1:mod:`webbrowser` --- Convenient web-browser controller 2======================================================= 3 4.. module:: webbrowser 5 :synopsis: Easy-to-use controller for web browsers. 6 7.. moduleauthor:: Fred L. Drake, Jr. <fdrake@acm.org> 8.. sectionauthor:: Fred L. Drake, Jr. <fdrake@acm.org> 9 10**Source code:** :source:`Lib/webbrowser.py` 11 12-------------- 13 14The :mod:`webbrowser` module provides a high-level interface to allow displaying 15web-based documents to users. Under most circumstances, simply calling the 16:func:`.open` function from this module will do the right thing. 17 18Under Unix, graphical browsers are preferred under X11, but text-mode browsers 19will be used if graphical browsers are not available or an X11 display isn't 20available. If text-mode browsers are used, the calling process will block until 21the user exits the browser. 22 23If the environment variable :envvar:`BROWSER` exists, it is interpreted as the 24:data:`os.pathsep`-separated list of browsers to try ahead of the platform 25defaults. When the value of a list part contains the string ``%s``, then it is 26interpreted as a literal browser command line to be used with the argument URL 27substituted for ``%s``; if the part does not contain ``%s``, it is simply 28interpreted as the name of the browser to launch. [1]_ 29 30For non-Unix platforms, or when a remote browser is available on Unix, the 31controlling process will not wait for the user to finish with the browser, but 32allow the remote browser to maintain its own windows on the display. If remote 33browsers are not available on Unix, the controlling process will launch a new 34browser and wait. 35 36The script :program:`webbrowser` can be used as a command-line interface for the 37module. It accepts a URL as the argument. It accepts the following optional 38parameters: ``-n`` opens the URL in a new browser window, if possible; 39``-t`` opens the URL in a new browser page ("tab"). The options are, 40naturally, mutually exclusive. Usage example:: 41 42 python -m webbrowser -t "https://www.python.org" 43 44The following exception is defined: 45 46 47.. exception:: Error 48 49 Exception raised when a browser control error occurs. 50 51The following functions are defined: 52 53 54.. function:: open(url, new=0, autoraise=True) 55 56 Display *url* using the default browser. If *new* is 0, the *url* is opened 57 in the same browser window if possible. If *new* is 1, a new browser window 58 is opened if possible. If *new* is 2, a new browser page ("tab") is opened 59 if possible. If *autoraise* is ``True``, the window is raised if possible 60 (note that under many window managers this will occur regardless of the 61 setting of this variable). 62 63 Note that on some platforms, trying to open a filename using this function, 64 may work and start the operating system's associated program. However, this 65 is neither supported nor portable. 66 67 .. audit-event:: webbrowser.open url webbrowser.open 68 69 70.. function:: open_new(url) 71 72 Open *url* in a new window of the default browser, if possible, otherwise, open 73 *url* in the only browser window. 74 75.. function:: open_new_tab(url) 76 77 Open *url* in a new page ("tab") of the default browser, if possible, otherwise 78 equivalent to :func:`open_new`. 79 80 81.. function:: get(using=None) 82 83 Return a controller object for the browser type *using*. If *using* is 84 ``None``, return a controller for a default browser appropriate to the 85 caller's environment. 86 87 88.. function:: register(name, constructor, instance=None, *, preferred=False) 89 90 Register the browser type *name*. Once a browser type is registered, the 91 :func:`get` function can return a controller for that browser type. If 92 *instance* is not provided, or is ``None``, *constructor* will be called without 93 parameters to create an instance when needed. If *instance* is provided, 94 *constructor* will never be called, and may be ``None``. 95 96 Setting *preferred* to ``True`` makes this browser a preferred result for 97 a :func:`get` call with no argument. Otherwise, this entry point is only 98 useful if you plan to either set the :envvar:`BROWSER` variable or call 99 :func:`get` with a nonempty argument matching the name of a handler you 100 declare. 101 102 .. versionchanged:: 3.7 103 *preferred* keyword-only parameter was added. 104 105A number of browser types are predefined. This table gives the type names that 106may be passed to the :func:`get` function and the corresponding instantiations 107for the controller classes, all defined in this module. 