Lobo Browser Plugin (Extensions) HOWTO

The Lobo Project

Lobo@SF

Lobo Browser Plugin HOWTO

Lobo can be extended via plugins written in Java (or a language compiled to .class files).

Extensible Features

Since version 0.97 of Lobo, the browser can be extended in the following ways.

Alteration of browser window: Addition and modification of top-level menues, address bar components, tool bars, and status bar components.
Clientlet selectors: You can add handlers (clientlets) for various content types. This can be leveraged to have Lobo render UI languages other than HTML. The HTML and JavaFX rendering capabilities of Lobo are implemented as clientlets.
URL protocol stream handlers: You can add protocol handler factories for protocols other than HTTP, FTP, etc.
Events: You can add listeners for various browser navigation and error events.

API

Lobo extensions have access to the standard Java API, plus the Lobo Clientlet and Extensions API.

The JAR file that accompanies this API is lobo-pub.jar, which is found in the installation directory of the Lobo browser.

Extensions are required to implement the NavigatorExtension interface.

Packaging

Extensions are packaged as JAR files, with the peculiarty that the root level of the JAR file must include an entry named lobo-extension.properties definining the following properties.

extension.class: The fully-qualified name of a class that implements NavigatorExtension.
extension.name: The name of the extension.
extension.description: A description of the extension.
extension.version: The version of the extension.
extension.priority: The priority of the extension, which is a number from 0 to 9.

Installation

As of version 0.97 of Lobo, extension JAR files are installed by copying them into the ext directory that is found in a Lobo installation.

Separate library JAR files that the extension relies on can be copied into the ext directory as well.

Each extension JAR file is loaded by a separate class loader. Libraries in the ext directory (i.e. JAR files without a lobo-extension.properties file) are all loaded by a single class loader that is the parent of all extension class loaders.

For testing purposes, the ext directory may also contain directories in place of JAR files.

Extension Priority

Each extension has a priority, which is a number from 0 to 9, as specified by the extension.priority property in lobo-extension.properties. The primary browser extension (identified as a JAR file whose name is primary.jar) is allowed to have a priority of 10.

The primary extension in Lobo is in charge of rendering HTML, images, processing downloads, showing most of the browser GUI, implementing all default menues, etc.

The API documentation indicates how priorities are used by different facilities.

Initialization Sequence

When Lobo starts up, it looks for extension JAR files by scanning the ext directory. The class specified by the extension.class property in lobo-extensions.properties is loaded, and its init() method executed. At this point the extension can register clientlet selectors, custom protocol handlers or add listeners for generic browser events.

Execution of the init() method can occur in any thread, and several extensions could have their init() methods execute concurrently.

When a Lobo window is about to be opened, the windowOpening() method is called. At this point, the extension can add menues, toolbars and other components to the browser window. Lobo invokes the windowOpening() method sequentially in order of descending extension priority.

It is possible for one extension to look up a menu added by a previously initialized extension, and add menu items to it. There is a standard identification convention for Lobo menues, as explained in the getMenu() documentation.

When a Lobo window is about to be closed, the windowClosing() method is called.

Licensing Note

While the Lobo browser and its API are released under the GPL license, and Cobra is released under a LGPL license, the clientlet and extensions API (lobo-pub.jar) is released under a FreeBSD style license. The FreeBSD license is a permissive license that is compatible with the GPL according to the FSF.

Note that the clientlet and extensions API is not dependent on any other part of the Lobo Project. Instead, the Lobo browser is an "implementor" of the API.