Custom module API

Linguist can be extended via custom modules provided by the user.

You can integrate any services in Linguist via custom modules.

The format

The custom module is plain JavaScript code that implements some API.

The last expression in that code must return the implemented API.

For example, if you implement a custom translator, it must be a constructor that implements the Translator interface.

// You can describe the class anywhere you want
class MyTranslator {
	// ...
}

// some other code may come after the declaration
console.log('Hello world');

// last expression in the code must return the translator constructor
MyTranslator;

The security

Custom modules are run in a sandboxed environment.

Technically it runs in an iframe with an isolated origin, so the browser extension API is unavailable to custom modules.

The environment provides a patched fetch object so the custom module can access any origin with no CSP concerns. So you can freely access any remote API.

Technically, fetch is proxied by a background script through the postMessage API.

Custom modules are isolated so they are generally secure enough, but as a user you must not run any random code as a Linguist custom module.

Usage

When you want to use a custom module, you simply paste the code in Linguist preferences. See the custom translator guide as an example.