How to open a file with the standard application?

os.startfile is only available for windows for now, but xdg-open will be available on any unix client running X.

if sys.platform == 'linux2':
    subprocess.call(["xdg-open", file])
else:
    os.startfile(file)

on windows it works with os.system('start <myFile>'). On Mac (I know you didn't ask...) it's os.system('open <myFile>')

Open file using an application that your browser thinks is an appropriate one:

import webbrowser
webbrowser.open_new_tab(filename)

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