I know how to manually enable panels in Chrome.
I have written a chrome extensions that uses panels. Unfortunately users have to enable that manually first.
chrome.windows.create({type:"panel", url: temp, width:pos.w,height:pos.h, top:pos.top, left:pos.left}, function (_win) {
win = _win.id;
});
Question: is it possible to have panel feature enabled for an extension WITHOUT having to do that manually?
You can't from within an extension, period.
Chrome flags are experimental features and you should never assume that they are present.
If you have some sort of external installer, you could modify Chrome's shortcuts to include the --enable-panels flag; but that's considered browser hijacking and is unreliable (Google constantly pushes against malware that uses similar techniques).
At least with chrome.tabs.create you can specifically open chrome://flags/#enable-panels after explaining to your user to enable it.
It isn't documented yet, but panels are enabled by default for Chrome OS apps since 45. You will need to split functionality and use external messaging. On other systems, you can fallback to an alwaysOnTop window (alwaysOnTopWindows permission). You will need to put it in the lower right yourself.
chrome.app.window.create("test.html", { alwaysOnTop: true, type: "panel" })
Related
I'm working on a project where I need to see the page I'm working on without any extension injected code messing up what I see. I want to know if I can create, or if there is currently, an extension that disables all other extensions for xyz page.
No, extensions can only disable other extensions entirely by using chrome.management.setEnabled API. It's like the on/off switch in chrome://extensions page.
The only way to exclude a certain site from being affected by all or some extensions is to add ExtensionSettings policy with runtime_blocked_hosts that contains that site. Note that the entire site is disabled, not just a single URL. Example: {"*": {"runtime_blocked_hosts": ["*://lastpass.com"]}}
A simple workaround for your use case may be to open that page in an incognito window or even in a new browser profile without extensions: click your avatar icon in the toolbar to access the profile tools where you can create and then open a new profile.
I want to add a button to my visual C++ form that will open with a specific browser. So far for links I've been using:
System::Diagnostics::Process::Start("UrlHere")
Which, as standard, opens with whatever your default browser is.
I'm wondering what the process would be to force the URL to open with a specific browser and if it's possible without the use of ShellExecute?
Edit - You are correct, this is C++/CLI. Removed the C++ Tag.
Edit Edit - Apologies if it came across as misleading. Some slight elaboration;
The buttons will launch to application URL's, some of which can only be used in Internet Explorer, others that CAN (and should) be used in Chrome. This is why I need to avoid using the default browser and have different buttons using different browsers when launching URLs
Before answering the 'how', I'd like to ask the question "should you be implementing this?"
By not launching the user's default browser, you are subverting the user's decision.
Perhaps the user prefers a particular interface, and is willing to live with the incorrect renderings that come with it.
Perhaps the user has a browser addon that they really need, such as a screen reader for the blind.
You are requiring additional software installed that the user may or may not want.
Perhaps the user doesn't want Chrome. Perhaps the user prefers FireFox.
You are saying that you know which browser is best, now and forever.
What if the next version of IE makes it work with the sites that are currently Chrome-only? What if the next version of Chrome fixes the sites that are currently IE-only?
What if the site changes so that it works in more browsers?
Do you go back and release a new version of your software that changes the browser for particular sites?
You're trying to solve a problem that may already be fixed.
Both Chrome and Firefox support a addon that will render a tab using the IE engine. It can be set to automatically activate when certain URLs are seen.
Perhaps there is a browser that already works with all your sites, that you don't know about.
Therefore, my recommendation is no, do not do this. The user has decided which browser they want to use, respect that decision and use the default browser.
That said, here's how you would do it: You could use the CreateProcess method, but you're in managed-land, so you might as well use it. Use the Process class to launch the new process for you.
Process^ browserProcess = gcnew Process();
browserProcess->StartInfo->UseShellExecute = false;
browserProcess->StartInfo->FileName = "C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Internet Explorer\\iexplore.exe";
browserProcess->StartInfo->Arguments = "http://www.google.com";
browserProcess->Start();
I'm diving into the world of Chrome Extension development, primarily because there is a very small feature that is missing in Chrome that I miss dearly. The context-menu option to "Set as background/wallpaper" like that found in Firefox. Sounds trivial, but it's convenient.
I have most of the "basic" stuff worked out with the manifest file, am able to install it, even managed to get it to show up as a context menu item.
The problem obviously is that I am wanting to mess with a user's OS-level settings which is extremely difficult because of security issues (fully understand this).
I found an extension that allowed this in older versions of Chrome, and it looked like the developer used some type of .dll and C++ to accomplish this.
I'm not really sure how to make this work.
Since that Chrome doesn't allow these kind of manipulations (such as your PC's settings), you will need to create a native application that will run beside your extension. When the user chooses the image from your extension and selects "use as wallpaper", you will use the native messaging API to send a message to your desktop application, that will set the wallpaper (and do whatever else you can't do within a chrome extension) for you.
You can use the chrome.wallpaper app api to set the wallpaper after using the messaging api to send the image from your extension.
Is it possible to create system hotkeys/shortcuts for Google Chrome Extension? I mean hotkeys that also works when Chrome doesn't have focus.
Yes, but it won't be trivial. To get truly global hotkeys you will have to use native messaging. You will need to create some application to run in the background and capture keypresses and then you can send those keypresses back to Chrome through stdout. This approach will require you to create an additional installer for your extension to install the native messaging app onto the user's system...before you could bundle your app along with the extension (using NPAPI) but that has recently been phased out. I have seen some discussion in the Chromium group about adding bundling support for native messaging apps, but nothing has been added (yet).
Another much easier option is to use the Chrome commands API which will enable you to use hotkeys across all Chrome windows (but not globally...). Just something to consider if "true" global hotkeys are not an absolute requirement since this approach is (much) less complex.
Global media keys will be added to Chrome soon, however. There is a good discussion about this feature to read here.
It's now part of Chrome: chrome://extensions/shortcuts
Is it possible to create a browser extension that would allow page-controlled window opacity? Not so that various elements on the page are of a given opacity, but to allow one to see other windows (like the desktop) behind the browser page.
Thank you.
No, this is not possible in an extension. Such transparency would be handled at the window manager level, and would require platform-specific code. This means that either Chrome would have to add this feature and expose it as an extension API (currently no such feature exists), or you would have to write a plugin.