Opening a URL in a new IE tab from Web Thin Clients

<i>NOTE: This only applies to Internet Explorer 8 and above</i>

Most of you are aware of the hyperlink animation, which will open a file from an object. This works by opening the file in the default application for that file type. However, it will always open a new window. This is because the command comes from the ISSymbol ActiveX control, not the browser.

For example, the default web browser is Internet Explorer and you add the hyperlink animation with a link to http://www.indusoft.com. Clicking that object will open a new browser window to display the html. This can be an annoyance, in particular on Web Thin Clients. Since Internet Explorer does not have a command line for opening a URL in a new tab, one solution I have found is to open the URL from a command prompt, which will force Windows to look for an existing Application ID to launch the URL.

This uses the Indusoft built-in WinExec() function. I have tested this on a web thin client.

Instead of the hyperlink, add a command animation. Select Built-In Language as the type, and under Expression use the WinExec() function to pass the URL to the command prompt. For Example:

[code] WinExec("cmd /c start http://www.indusoft.com") [/code]

Now if your default browser is already open, it will open the URL in a new tab rather than a new window.