Your first XULrunner-based
application
Daniel Glazman
Disruptive Innovations
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009

Your first XULrunner-based application
What is XULrunner
• in short, Firefox without all its chrome
• more correctly, a runtime for Gecko and
the toolkit
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
Downloads
• You don’t need to build XULrunner if you
already have Firefox 3 and limit yourself to
chrome
firefox -app path/to/application.ini
• or download and unzip XULrunner from
ftp://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/xulrunner/releases/
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
Structure
Top dir
chrome
content
main.xul
chrome.manifest
defaults
preferences
prefs.js
application.ini
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
4

Your first XULrunner-based application
application.ini
• very simple file declaring your app’s
metadata
[App]
Name=MyFirstApp
Vendor=My Own Organization
Version=0.1
BuildID=20090328
ID=myfirstapp@myownorg.org
Copyright= Copyright 2009 My Own Organization
[Gecko]
MinVersion=1.9
MaxVersion=1.9.0.*
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
5

Your first XULrunner-based application
Basic chrome.manifest
• basically a mapping between chrome:// URLs
and the filesystem
content myfirstapp file:content/
• you can also package and compress the files
creating a jar
content myfirstapp jar:myfirstapp.jar!/content/
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
More chrome.manifest
• add a skin
skin myfirstapp classic/1.0 jar:myfirstapp.jar!/skin/
• add a locale
locale myfirstapp en-US jar:myfirstapp.jar!/locale/en-US/
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
7

Your first XULrunner-based application
app’s preferences
pref(quot;toolkit.defaultChromeURLquot;,
quot;chrome://myfirstapp/content/main.xulquot;);
• prefs for debugging
• prefs for user-agent or cache
• prefs for extension manager and XPInstall
• prefs for protocol handlers
• prefs for preferences window :-)
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
Your main window
<?xml version=quot;1.0quot;?>
<?xml-stylesheet href=quot;chrome://global/skin/quot;
type=quot;text/cssquot;?>
<?xml-stylesheet href=quot;chrome://myfirstapp/skin/main.cssquot;
type=quot;text/cssquot;?>
<!DOCTYPE window SYSTEM quot;chrome://myfirstapp/locale/main.dtdquot;>
<window id=quot;mainquot;
title=quot;&window.title;quot;
width=quot;600quot; height=quot;400quot;
xmlns=quot;http://www.mozilla.org/keymaster/gatekeeper/
there.is.only.xulquot;>
<label value=quot;Guten Tag Berlin !quot;/>
<button label=quot;Dankequot;
oncommand=quot;window.close();quot;/>
</window>
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
Running your app
• Windows
xulrunner.exe application.ini
• Mac (with restrictions)
/Library/Frameworks/XUL.framework/xulrunner-bin
`pwd`/application.ini
• Linux
xulrunner application.ini
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
Package your app
• Zip it into a *.app file
• call
xulrunner -install-app `pwd`/myfirstapp.zip
• Installs inside c:Program Files or /Library
on Mac
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
More complex stuff
• Add jsm modules
• Add icon to application.ini
• Add Venkman and Document Inspector
• Build a single executable with xulrunner...
• Update your app like Firefox...
• Extensions management
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
Links
• https://developer.mozilla.org/en/XULRunner
• https://developer.mozilla.org/en/XULRunner_tips
• https://developer.mozilla.org/en/XULRunner/Deploying_XULRunner_1.8
• http://zenit.senecac.on.ca/wiki/index.php/XULRunner_Guide_Outline
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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Your first XULrunner-based application
• Questions ?
MAOW Berlin 28-mar-2009 -- Daniel Glazman
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