108 109+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 110| Type Name | Class Name | Notes | 111+========================+=========================================+=======+ 112| ``'mozilla'`` | :class:`Mozilla('mozilla')` | | 113+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 114| ``'firefox'`` | :class:`Mozilla('mozilla')` | | 115+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 116| ``'netscape'`` | :class:`Mozilla('netscape')` | | 117+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 118| ``'galeon'`` | :class:`Galeon('galeon')` | | 119+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 120| ``'epiphany'`` | :class:`Galeon('epiphany')` | | 121+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 122| ``'skipstone'`` | :class:`BackgroundBrowser('skipstone')` | | 123+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 124| ``'kfmclient'`` | :class:`Konqueror()` | \(1) | 125+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 126| ``'konqueror'`` | :class:`Konqueror()` | \(1) | 127+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 128| ``'kfm'`` | :class:`Konqueror()` | \(1) | 129+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 130| ``'mosaic'`` | :class:`BackgroundBrowser('mosaic')` | | 131+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 132| ``'opera'`` | :class:`Opera()` | | 133+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 134| ``'grail'`` | :class:`Grail()` | | 135+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 136| ``'links'`` | :class:`GenericBrowser('links')` | | 137+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 138| ``'elinks'`` | :class:`Elinks('elinks')` | | 139+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 140| ``'lynx'`` | :class:`GenericBrowser('lynx')` | | 141+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 142| ``'w3m'`` | :class:`GenericBrowser('w3m')` | | 143+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 144| ``'windows-default'`` | :class:`WindowsDefault` | \(2) | 145+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 146| ``'macosx'`` | :class:`MacOSXOSAScript('default')` | \(3) | 147+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 148| ``'safari'`` | :class:`MacOSXOSAScript('safari')` | \(3) | 149+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 150| ``'google-chrome'`` | :class:`Chrome('google-chrome')` | | 151+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 152| ``'chrome'`` | :class:`Chrome('chrome')` | | 153+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 154| ``'chromium'`` | :class:`Chromium('chromium')` | | 155+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 156| ``'chromium-browser'`` | :class:`Chromium('chromium-browser')` | | 157+------------------------+-----------------------------------------+-------+ 158 159Notes: 160 161(1) 162 "Konqueror" is the file manager for the KDE desktop environment for Unix, and 163 only makes sense to use if KDE is running. Some way of reliably detecting KDE 164 would be nice; the :envvar:`KDEDIR` variable is not sufficient. Note also that 165 the name "kfm" is used even when using the :program:`konqueror` command with KDE 166 2 --- the implementation selects the best strategy for running Konqueror. 167 168(2) 169 Only on Windows platforms. 170 171(3) 172 Only on macOS platform. 173 174.. versionadded:: 3.3 175 Support for Chrome/Chromium has been added. 176 177Here are some simple examples:: 178 179 url = 'https://docs.python.org/' 180 181 # Open URL in a new tab, if a browser window is already open. 182 webbrowser.open_new_tab(url) 183 184 # Open URL in new window, raising the window if possible. 185 webbrowser.open_new(url) 186 187 188.. _browser-controllers: 189 190Browser Controller Objects 191-------------------------- 192 193Browser controllers provide these methods which parallel three of the 194module-level convenience functions: 195 196 197.. method:: controller.open(url, new=0, autoraise=True) 198 199 Display *url* using the browser handled by this controller. If *new* is 1, a new 200 browser window is opened if possible. If *new* is 2, a new browser page ("tab") 201 is opened if possible. 202 203 204.. method:: controller.open_new(url) 205 206 Open *url* in a new window of the browser handled by this controller, if 207 possible, otherwise, open *url* in the only browser window. Alias 208 :func:`open_new`. 209 210 211.. method:: controller.open_new_tab(url) 212 213 Open *url* in a new page ("tab") of the browser handled by this controller, if 214 possible, otherwise equivalent to :func:`open_new`. 215 216 217.. rubric:: Footnotes 218 219.. [1] Executables named here without a full path will be searched in the 220 directories given in the :envvar:`PATH` environment variable. 221