Any projects to provide Javascript-style client-side browser accessvia Python?

08-26-05, 08:29 PM

Kenneth McDonald

I'm curious about this because, quite aside their function as web
browsers, it is now possible to build some very useable interfaces
using browsers with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. (The biggest problem
is still the lack of a decent text widget.) However, JavaScript isn't
really a good language for building complex applications, and it
would be very cool if there were some way to use Python to replace
client-side JavaScript, in order to gain access the DOM.

So anyone know if there are projects underway on this?

Thanks,
Ken

08-26-05, 09:04 PM

Paul Rubin

Kenneth McDonald <kenneth.m.mcdonald> writes:
> I'm curious about this because, quite aside their function as web
> browsers, it is now possible to build some very useable interfaces
> using browsers with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. (The biggest problem
> is still the lack of a decent text widget.) However, JavaScript isn't
> really a good language for building complex applications, and it
> would be very cool if there were some way to use Python to replace
> client-side JavaScript, in order to gain access the DOM.
>
> So anyone know if there are projects underway on this?

Python isn't a good choice as a browser language because it doesn't
have enough security. Hostile scripts can take over the interpreter
too easily.

There was a Python-based browser effort called Grail which I don't
think got very far.

Personally I think there are very few good uses for complex client
side browser scripts. Most sites that use Javascript don't really
need to.

08-26-05, 09:20 PM

Do Re Mi chel La Si Do

Hi !

>>> So anyone know if there are projects underway on this?

Yes, I work on this way. But it's a long work, because I have few time...

But there are certainly other projects.

@-salutations

Michel Claveau

08-26-05, 10:49 PM

Leif K-Brooks

Kenneth McDonald wrote:
> I'm curious about this because, quite aside their function as web
> browsers, it is now possible to build some very useable interfaces
> using browsers with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. (The biggest problem is
> still the lack of a decent text widget.) However, JavaScript isn't
> really a good language for building complex applications, and it would
> be very cool if there were some way to use Python to replace
> client-side JavaScript, in order to gain access the DOM.

You could try Livepage, which is a part of Nevow <http://nevow.com/>. It
doesn't cut JavaScript completely out of the picture, but you could put
all of your real code in Python and only use JavaScript as a simple
layer to access the DOM.

08-27-05, 10:04 AM

Alessandro Bottoni

Kenneth McDonald wrote:
> So anyone know if there are projects underway on this?

As long as I know, Mozilla (as Firefox, Thunderbird and Sunbird) can host
Python as an internal scripting language thanks to PyXPCOM (the Python
binding to the XPCOM cross-platform COM technology used by Mozilla). In
this case, you have to recompile Mozilla from source to enable the PyXPCOM
support (that is: you will end up having a "custom" Mozilla to distribute
to your users).

Have a look at www.mozilla.org and www.mozdev.org and/or search for PyXPCOM
on Google.

(Most likely, something like that is available for Konqueror and others
Linux browsers, as well)

HTH

-----------------------------------
Alessandro Bottoni

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