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48 lines
2.9 KiB
Markdown
48 lines
2.9 KiB
Markdown
# Getting started with plugin development
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In this article you will learn the basic steps to build and test a plugin in Joplin.
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## Setting up your environment
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First you need to setup your environment:
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- Make sure you have [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/) and [git](https://git-scm.com) installed.
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- Install Joplin and run it in development mode.
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You will also need to have Joplin installed and running in development mode, which we'll describe later.
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But first install Yeoman and the Joplin Plugin Generator:
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npm install -g yo generator-joplin
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Then to create the plugin, run:
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yo joplin
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This will create the basic scafolding of the plugin. At the root of it, there is a number of configuration files which you normally won't need to change. Then the `src/` directory will contain your code. By default, the project uses TypeScript, but you are free to use plain JavaScript too - eventually the project is compiled to plain JS in any case.
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The `src/` directory also contains a [manifest.json](https://github.com/laurent22/joplin/blob/dev/readme/api/references/plugin_manifest/) file, which you can edit to set various information about the plugin, such as its name, homepage URL, etc.
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## Building the plugin
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The file `src/index.ts` already contain some basic code meant for testing the plugin. In particular it contains a call to [joplin.plugins.register](https://joplinapp.org/api/references/plugin_api/classes/joplinplugins.html), which all plugins should call to register the plugin. And an `onStart()` event handler, which will be executed by Joplin when the plugin starts.
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To try this basic plugin, compile the app by running the following from the root of the project:
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npm run dist
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Doing so should compile all the files into the `dist/` directory. This is from here that Joplin will load the plugin.
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## Testing the plugin
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In order to test the plugin, you might want to run Joplin in [Development Mode](https://github.com/laurent22/joplin/blob/dev/readme/api/references/development_mode/). Doing so means that Joplin will run using a different profile, so you can experiment with the plugin without risking to accidentally change or delete your data.
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Finally, in order to test the plugin, open the Setting screen, then navigate the the **Plugins** section, and add the plugin path in the **Development plugins** text field. For example, if your plugin project path is `/home/user/src/joplin-plugin`, add this in the text field.
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Restart the app, and Joplin should load the plugin and execute its `onStart` handler. If all went well you should see the test message in the plugin console: "Test plugin started!".
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# Next steps
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- You might want to check the [plugin tutorial](https://github.com/laurent22/joplin/blob/dev/readme/api/tutorials/toc_plugin.md) to get a good overview of how to create a complete plugin and how to use the plugin API.
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- For more information about the plugin API, check the [Plugin API reference](https://joplinapp.org/api/references/plugin_api/classes/joplin.html).
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