Extension Template

Quick start and create a new Phoenix Code node.js extension by using this template. This template extension works in browser as well as desktop builds. In browser, it will not use node, and node.js based functionalities are not available. Desktop builds will use node capabilities.

In desktop builds, there is an additional capability to execute node.js code. This is helpful if you want to extend the functionality of Phoenix Code using the vast npm library.

For creating extensions that do not need node, follow this link: https://github.com/phcode-dev/extension-template

Setting up node extensions

In package.json, add the following section

{
    "nodeConfig": {
        "nodeIsRequired": false,
        "main": "node/index.js",
        "npmInstall": "node/"
    }
}

nodeConfig Object

The nodeConfig object indicates that this is a Node extension.

nodeIsRequired Field

• Set this field to true if the extension relies on Node and won't function without it.
• If set to false or omitted, the extension can still be loaded in browser versions of Phoenix code without Node support, But will use node in native builds.
• It will be shown in the extension manager dialog in browser builds as well.

main Field

• Specifies the main entry point for the Node.js component of the extension.
• Should point to the main JavaScript file for the Node part of the extension.
• Example: "main": "node/index.js"

npmInstall Field (Optional)

• Specifies the path to run npm install when the user installs the extension from the extension manager.
• It's advisable not to package node_modules inside the extension. Only the package lock file should be distributed.
• Example: "npmInstall": "node/"

Communicating between node.js and Phoenix Code

NodeConnector-API

create NodeConnector-API to call functions and send events between your node.js and Phoenix Code extension components.

• This is available as a global object global.createNodeConnector. See above link for API docs.
• Another API - EventDispatcher-API is also available in the global context as global.EventDispatcher for event trigger/listen within node.

Using this template

Follow the below 4 steps to start using this template:

Refer this link for detailed extension documentation after following the below steps:

step 1

Login with GitHub: https://github.com/login

step 2

Create a new repository using this template.

step 3

• Clone your GitHub Repo created from step 2. See this link to lean how to clone a repository from GitHub.
• Edit package.json file in template, make sure to update the following fields accordingly:

Field	Description
title	Replace "Name of the extension" with the actual title of your extension.
name	Change github-<owner>-<repo> to your specific package name, formatted as github-yourusername-reponame.
description	Update to a brief, relevant description of what your extension does.
version	Start with "0.0.1" or update to reflect your current version following semantic versioning.
license	Confirm "MIT" is suitable or specify another license if necessary.
author	Replace with your name and a link to your GitHub profile or another URL.
homepage	Set to the URL of your project’s homepage or GitHub repository.
engines	Ensure compatibility with the required Brackets version, e.g., ">=3.0.0".
categories	Update "demo" with relevant categories that fit your extension.
keywords	Update or append additional keywords that describe your extension.
files	Ensure this includes all necessary files and folders for your extension.

step 4

• Go to https://create.phcode.dev .This is a special development centric website of phcode.dev which shows non minified js/css files in the browser developer tools.
• Open the cloned folder and select Debug > Load Project As Extension

• You can now make code changes to your extension and select Debug> Reload With Extensions to test the new code changes.
• When you are done developing the extension/theme, select Debug> Unload Project As Extension to unload the extension.

Detailed Documentation

Please go to https://docs.phcode.dev/api/creating-extensions for more documentation/community support links.

Publishing your extension to the repository

Once you have built your extension/theme, you can publish the extension to phcode.dev extension repository in a single step directly from this repo. Please see publish section in this link for more details: Publishing extension and themes