Internet Explorer and the Common Desktop Environment

ID: Q181622

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Internet Explorer version 4.01 for UNIX on Sun Solaris

SUMMARY

Users of the Common Desktop Environment (CDE) can choose to integrate Internet Explorer into their desktop. The following descriptions apply specifically to the custom version of CDE that is included with Solaris 2.6.

MORE INFORMATION

After making any change listed below, log in and log back out again to activate the change.

IE4 Action Definition

The Internet Explorer 4.01 release provides a simple CDE action definition file. This file defines the CDE action IE4, which runs Internet Explorer.

CDE actions are defined by text files that are gathered and read during session startup. Action files that are stored under the system folders /usr/dt and /etc/dt affect all sessions hosted by the system, while actions that are stored under a user's ~/.dt folder take effect only while that user is logged on. The folder /usr/dt is reserved by Solaris; site-specific customizations should be stored in the /etc/dt folder

Solaris 2.6 defines the action WebBrowser to run a specific browser program, and as the default action for Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) files. The file ie4/IE4.dt, provided in the Internet Explorer installation tree, redefines the WebBrowser action to the IE4 action.

To activate the integration, copy or link the IE4.dt file to:

   /etc/dt/appconfig/types/C/IE4.dt (system-wide)

   -or-

   ~/.dt/types/IE4.dt (per-user)

For example:

   ln -s /usr/local/microsoft/ie4/IE4.dt ~/.dt/types

The initial Setup for Internet Explorer offers the option to carry out the operation, but you can do it yourself at any time.

Once the IE4 action file is active, you can double-click an HTML file in the CDE File Manager to start Internet Explorer and display the file.

In the CDE front panel, the Applications menu contains a Web Browser icon that starts Internet Explorer.

If you create an executable file called IE4 or WebBrowser (the file can be empty), double-clicking the icon for that file starts Internet Explorer. The icon for IE4 is named Internet Explorer and is initially the default Run Program icon.

Internet Explorer Icons

A set of eight CDE icon files is provided in the ie4/ie4icons folder in the Internet Explorer installation folder. These files should be copied to the /etc/dt/appconfig/icons/C folder (system-wide) or the ~/.dt/icons folder (per-user) before they are referenced.

For example:

   cp /usr/local/microsoft/ie4/ie4icons/* ~/.dt/icons

Once the icons are in place, you can add an appropriate specification to your copy of the IE4.dt file. Edit the file so that the three IE4 ACTION entries contain the line:

   ICON   IE4

For example, the first of the three action definitions may look like this:

   ACTION IE4
   {
      LABEL    Internet Explorer
      TYPE   COMMAND
      ICON   IE4
      ARG_COUNT   0
      WINDOW_TYPE   NO_STDIO
      EXEC_STRING   sh -c '$ie4cmd'
      DESCRIPTION   The IE4 action starts an Internet Explorer browser
      session and displays the user's home page
   }

Once the icon files are active, the Internet Explorer icon appears instead of the generic icon in places where the IE4 action is explicitly referenced. You can also replace the ICON entry in the WebBrowser action definition (in the IE4.dt file) to make the change more pervasive.

Integration into Application Manager

If you open the CDE Application Manager and select the Desktop_Apps folder, you see a WebBrowser action. If you carry out the customizations described in the previous sections, the action displays the Internet Explorer icon and starts Internet Explorer.

You can create a new folder to contain the Internet Explorer action and any associated files. You create the folder by creating a folder under /etc/dt/appconfig/appmanager/C as root.

For example:

    mkdir /etc/dt/appconfig/appmanager/C/Internet_Explorer

Inside that folder, create a file called IE4 and give it execute permissions. The file's contents are ignored. You can add any other files to this folder; for example, you can copy the Readme file there.

After you do this and log out and log in again, you see the new folder in your Application Manager's top level display.

Integration into Front Panel

If you carry out the steps described in the first two sections of this article, the Desktop Applications menu contains the Internet Explorer icon and starts Internet Explorer.

You can add the Internet Explorer icon to the main face of the front panel. If you know how to customize the workspace manager directly, you can edit the file ~/.dt/types/dtwm.fp (per-user) or /etc/dt/appconfig/types/C/dtwm.fp (system-wide) and add something similar to the following text. Or, you can add a file named IE4.fp, containing simply this text, to the user's ~/.dt/types folder.

   CONTROL IE4
   {
      TYPE   icon
      CONTAINER_NAME   Top
      CONTAINER_TYPE   BOX
      POSITION_HINTS   last
      ICON   IE4
      LABEL    Internet Explorer
      PUSH_ACTION   IE4
      PUSH_RECALL   True
      DROP_ACTION   IE4
   }

Removing CDE integration

To remove the effects of the changes listed above, you only need to remove the new files, symbolic links, or folders that you have created, and log out and in again.

Solaris 2.5.1 CDE Integration

As shipped, CDE on Solaris 2.5.1 does not contain all of the features that are assumed by the IE4.dt file included with Internet Explorer. However, if you install the IE4.dt file and icon files as described above, you can start Internet Explorer from the Application Manager and front panel.

To associate Internet Explorer with HTML files, add an Open action definition for type HTML. Users familiar with writing CDE action files should be able to do this.

Additional query words:

Keywords          : kbenv msieunix 
Version           : UNIX:4.01
Platform          : UNIX
Issue type        : kbhowto

Last Reviewed: April 2, 1998