How do I demo an electron app on the web - electron

Question

Is there a way to easily distribute an electron.atom.io app as a static site?
I don't need all the functionality, I just want to allow the client to view the latest updates.
-- edit --
Perhaps a better way to ask the question is; "How do I build a web app that can be hosted online and run on electron with minimum rewriting" - similar to the Slack app that works the same way on web or electron app.

Answer 1

As long as your main use of Electron is to create a 'native browser wrapper' for a web-app this is entirely possible.
You will have to implement a check if your application is running inside a browser or inside Electron and wrap your electron specific code in it:
if (window && window.process && process.versions['electron']) {
const {BrowserWindow} = require('electron').remote
}
You'll probably have to step through your application and disable Electron specific functionality at multiple places.

Answer 2

You have other options to do a long distance demo of an Electron app
Electron is basically a shell to run node.js apps on the desktop. This means if you want to move it to the web, you have to give up all the Electron APIs that access the local system and you're left with a basic node.js app, which is most likely not desirable.
To demo your desktop app to an off-site client, you can either make a presentation with screenshots detailing the current user flow, or compile a sandboxed demo version of your app and send it over to them.
Screen presentation
This is your quickest and easiest solution if your client just wants to be kept in the loop and see some eye candy. You can just record how the app works with some example data, add some written or audio explanation to it, and let them enjoy the smooth ride.
Build a demo
If your client wants to actually have a hands-on demo with the app, you need to have some form of basic code distribution. The cleanest way to do this would be to tie up all loose ends in your current app flows, block all unfinished roads in it and compile it for whatever platform your client requested the demo for.
Take a look at the electron-packager and electron-builder docs to get an idea how to build an .exe, .dmg or whatever file from your Electron app, then send that file to them with some basic instructions.