Chromeless Chrome Web Apps

Question

I'd like to develope web apps and distribute an installer with a chromeless window to the end user.

As I understand it, this is exactly what prism gives me, however I would like to use a webkit based browser, namely Google Chrome. However, I do not want to simply install shortcuts with parameters and then bundle the full Google Chrome browser in an installer. This would invoke the wrath of network admins etc, and complicate the process.

Is it possible to have a self contained app that comes with Google Chromes innards and relies on a website/app for its UI/functionality? Or am I forced to bundle Chrome with my installer?

ps: Building the & modifying Chromium project/source is not an option ps2: Extra points if you can hide the title bar for customising the entire window

Solution 1

I'm surprised nobody hasn't mentioned node-webkit from Intel yet. I think it does exactly what you want + allows you to use node.js modules too!

Extra points if you can hide the title bar for customising the entire window

It can!

Solution 2

Sounds like you're looking for something like Awesomium which does the grunt embedding work for you. Or Berkelium if you want a free variant.

Solution 3

You could also look at http://code.google.com/p/chromiumembedded/ which seems to be reasonably active.

Solution 4

Nearly all of Google gears/ the other stuff which makes Chrome different from other browsers is now being implemented in HTML5 (development has stopped on most of the Google Gears streams).

If you just want a webkit based browser you can install on on MSWindows platforms you might want to have a look at Konqueror and the KHTML engine - although getting it to run on MSWindows independently of KDE is a bit tricky. But if you're not averse to writing some code (which you'll need to if you expect to integrate your own browser) then check out QT for MSWindows. There's a standard component implementing a webkit based browser. This is used in Arora (and possibly other browsers).

While there doesn't seem to be much information about customizing the furniture on Chrome, Firefox not only provides an API - they encourage people to develop custom front ends.

On Andriod you can launch a browser session with no furniture using webview - but this approach obviously does not work with MacOS/Linux/Microsoft desktop systems (unless you are using the Android emulator).

Solution 5

This may not be exactly the answer you want, but I think it's sufficiently on topic to be appropriate:

Have you considered Adobe Air?

Sites written as Air apps can be used in any browser with a flash plugin, but can also be installed as 'self-contained' desktop applications. Check out parleys.com for a good example.

The application you create can run on many different platforms and you don't have to worry about window chrome (navigation buttons, title bar, status bar etc) when running as a desktop app. Air in a browser is also a lot better behaved than the Flash sites of yore - it's as bookmarkable and navigable as the sites created with traditional web technologies.

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Comments

[Admin]

Every time a good web app is going to use Adobe Air, my well-trained user-interface fingers break. Using Adobe Air is like using Java: write once, screwed-up UI anywhere. At least Adobe needs to add support for 512px * 512px icons T_T.

[joonghyup cha]

The primary requirement here seems to be a site that works best as a desktop application. I'm not suggesting that Air is good for the web, but it is the right fit here and lets also please admit that Air sites are not the same animal that Flash used to be.

[Admin]

I don't say it's bad for the web. I say it's bad for desktop applications and user-experience. It doesn't work with VoiceOver, it doesn't support 512px * 512px icons, it doesn't work with sheets, there are no hide toolbar buttons. That are just a few things to mention.

[Tom J Nowell]

Its kind of crippled once I move to a non-flash platform such as an iPad, and believe me, clients will ask for that in time. It also restricts me to Adobes platforms and technologies. What if I wanted to use silverlight? ( I dont but Im only interested in what falls under the html5/css3 umbrella supported by Chrome stable currently

[Tom J Nowell]

Interesting, not fond of Awesomiums price tag, looking through Berkelium now

[Tom J Nowell]

hmm not fond of shifting away from chromium, or switching to firefox/KHTML, QT webkit sounds interesting though

[Erik]

AFAIK, Awesomium is a spinoff of Berkelium, the author forked and went commercial when he saw the interest.

[Tom J Nowell]

Berkelium gives me what i want and answers a few other questions I had in mind ^_^ Little bit of legwork to build and compile the thing, but then everything else suggested needs that too

[Erik]

Glad I could help, last minute answer better than nothing :P

[Tom J Nowell]

No it isn't, webkit is Apples fork/branch, and the two diverge quite radically in many areas. There's an article somewhere around here written by a KHTML developer complaining about how they've been treated by Apple and how they make random code drops with no effort to remove OS X specific APIs with little or no warning.

[Adam]

@ Erik, It's the opposite. Awesomium is the original, used to be open-source until much more demand picked up (larger companies need commercial support and custom engineering). I made it proprietary and launched a startup, then some old friends made a free alternative called Berkelium. :-)

[Tom J Nowell]

And I've been using it myself to great effect the last 3 weeks, super easy to use