Overview
HTA graphical launcher for PyInstaller builds
README content
A graphical build launcher for the NetDTL Suite — Windows HTA application v 1.0.0 11-jun-2026 Didier DTL Morandi https://didiermorandi.com/netdtl/
DTLmenu is a Windows HTML Application (.hta) that replaces a plain VBScript menu with a dark-themed, terminal-style GUI. It lets you trigger PyInstaller builds for each Python tool in the NetDTL Suite with a single click, open output folders directly in Explorer, and verify your Python environment — all without touching the command line manually.
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Overview
The NetDTL Suite consists of six tools:
| Tool | Stack | Build method |
| DTLknowsWhy | Python (+ CLI + Agent) | PyInstaller .spec files |
| DTLsaysWhat | Python | PyInstaller --onefile |
| GitDTL | Python / Tkinter | PyInstaller .spec file |
| GitHubMenu | Python / Tkinter | PyInstaller .spec file |
| DTLaudit | Python | PyInstaller --onefile |
| NetDTL | PHP / MySQL | No build required |
DTLmenu covers all of them from a single window.
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Requirements
- Windows (any version with
mshta.exe— included in all Windows releases since XP) - Python installed and accessible via
pythoninPATH - PyInstaller installed (
pip install pyinstaller) - The NetDTL Suite source tree present on disk
No additional dependencies. DTLmenu is a single self-contained .hta file.
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Installation
Copy DTLmenu.hta anywhere on the machine — alongside the suite root folder works well. No installer, no registry entry, no virtual environment required.
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Usage
Double-click DTLmenu.hta. Windows will open it with mshta.exe.
> On some systems, Windows may display a security warning on first launch depending on the file's origin zone. If so, right-click the file, open Properties, and click Unblock at the bottom of the General tab.
Setting the root directory
At the top of the window, set ROOT_DIR to the folder that contains the six tool subdirectories (DTLKnowsWhy, DTLsaysWhat, NetDTL, GitDTL, GitHubMenu, DTLaudit). Click apply to propagate the path to all screens.
The default value matches the original development path:
C:\Users\Utilisateur\Documents\Mes sites Web\\outilsChange it once to match your local layout.
Menu options
| Key | Action |
| 1 | Build DTLknowsWhy (main executable, CLI variant, and background Agent) |
| 2 | Build DTLsaysWhat (single-file console executable) |
| 3 | NetDTL — display path information (no build needed) |
| 4 | Build GitDTL |
| 5 | Build GitHubMenu |
| 6 | Build DTLaudit |
| 7 | Build all Python tools in sequence |
| 8 | Open a dist\ output folder in Windows Explorer |
| 9 | Verify Python and PyInstaller versions |
| 0 | Quit |
How builds are executed
When you click execute on any build screen, DTLmenu:
- Increments the tool patch number with
DTLversion.py. - Assembles the corresponding
cmdcommands, including dependency checks and PyInstaller invocations. - Writes a temporary
.cmdscript to%TEMP%\DTLmenu_run.cmd. - Launches it in a visible Command Prompt window (
cmd.exe) so you can follow the output in real time. - On completion, the window pauses and waits for a keypress before closing.
If any python command exits with a non-zero code, the script stops and prints an error message.
DEC-style versioning
Python tools use a DEC-inspired canonical version format: major.minor.patch. The displayed title uses vmajor.minor-patch, for example v1.0-3.
Before each PyInstaller build, DTLmenu runs DTLversion.py for the selected project. The script refreshes Git tags, uses the latest local or remote tag as the release baseline when available, then increments the patch number by one. The current version state is stored in .dtl_version inside the project folder and the visible application version constant is updated before compilation.
If PyInstaller fails, DTLmenu automatically calls the rollback command generated by DTLversion.py, restoring the previous version files so failed builds do not consume a patch number.
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File structure
outils\
├── DTLmenu.hta
├── DTLKnowsWhy\
│ ├── DTLknowsWhy.spec
│ ├── DTLknowsWhy-CLI.spec
│ ├── agent\
│ │ └── DTLknowsWhy-Agent.spec
│ └── dist\
├── DTLsaysWhat\
│ ├── DTLsaysWhat.py
│ └── dist\
├── GitDTL\
│ ├── GitDTL.spec
│ └── dist\
├── GitHubMenu\
│ ├── GitHubMenu.spec
│ ├── GitHubMenu.py
│ └── dist\
├── DTLaudit\
│ ├── DTLaudit.py
│ └── dist\
└── NetDTL\---
Design notes
DTLmenu is built as an .hta rather than a plain .html file because HTML Applications run with elevated trust under mshta.exe, which grants access to WScript.Shell and Scripting.FileSystemObject — the two COM objects needed to write and execute .cmd scripts and to open Explorer windows.
The UI uses only IE-compatible CSS (no flexbox, no grid) to match the rendering engine embedded in mshta.exe. The dark terminal aesthetic — IBM-influenced monospace font, phosphor green accents, blue highlights — follows the visual identity of the wider NetDTL Suite, itself a tribute to DEC VT100 terminals and the culture of Digital Equipment Corporation (1957–1998).
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License
MIT — see the main NetDTL repository for the full license text.
Part of the NetDTL Suite — didiermorandi.com/netdtl
Update - 14 June 2026
DTLmenu.hta has become a complete HTA launcher for the NetDTL Suite.
New and confirmed behavior:
- The suite root directory is saved in
DTLmenu.root. - The folder picker can correct the root path without editing the HTA file.
- The menu checks for Python and PyInstaller before running a build.
- If PyInstaller is missing, the tool offers to install it with
python -m pip install --upgrade pyinstaller. - Covered builds are
DTLknowsWhy,DTLsaysWhat,GitDTL,GitHubMenu, andDTLaudit. - DTLknowsWhy builds produce the GUI, CLI, and Agent variants.
DTLversion.pyis called before builds to manage versioning, with rollback support in the generated temporary script.DTLGitMorning.ps1also provides a morning Git summary for the suite repositories.