +560,7 @@
     // Naming a source explicitly retires the detection; going back to
     // Auto-detect re-runs it against whatever is in the box.
     if (srcSel.value !== "auto") clearDetected(); else scheduleDetect();
+    paintDetectRow();                       // the row is only shown under Auto
     await saveUi();
     if (!inp.value.trim()) return;          // nothing to re-translate
     const src = srcSel.value, tgt = tgtSel.value;