# Lively4: An Exploratory Web-Programming Environment **Context:** Exploratory programming workflows are often only applicable to content residing inside dedicated environments, requiring special workflows or languages. **Inquiry:** While working on programs and objects that are not created in such a special way one cannot make use of exploratory workflows. Further even when creating new content inside a special exploratory environment, it is hard make use of content and programs created outside of that environment. **Approach:** To overcome the gap between explorable content created in special environments and outside content as HTML content and JavaScript programs, we create Lively4, a new environment that embraces standard HTML and JavaScript. HTML used to be only a generation target UI for frameworks other systems. In Lively4, we use HTML/JavaScript to build a collaborative, self-supporting exploratory development environment for all HTML/JavaScript content. **Knowledge:** With this approach, we are pushing the boundaries of exploratory programming environments. Given the restrictions of HTML and JavaScript, we can explore how working with documents, names, explicit references compares to working with pure object graph of special environments. **Grounding:** We build Lively4 environment in a self-supporting way, which allowed us to develop, use and evolve tools and workflows from within it. **Importance:** Exploratory workflows can enrich HTML/JavaScript development experience. Tools and environment can be easier to create if external contributions are easier to integrate and use.