How can I open my application by default, if I click a URL through Browser in Symbian OS 5th ed

Question

I want to open/start my application when a I click on a particular URL from the browser for Symbian OS Series60 5th edition.
(So, if I click on a "station" Url, it will start my application & play through my player)
Any possible way that I can get it to do this?

Answer 1

I won't offer any guarantee that you can do this on your own.

I suggest you start by reading the documentation for the Content Handling Framework at Forum Nokia.

However, there is a difference between the Operating System understanding that a specific MIME type should be handled by a specific application and the Web Browser actually allowing that to happen.

Several Web browser can be installed on a Series60 5th edition handset. I'll assume you are only interested in the default Webkit-based web browser already included in the phone but you need to be aware that it may not be the one the phone users will ultimately use on a regular basis. Opera Mini is very popular and it certainly won't allow you to do what you want here.

Even with the default Webkit web browser, it is very possible that you won't be able to do what you want without at least some support from the handset manufacturer since you rely on either:

• The Symbian Content Handling Framework being able to consider the scheme of a URL (instead of just a MIME type) as a content identifier and the Web Browser being fully integrated with the Content Handling Framework
  
• or the Web Browser allowing you to write a plugin that makes it able to understand what is basically a new URL scheme (a URL not beginning with "http://"), display it as a hyperlink (you might just get that right now on your phone without doing any work. it's worth a try.) and behave the way you want when the user activates the hyperlink.

There is one alernative worth attempting: Keep the "http://" URL scheme but make sure your web server returns your own MIME type in the HTPP headers when it receives a HTTP GET request for the data.

Obviously, you will need your application installed on the handset and able to handle that MIME type.

You have a better chance of the default Web Browser being sufficiently integrated with the operating system already for this to work somewhat.