Question

I’d like to implement an application with Scala and HTML5. My idea was to create a “local” client-server architecture: Scala handles the calculations and generates HTML5 as a GUI.

To my mind there are two possibilities

1. Use a Java/Scala framework that allows embedded HTML5. SWT for example has a browser widget. JavaFX seems good, too.
2. Distribute the program with a server and run it in a browser on localhost.

It would probably be most convenient to require an internet connection and forget about the localhost. Unfortunately an offline mode is necessary.

Now I would like to know how to get this right:

• The first option seems easier to implement but I wonder: How can I communicate with Javascript without the HTTP protocol ?
• The second approach was just an idea. Have you ever done something like this ?

If you’ve got advice or know a good framework please go ahead.

UPDATE :

I’ve just had an interesting idea: Could I use nodejs to create something like a server-server architecture ?

Right now the communication between Scala and Coffescript seems like the most problematic part. I still wonder how I could initiate an update from the Scala side of the application. A HTTP Request is a nice way to exchange data. Sadly to my knowledge in “standard” Coffeescript there would be no event hook to listen to server-side HTTP messages.

I’ve thought about using nodejs to listen to the server-sent data. Is this a good idea ?

Answer 1

With regards to the second option, you may wish to investigate the Play! Framework or Lift. They automate a lot of the work required to make a web application in Scala, including handling AJAX requests.

Although I haven’t tried packaging either for local use, there was an earlier Stack Exchange question about packaging Lift which might be relevant. It should be possible with Play! as well.