I want to be able to have [some kind of web content] 
open the "Save File" dialog box so [the user]
can just click "open" and have [arbitrary code 
executed on the user's computer].

[download]

If you find that this is possible, you should immediately report it to BugTraq, as it would be a fairly serious security problem that would need to be fixed ASAP in a critical security update.

The closest you can probably come right now is to create an ActiveX control that does this, but it will only work in IE, and the user will have to frob an "install anyway" button when IE warns them that the control is untrusted or whatever, and the next service pack might break it; on the whole, I do not recommend using ActiveX.

For something simple like launching a game, it might be much easier to just provide an .exe file that launches the game, and instruct the user to save it on the desktop and then tell them to go to the desktop and then go double-click the icon on the desktop. Or you could skip the special .exe launcher and just tell them what to do to join the game. That last approach is probably the most-recommended one.

"In adjectives, with the addition of inflectional endings, a changeable long vowel (Qamets or Tsere) in an open, propretonic syllable will reduce to Vocal Shewa. This type of change occurs when the open, pretonic syllable of the masculine singular adjective becomes propretonic with the addition of inflectional endings."  — Pratico & Van Pelt, BBHG, p68

In reply to Re: Running an application on a user's computer from a CGI script. by jonadab
in thread Running an application on a user's computer from a CGI script. by Cap'n Steve

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