docs-plus

A library for rich Google Docs extensions that can integrate with its editor.

Skip to the Quickstart

Update

Apparently Google is making significant changes to the Docs editor, so this will likely stop working in the next few months.

History

Docs+ was originally built for Action, an add-on that simplified action item tracking during Google Docs meetings, about two years ago with @adhivd and @wwilliamsshan. Action no longer exists, and I realize that (as far as I can tell) there isn't another good Docs-integration library, so I figured someone else might find use in this part of the Action code.

License

All code in this repository is licensed under the MIT license.

If you're having trouble using any of the code (or doing anything with Docs, particularly something Action used to do) feel free to reach out! I went through a lot of trial and error with Action and might be able to point you in the right direction.

Demos/examples

• A test add-on (manifest.json and test.js) is included in this repository that acts as a set of usage examples and test cases for Docs+. Once loaded as a library in Chrome or Firefox, you can start the test by opening a Google Doc and typing alt+r.
• Action was the origin of Docs+. It allows users to easily add action items to a shared 'follow-up list' that gets sent to all attendees by email after the meeting. It is deeply integrated with the editor, and does a great job of showing off what Docs-integrated extensions are capable of.
• Speechless uses the Docs+ library to predict time-to-speak for a user's selected text. This could be useful, for example, when writing a time-limited speech or presentation.
• Docs-Vim uses the Docs+ library to add a basic set of Vim keybindings to Google Docs.

Quickstart

The test add-on can act as a template for using Docs+. Clone this repository, then modify manifest.json and test.js to build your add-on!

Browser Support

Docs+ should support modern versions of Firefox and Chrome. Tested in Firefox 68.0.1 and Chrome 76.0.3809.100.

Screenshots

Docs+ allows you to interact with the user's text in the Google Docs Kix editor. A few screenshots of extensions using Docs+:

Rich interactions with the editor:

Adding custom buttons to Docs:

Using the user's selected text:

Interacting with Docs menus: