Description
Google has recently announced a solution coming soon exclusively to Chrome OS utilizing installation links to https://apps.chrome/getit/[randomlygeneratedid]. Presumably it would involve some process of the developer generating a unique URL pointing to a manifest.
https://youtu.be/KFeuEMAaKfM?t=784
As a more standardizable alternative, third party web apps could trigger the installation dialog by simply linking to their manifest with a custom protocol, such as
web-install://example.com/manifest
The alternative mentioned in the explainer of an anchor element install attribute is less flexible because it would preclude the possibility of the user navigating to the installation URL directly, for example from a native messaging app.
web-install protocol URLs could also reduce security and privacy concerns compared to the imperative API design. A web app store could style a web-install link as a traditional install button, and the core install functionality would work without the need for any permission. However there would still need to be an API to observe the installation state in order to provide the appropriate UI affordance.