Chrome App

##Introduction

The best introduction to Chrome Apps is provided by Google. A developer guide can be downloaded from http://commondatastorage.googleapis.com/io-2013/presentations/4017%20-%20IO13-ChromeAppscodelab.pdf

Most Kendo UI controls rely on templates which use the eval function which chrome apps forbid unless sandboxing. This is further explained by Telerik.

##Building the Chrome App

Building the Chrome app with sandboxing requires the addition of 4 files:

• manifest.json, the manifest with name, description, icons and permissions;
• chrome_launcher.js, the laucher;
• chrome_wrapper.html, the container for the sandboxed application.
• chrome_wrapper.js, the script for the sandboxed application.

##Loading and testing the Chrome App

In Chrome, call menu tools -> extensions or type chrome://extensions in the address bar and click the Developer mode checkbox.

This displays a button to Load unpacked extension from a directory. Click the button and select the www directory on your computer, which should contain manifest.json.

Then the chrome app is displayed in the list of extensions with a Launch link that you can click to run it.

##Limitations

In the current state of the chrome app some features do not work. Some Javascript functions have been disabled in Chrome apps. The ones which affect Phonegap.Express are:

• localStorage is easily taken care of in api.js (DONE);
• window.alert can easily be circumvented (TODO);
• window.location is more difficult to work around although we should be able to assign the src attribute of the containing iFrame of chrome.html (TODO).