HTAs - HTML applications - can be usefull for many a thing.
Mostly they are used as a way to implement admin scripts with feedback, or with the need for some input from the users.
However they can also be used to:
- Create full featured applications
- Create really good looking scripts.
- Create a Web like application when you cannot access, install or manage a WebServer, but have instead access to File Share.
This is because, of course, full CSS and JavaScript support is possible.
However HTAs are usually composed of a single file. Of course, you can have multiple files, but if you want to distribute it or send it, it is not possible.
At the above link is my last saturday night: Jquery, Jquery-UI, JQgrid and Accessdb all integrated into a single file. The point being to demonstrate that it is possible. Tested with IE8.
You can donwload and extract the file
JQhta.zip . You will find jqhta2.hta and index.htaAdmnCodes.mdb.
Inside the zip file there will be a jqhta folder and a source folder wich contains all the libraries in their original state, as they are all open source.
jqhta.hta is an HTA application that includes the Jquery 1.3.2 library, jquery-ui plugin V. 1.7.2, JQGrid 3.6.4 plugin, and the ACCESSdb library. All of the libraries are included in the HEAD part of the HTA. CSS files links to external images have been replaced by Base 64 Strings with the content of the files.
All the code in the MAIN section of the file is related to the examples, and there are examples for all the libraries and plug-ins in the file. None of the examples were created by me: they were created from examples available in the sources as the sources provide example files. I just compiled it all into one big happy HTA.
To do something else with it all you have to do is delete all that is inside the
section and just write something else.
Size is of course large, for an HTA: 547kb, just the libraries and the basics. The example amounts to 589k.
So here it is, it is free to use, or too look at it and download the libraries and build it yourself.
A note to the less cautious: An full HTA application is a very dangerous thing: very difficult to implement any kind of access controls, application wise, because the code is freely accessible and modifiable by the user. No security is therefore possible and therefore in non absolutely secure / trustworthy environments it could be a disaster!