I've been tasked with automatically maximizing the Web browser window when a user first accesses a site. As far as I can tell, the best you can do with JavaScript is fullscreen=yes (which is just annoying) or resizing/repositioning the Window to consume the entire screen (though it's not maximized, just resized and repositioned). Neither of these solutions satisfies me.

I personally maximize just about every window I use so I see value in this functionality as well. Currently I am forced to manually maximize the window each time I open the site. Resizing/repositioning the window is a viable solution, but I'm personally not satisfied unless the window is actually maximized so that doesn't really help me any (and I imagine other users having similar compulsions).

I'm wondering if anybody knows of a way for JavaScript to maximize the browser window. Since I know you don't, I'm wondering if any of you have experience developing browser extensions (primarily IE and secondarily Firefox). I may have to do so in my spare time, but I would like to at least try to develop a browser extension with this kind of functionality (either maximize every window when it opens when a flag is set or provide a JavaScript interface to script it). Of course if I did so in my spare time it would be open source.

// In JavaScript, perhaps...
try{
(new ActiveXObject("Maximize.Maximizer")).maximize();
}catch(e){}

// ...or...
(Maximizer) && (new Maximizer).maximize();

// Of course I'd prefer to extend the window object, but I doubt it's
// possible...
(window.maximize) && window.maximize();

I am fairly confident that it's possible to do in IE (although it looks like an ugly process - I know next to nothing of COM objects or ATL, etc.). I don't know too much about Firefox extensions, but the little bit I've looked into them suggests they are completely JavaScript-based (and therefore, relatively powerless when it comes to maximizing the main window).

Anybody with encouraging comments gets a cookie. Anybody with helpful resources, code samples, or productive hints gets two!*

For the record, I'd like to provide a configuration interface that allows the user to specify which sites are actually allowed to script this behavior (not that maximizing the window ever hurt anybody).

What do you think?

_{* Note: the two cookie offer is a complete falsification. However, you will have my gratitude.}

That's the best you can get. Of course, most people view messing with the browser coordinates as an abuse, except for in controlled settings where it is expected.

I don't know if you can do it via a Firefox extension. You're probably better off asking in a Firefox extension development forum. It might be as simple as a browser.maximize(), but I don't know if anything like that is supported.

I don't like when windows open off-center or fullscreen. Maximized is perfect and the complete opposite of abuse, if you ask me. And it's not like I'm randomly moving the window: it happens "right after the window opens" before you really get a chance to interact with the window.

And for the record, this isn't a public site. It's users have specifically requested this feature.

I just disable javascrapt's ability to mess with the window size/position. Since each browser "window" is just a tab, moving or resizing it affects more than just that window.