javafxweb

JavaFX WebView, commonly accessed through the javafx.web module, is a component that embeds web content in JavaFX applications. It comprises two main parts: WebView, a Node in the JavaFX scene graph that renders pages, and WebEngine, the browser-like engine that loads and runs the content. WebEngine can load pages from URLs or from HTML strings, exposes the page title and location, and provides a LoadWorker to track progress and state.

The WebView is designed for integration with JavaFX layouts and events, offering features such as navigation controls, history, zooming, and CSS/HTML rendering via the embedded engine. The underlying renderer is WebKit-based, so support for HTML5, CSS, and JavaScript reflects the capabilities of the WebKit version bundled with the runtime.

Interacting with web content from Java is possible through a JavaScript bridge. Java code can execute JavaScript using executeScript and retrieve results; Java objects can be exposed to JavaScript to enable two-way communication. WebEngine also supports handling of JavaScript alerts, confirms, and prompts, and can manage popups via a popup handler.

Limitations and considerations: as with any embedded browser, compatibility with the latest web standards depends on the WebKit version included with the specific JavaFX/OpenJFX distribution. WebView is not a full browser; some advanced features or browser APIs may be unavailable or restricted for security or performance reasons, especially in headless or restricted environments.

Distribution and history: the javafx.web module is part of OpenJFX. Since Java 11, Oracle no longer bundles JavaFX with the JDK; developers rely on OpenJFX or distributions such as Gluon. For those requiring richer browser features, third-party embeddable engines can be used as alternatives.