Hi,
In my view of an ideal Web, one should be able to write apps in one
manner and not be forced to deal with packaging files just to gain
privileges if the user permits. I like how Open Web Apps can apparently
be turned into packaged apps by pointing a URL to one's site at the
Marketplace. And I like how there is the potential for privileged apps
(albeit only with packaged apps).
What I don't understand, however, even after reading
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Apps/FAQs/About_apps#What_is_the_difference_between_an_app_and_an_add-on.3F,
is:
1) Why there needs to be any distinction between the Addons SDK and web
apps? It would seem logical to make as much possible shared between them
and just flip a switch (e.g., a package setting) to get it to work as an
addon. Yes, the SDK might be Mozilla-specific now, but there is no
reason I can see that it would perpetually need to be...
2) Why sites apparently cannot request permissions for installation
without packaging themselves first? Why can they not simply ask for this
privilege and allow sites to use Cache manifests, or even just the
ability to be required to run online?
Unless you are open to adding both of these, I intend to keep working on
https://github.com/brettz9/asyouwish/ to allow regular websites the
ability to gain access to the Addons SDK APIs upon user permission,
whether they are targeted to open upon each browser restart or only upon
being explicitly visited.
(I have just added this functionality to AsYouWish, but these addon
features are not yet documented or fully tested, and there are a few
small issues to work out.)
So, in order to leverage the same APIs as much as possible, by allowing
"addons", I'd like to use the same Apps Manifest settings as at
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Apps/Manifest (albeit supplied
via a call to the addon's global AsYouWish.requestPrivs() requireJS-like
API instead of inside of a zip file), but I noticed that there is no
formal way (documented at least) to specify a choice of (ideally
potentially multiple) licenses (or license URLs), and for my "addons", I
would like to allow users to be informed of this status when using or
"installing" such content. If this is not currently possible, is Mozilla
open to adding it, ideally in my view having predefined choices in
addition to extensibility? Maybe EULAs too... Perhaps this could lead to
an automated way for users to discover and fork the code at another site
which advertised itself as being under a given license.
(I could also envision an API by which sites could register themselves
as Marketplaces which could also be requested of the user so the user
could choose from different marketplaces (which might display featured
"addons" within AsYouWish's "addons" manager, etc.)--perhaps enabling a
whole site to be deemed trustworthy upon initial permissions--in
addition to being allowed to install individual apps from different web
sites/pages.)
Best wishes,
Brett
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