128 lines
4.9 KiB
Markdown
128 lines
4.9 KiB
Markdown
# Nativefier
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You want to make a native-looking wrapper for WhatsApp Web (or any web page).
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```bash
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nativefier 'web.whatsapp.com'
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```
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You're done.
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## Introduction
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Nativefier is a command-line tool to easily create a “desktop app” for any web site
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with minimal fuss. Apps are wrapped by [Electron](https://www.electronjs.org/)
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(which uses Chromium under the hood) in an OS executable (`.app`, `.exe`, etc)
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usable on Windows, macOS and Linux.
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I built this because I grew tired of having to Alt-Tab to my browser and then search
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through numerous open tabs when using Messenger or
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Whatsapp Web ([HN thread](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10930718)). Nativefier features:
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- Automatically retrieval of app icon / name
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- Injection of custom JS & CSS
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- Many more, see the [API docs](API.md) or `nativefier --help`
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## Installation
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Install Nativefier globally with `npm install -g nativefier` . Requirements:
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- macOS 10.10+ / Windows / Linux
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- [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/) ≥ 12.9 and npm ≥ 6.9
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Optional dependencies:
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- [ImageMagick](http://www.imagemagick.org/) or [GraphicsMagick](http://www.graphicsmagick.org/) to convert icons.
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Be sure `convert` + `identify` or `gm` are in your `$PATH`.
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- [Wine](https://www.winehq.org/) to build Windows apps from non-Windows platforms.
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Be sure `wine` is in your `$PATH`.
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## Usage
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To create a desktop app for medium.com, simply `nativefier 'medium.com'`
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Nativefier will try to determine the app name, and well as lots of other options.
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If desired, these options can be overwritten. For example, to override the name,
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`nativefier --name 'My Medium App' 'medium.com'`
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**Read the [API docs](API.md) or run `nativefier --help`**
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to learn about command-line flags usable to configure your app.
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To have high-quality icons used by default for an app/domain, please
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contribute to the [icon repository](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier-icons).
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### Catalog
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See [CATALOG.md](CATALOG.md) for build commands & workarounds contributed by the community.
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## Docker
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Nativefier is also usable from Docker:
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- Pull the image from [Docker Hub](https://hub.docker.com/r/nativefier/nativefier): `docker pull nativefier/nativefier`
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- ... or build it yourself: `docker build -t local/nativefier .`
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(in this case, replace `nativefier/` in the below examples with `local/`)
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By default, `nativefier --help` will be executed.
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To build e.g. a Gmail app into `~/nativefier-apps`,
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```bash
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docker run --rm -v ~/nativefier-apps:/target/ nativefier/nativefier https://mail.google.com/ /target/
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```
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You can pass Nativefier flags, and mount volumes to pass local files. E.g. to use an icon,
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```bash
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docker run --rm -v ~/my-icons-folder/:/src -v $TARGET-PATH:/target nativefier/nativefier --icon /src/icon.png --name whatsApp -p linux -a x64 https://web.whatsapp.com/ /target/
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```
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## Unofficial repositories
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Nativefier is also available in various user-contributed software repos.
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These are *not* managed by Nativefier maintainers; use at your own risk.
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If using them, for your security, please inspect the build script.
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- [Snap](https://snapcraft.io/nativefier)
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- [AUR](https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/nodejs-nativefier)
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## Development
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Help welcome on [bugs](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier/issues?q=is%3Aopen+is%3Aissue+label%3Abug) and
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[feature requests](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier/issues?q=is%3Aopen+is%3Aissue+label%3Afeature-request)!
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Docs: [Developer / build / hacking](HACKING.md), [API / flags](API.md),
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[Changelog](CHANGELOG.md).
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## License
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[MIT](LICENSE.md).
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## Troubleshooting
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Generally, see [CATALOG.md](CATALOG.md) for ideas & workarounds, and search in
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[existing issues](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier/issues).
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### Old/unsupported browser
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Some sites intentionally block Nativefier (or similar) apps, e.g. [Google](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier/issues/831) and [WhatsApp](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier/issues/1112).
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First, try setting the [`--user-agent`](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier/blob/master/API.md#user-agent) to `firefox` or `safari`.
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If still broken, see [CATALOG.md](CATALOG.md) + existing issues.
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### Videos won't play
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This issue comes up for certain sites like [HBO Max](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier/issues/1153) and [Udemy](https://github.com/nativefier/nativefier/issues/1147).
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First, try [`--widevine`](API.md#widevine).
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If still broken, see [CATALOG.md](CATALOG.md) + existing issues.
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### Settings cached between app rebuilds
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This can occur because app cache lives separate from the app.
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Try delete your app's cache, which is found at `<your_app_name_lower_case>-nativefier-<random_id>` in your OS's "App Data" directory (for Linux: `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME` or `~/.config` , for MacOS: `~/Library/Application Support/` , for Windows: `%APPDATA%` or `C:\Users\yourprofile\AppData\Roaming`)
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