Using the <OBJECT> Tag

When authoring Web pages to launch your application, you can use the <OBJECT> tag to invoke the Web thin client and start your program at the same time. For example, you could include the following in your HTML code:

<OBJECT ID="AcuThinAX" WIDTH=512 HEIGHT=384 
   CLASSID="CLSID:087C768D-64C1-4AC1-845D-4589B4B2C24E" 
   CODEBASE="http://www.acucorp.com/support/downloads/acuthinax/ 
   acuthinax800.cab#version=8,0,0,900"> 
   <PARAM NAME="SRC" VALUE="http://yourserver/yourdirectory/ 
   yourcommandlinefile.acutc"> 
</OBJECT>

where the following values are described as:

ID Optional. The name of the instance of the object. This name is only used for scripting the object interface. It is a user-defined value to which you refer in your script.
CLASSID The GUID (globally unique identifier) assigned to the ACUCOBOL-GT Web Thin Client control, specifically this value:
CLSID:087C768D-64C1-4AC1-845D-4589B4B2C24E
CODEBASE     The CODEBASE URL, from which the Web thin client can be downloaded and installed automatically by end users, specifically:
http://www.acucorp.com/support/downloads/acuthinax/acuthinax###.cab

where ### is a 3-digit segment that identifies the cab file version. You can also append the version information that applies to the control, including a build number, by adding it as described in subsequent sections.

Although the CODEBASE attribute is optional, using it is now a common practice among software vendors to provide access to controls in this way. This allows you to distribute the control easily.

If you do not use the CODEBASE attribute, you must direct users to the download page on the Micro Focus Web site. Or, with a proper written license agreement, you may provide the control on your own distribution media or Intranet site.

HEIGHT Optional. The height (in pixels) of the object's window. Use to define the area within the browser window that the application object will occupy.
WIDTH Optional. The width (in pixels) of the object's window. Use to define the area within the browser window that the application object will occupy.

By default, the application appears in the browser window, using the HEIGHT and WIDTH attributes, if provided, to define the area that the application occupies.

If desired, you can add any of the properties and methods of the Web thin client object interface as parameters of the <OBJECT> tag. To do so, add PARAM NAME= followed by the property name from the object interface enclosed in quotes. You then supply the VALUE attribute.

For example, if you want to have your application appear in its own window rather than in the browser window, set the AcuEmbedded property of the object interface to FALSE as follows:

 <PARAM NAME="AcuEmbedded" VALUE="FALSE">

The following example illustrates how you might display your application in a separate window.

<OBJECT ID="AcuThinAX" WIDTH="512" HEIGHT="384"   
CLASSID="clsid:087C768D-64C1-4AC1-845D-4589B4B2C24E"
<OBJECT ID="AcuThinAX" WIDTH="512" HEIGHT="384"   
   CLASSID="clsid:087C768D-64C1-4AC1-845D-4589B4B2C24E"
   CODEBASE="http://www.acucorp.com/support/downloads/acuthinax/acuthinax800.cab#version=8,0,0,900"> 
   <PARAM NAME="AcuEmbedded" VALUE="FALSE"> 
   <PARAM NAME="SRC" VALUE="http://yourserver/yourdirectory/yourcommandlinefile.acutc"> 
</OBJECT>

Note that there are two ways to specify command-line parameters for your program: you can use the SRC property or the AcuCommandLine property of the object interface, but you never use both at the same time. The original example in this section showed the SRC form:

<PARAM NAME="SRC" VALUE="http://yourserver/yourdirectory/yourcommandlinefile.acutc">

This points to a separate file containing the command-line parameters that you wish to invoke on start-up. See Thin Client Command-Line Files for more details on creating command line files. If you already have such a file that you're using for the thin client, then this will likely be your preferred method.

Alternatively, you can use the AcuCommandLine form:

<PARAM NAME="AcuCommandLine" VALUE="myserver.mysite.com:5632 myalias">

The advantage of the AcuCommand Line property is that you can specify the command line directly in the <OBJECT> tag without maintaining a separate file.

For more information on the object interface and its properties, including SRC and AcuCommandLine, refer to the subsequent sections.