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WebView Zig Project

Overview

This project demonstrates the use of WebView in Zig to create cross-platform desktop applications with web technologies. It combines a local file server with a WebView to serve and display web content securely.

Key Features

  1. Local File Server: Serves files from a 'web' directory, allowing for secure content delivery.
  2. WebView Integration: Displays the local server's content in a native window.
  3. Cross-Platform Compatibility: Targets Windows, Linux, and macOS.
  4. Two-Way Communication: Enables interaction between Zig backend and JavaScript frontend.
  5. Logging System: Comprehensive logging for debugging and development purposes.

Why WebView in Zig?

Zig's ability to easily import and interact with C and C++ libraries makes it an excellent choice for creating desktop applications with WebView. This approach allows developers to:

  • Write backend code in Zig, leveraging its performance and safety features.
  • Use familiar web technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) for the frontend.
  • Create fast, native desktop applications for multiple platforms.
  • Avoid security issues associated with manual HTML setting or JavaScript evaluation by serving content from a local directory.

Project Structure

├── README.md
├── build.zig
├── build.zig.zon
├── src
│   ├── file_server.zig
│   ├── main.zig
│   └── webview.zig
└── web
    └── index.html

Setup and Running

  1. Ensure Zig is installed on your system. Visit ziglearn.org for installation instructions.
  2. Clone this repository.
  3. Navigate to the project directory.
  4. Run the following command: 
    zig build run

Development Notes

  • The project uses webview for WebView functionality and httpz for the local server.
  • Extensive logging is implemented throughout the application. While this is useful for development, it may be optimized for production use.
  • The web directory contains the frontend files served by the local file server.

Future Improvements

  • Optimize logging for production environments.
  • Enhance error handling and user feedback.
  • Implement more complex interactions between Zig and JavaScript.
  • Explore additional WebView features and capabilities.