<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />We’d like to make sharing Interactive HTML files as simple as sharing photos. One easy way to share a photo is to attach it to an email. Usually that works well, but if you try to do the same with an Interactive HTML file, it can be difficult for the receiver to view the attachment.
Take Outlook in Windows 7, for example. If the receiver clicks on the attachment, they may get a warning and a “Preview file” button. But the previewer only displays a big gray rectangle! That’s because the previewer is not a full web browser. If a web browser has been associated with html files, the receiver can double-click on the attachment and the browser will launch and load the Interactive HTML file. Windows usually comes with html files associated Internet Explorer. My favorite way to associate html files with a web browser is to right-click on any html file in the file explorer and choose "Open with", then "Choose default program", which will bring up a list of applications to choose from.
How about the iPad’s default mail program? It’s not able to preview the file either and there’s no way to save the attachment and open it in Safari. No problem, there’s an App for that right? Or is there?
If the email was sent to the receiver’s Gmail, or Hotmail(Outlook) account, they can use Safari to get their email and click on the attachment and it will open in a new Safari page. Opening email this way is a bit tedious, so Google and Microsoft both have iPad apps for more direct access to your email. But guess what? Neither of them can display HTML5 attachments.
Don’t despair, there are many better ways to share your Interactive HTML that don't clutter up everyone's inboxes:
- If you and the receivers have access to a common network drive, save it there and send the network folder location in an email.
- If you have a DropBox, OneDrive, Google Drive, or other online file sharing service, save it there and share it from there. These services all have device specific interfaces and web interfaces.
- Copy the file to a public web site and send the URL to it in an email. E.g. http://www.jmp.com/jmphtml5
I tried OneDrive’s Windows 8.1 App, iOS App on iPad, and the Web version:
- The Windows 8.1 and iOS Apps worked well – they open HTML files in the default browser.
- The Web version however, does not support viewing HTML files without downloading.
- OneDrive is also available on Windows 7 and Android, but I didn’t try them.
Some of the difficulties I encountered will be seen by our customers and the people who receive emails from them with Interactive HTML attachments, but over time, the issues may get resolved as HTML5 becomes more popular.
I’ve only explored a few combinations of software and hardware here. Let us know how you share Interactive HTML.
