Creating & Sharing Plugins for BetterWRD

Plugins are scripts often written by other people to increase or change functionality of WeAreDevs.
It's easy to create & share plugins! This guide will teach you everything you have to know.

Getting Started

First things first, create a file named plugin.bwrd.js. You'll use this file to load the plugin on BetterWRD (name must end with .bwrd.js).
This is how the script should look like:

/*
    @name My First Plugin
    @version 1.0.0
    @description My cool plugin.
    @author You
    @source https://raw.githubusercontent.com/davve77/BetterWRD-Plugins/main/plugins/plugin.bwrd.js
*/


// Your plugin's script:
console.log("Hello!");

The @source is your plugin's update link. It has to be a raw GitHub URL.

 

Requirements and additional info

The following requirements must be met for BetterWRD to register your file as a plugin:

• The file name must end with .bwrd.js
• The plugin must be contained within a single file
• Plugin name can't be changed between versions

 

How to load the plugin on BetterWRD

1. Go to BetterWRD settings
2. Click Plugins on the side menu
3. Drag & Drop your plugin on the page

 

Developing Plugins

I recommend using github.com/davve77/bwrd-plugin-dev-server for developing plugins.
It makes the process much faster and easier.

 

Using BetterWRD's own Plugin API

The API currently has 14 simple but useful functions:

bwrd.injectStyle("CSS");
bwrd.includeLibrary("URL", isModule); // Loads an external library.
bwrd.getSettings(); // Returns the plugin's settings in JSON format.
bwrd.setSettings({"setting": "value", "setting2": "value2"});
bwrd.alert("title", "content"); // Creates an alert box modal.
bwrd.confirm("content", function(choice)); // Callback parameter (choice) is a boolean based on the user's choice.
bwrd.getVersion(); // Returns the currently installed BetterWRD version number.
bwrd.getPlugin(); // Returns the plugin's name, version and source as a JSON object.
bwrd.copyToClipboard("string");
bwrd.showChangelog("Update date", ["Added ...", "Fixed ..."]); // Shows a changelog menu after the plugin is updated.
bwrd.handleErrors(function, parameters); // Wraps function in try-catch.
bwrd.stripHTML("string"); // Removes HTML tags from string.
bwrd.validateJSON("string"); // Checks if string is a valid JSON.
bwrd.getUser().then(info => console.log(info)); // Prints the user's name, avatar, reputation, join date etc.

 

How do Plugins get updated?

BetterWRD periodically checks for plugin updates every 3 hours.
If the @version number on GitHub is different than the one stored on the user's browser (and of course if the @source URL is valid), BetterWRD will create a notice bar at the bottom of the page asking the user to update the outdated plugins.

Or of course, you can do it manually from the Plugins page.

 

Distributing your Plugin to the community

How to add your plugin to the repository

1. Go to https://github.com/davve77/BetterWRD-Plugins/tree/main/plugins
2. Click Add file -> Create new file
   
   
   
   
3. Once you're done filling out the name & file contents, click Propose new file
   
   
   
   
4. Click Create pull request
   
   
   
   
5. Wait for your plugin to be manually verified. This can take up to 48 hours.

You can also share your plugin on the WeAreDevs forum.

 

Are Plugins Safe?

Plugins on this repository are thoroughly checked for malicious code before adding/updating.
However, safety is not guaranteed for plugins outside the repository.

 

Plugin Policies

Your plugin will get rejected if it breaks any of the following guidelines:

• Must not use eval() or Function constructor
• Must not use closed source libraries
• Must not access sensitive data (user tokens, passwords, etc.)
• Must not edit BetterWRD globals
• Must not collect user data without opt-in consent
• Must not attempt to modify BetterWRD functionality
  • Instead, you may open pull requests in github.com/davve77/BetterWRD
• Must not be obfuscated or minified