How Can I Develop Browser Plugins for Chrome, Safari, and Opera Using NPAPI?

Creating Browser Plugins with NPAPI for Chrome, Safari, and Opera

Developing browser plugins for Windows using C requires a different approach from creating extensions or add-ons. Plugins, like Flash and Adobe Reader, handle specific content types and integrate deeply within browsers.

Using NPAPI

Network Plugin Application Programming Interface (NPAPI) is the underlying technology for developing plugins for Chrome, Safari, and Opera. While both Firefox and Chrome plan to phase out NPAPI support, it remains the standard for creating true plugins.

Getting Started with NPAPI

To begin developing NPAPI plugins, start with these resources:

• [MDC plugin section](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Plugins)
• [Three-part NPAPI tutorial](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/NPAPI_Tutorial)
• [Memory management in NPAPI](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Plugin_development_guide/Memory_management)
• [npsimple](https://github.com/pwnall/npsimple) - A simple "Hello World" NPAPI plugin
• [npapi-sdk](https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromium/src/ /main/third_party/npapi/sdk/) - Canonical NPAPI headers
• [Mozilla's test plugin](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/tools/plugin-test) - For finding specific NPAPI use cases

Tools and Frameworks

NPAPI can be complex, but numerous tools and frameworks can assist you:

• FireBreath: Cross-browser, cross-platform plugin framework
• Nixysa: Generates glue-code for NPAPI plugins
• JUCE: Application framework with plugin support
• QtBrowserPlugin: Qt-based plugin framework

Remember to consider alternatives to NPAPI, such as Google Chrome Extensions or WebAssembly, for future compatibility.

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