6 ms·

Chrome Extension Development, By Practical Example

101 points by BenjaminCoe 15y ago

atdt 15y ago
Hey, cool! The source code for my Chrome extension is also on GitHub: https://github.com/atdt/chrome-force-media-type/blob/master/Makefile https://github.com/atdt/chrome-force-media-type/blob/master/... The Makefile might be interesting to you. It's very simple, but it automates an annoying part of the development cycle.
- BenjaminCoe 15y ago
  Cool thanks :) I was trying to consolidate some of the stuff I'd learned building the extension for http://attachments.me http://attachments.me into a simple example.
- zakj 15y ago
  Thank you for the pack target! I should have known Chrome would have a command-line flag for this, but never thought to check. My extension is also on GitHub: https://github.com/cabin/linkhunter https://github.com/cabin/linkhunter
- tkahn6 15y ago
  Similarly y'all might find my Chrome extension for HN interesting. https://github.com/tkahn6/hn-newcomments-chrome https://github.com/tkahn6/hn-newcomments-chrome And if you're interested in using it: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/kikfikaiccdaabdilgpbcceionekdegl https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/kikfikaiccdaabdilg...
- jugglinmike 15y ago
  Throwing mine out there, too--for spoofing your user-agent string: https://github.com/jugglinmike/chrome-user-agent https://github.com/jugglinmike/chrome-user-agent
  - paulirish 15y ago
    Hey Mike, just FYI this is now available in DevTools: http://cache.gyazo.com/1c4bc26914b409a85884147d6f9fec03.png http://cache.gyazo.com/1c4bc26914b409a85884147d6f9fec03.png
zobzu 15y ago
"Why Create a Chrome Extension? It's a great way to integrate seamlessly with a third-party site like Gmail. It in turn solves the "other site" problem, i.e., your customers don't want to go to yet another website. The Chrome Web Store is a wonderful source of traffic. All your friends are doing it. " i find the readme scary. it encourages closing the web. the rest's good - but - the intention's bad.
- BenjaminCoe 15y ago
  I agree in principal -- I'm not advocating that the whole internet be centralized to a few major websites. Having said that, integrating with a site like Gmail can be a good way for a small fish to get some traction.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
bsimpson 15y ago
The problem with extension development is that each browser does it differently. If you abstract away the browser-specific API, it's not too hard to write a cross-browser extension. Here's one that runs on both Chrome and Safari: http://code.google.com/p/marking-menu-js/source/browse/#svn%2Ftrunk http://code.google.com/p/marking-menu-js/source/browse/#svn%... Notice how it implements the important bits of Chrome's extension API in terms of Safari's: http://code.google.com/p/marking-menu-js/source/browse/trunk/safari/hostAPI.js http://code.google.com/p/marking-menu-js/source/browse/trunk... That allows you to easily port Chrome extensions over.
- candeira 15y ago
  It seems to me there is a need for a browser extension framework/polyfill that allows you to write code once, deploy to any browser. Would that even be possible?

101 points by BenjaminCoe 15y ago

atdt 15y ago

Hey, cool! The source code for my Chrome extension is also on GitHub: https://github.com/atdt/chrome-force-media-type/blob/master/Makefile https://github.com/atdt/chrome-force-media-type/blob/master/... The Makefile might be interesting to you. It's very simple, but it automates an annoying part of the development cycle.

BenjaminCoe 15y ago
Cool thanks :) I was trying to consolidate some of the stuff I'd learned building the extension for http://attachments.me http://attachments.me into a simple example.
zakj 15y ago
Thank you for the pack target! I should have known Chrome would have a command-line flag for this, but never thought to check. My extension is also on GitHub: https://github.com/cabin/linkhunter https://github.com/cabin/linkhunter
tkahn6 15y ago
Similarly y'all might find my Chrome extension for HN interesting. https://github.com/tkahn6/hn-newcomments-chrome https://github.com/tkahn6/hn-newcomments-chrome And if you're interested in using it: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/kikfikaiccdaabdilgpbcceionekdegl https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/kikfikaiccdaabdilg...
jugglinmike 15y ago
Throwing mine out there, too--for spoofing your user-agent string: https://github.com/jugglinmike/chrome-user-agent https://github.com/jugglinmike/chrome-user-agent
- paulirish 15y ago
  Hey Mike, just FYI this is now available in DevTools: http://cache.gyazo.com/1c4bc26914b409a85884147d6f9fec03.png http://cache.gyazo.com/1c4bc26914b409a85884147d6f9fec03.png

zobzu 15y ago

"Why Create a Chrome Extension? It's a great way to integrate seamlessly with a third-party site like Gmail. It in turn solves the "other site" problem, i.e., your customers don't want to go to yet another website. The Chrome Web Store is a wonderful source of traffic. All your friends are doing it. " i find the readme scary. it encourages closing the web. the rest's good - but - the intention's bad.

BenjaminCoe 15y ago
I agree in principal -- I'm not advocating that the whole internet be centralized to a few major websites. Having said that, integrating with a site like Gmail can be a good way for a small fish to get some traction.
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]

bsimpson 15y ago

The problem with extension development is that each browser does it differently. If you abstract away the browser-specific API, it's not too hard to write a cross-browser extension. Here's one that runs on both Chrome and Safari: http://code.google.com/p/marking-menu-js/source/browse/#svn%2Ftrunk http://code.google.com/p/marking-menu-js/source/browse/#svn%... Notice how it implements the important bits of Chrome's extension API in terms of Safari's: http://code.google.com/p/marking-menu-js/source/browse/trunk/safari/hostAPI.js http://code.google.com/p/marking-menu-js/source/browse/trunk... That allows you to easily port Chrome extensions over.

candeira 15y ago
It seems to me there is a need for a browser extension framework/polyfill that allows you to write code once, deploy to any browser. Would that even be possible?