Plugin System

OkiDoki supports a plugin system that allows you to create custom handlebars helpers without modifying the core codebase. This enables you to extend your documentation with custom functionality while keeping your setup clean and maintainable.

Quick Start

Enable plugins in your okidoki.yaml:

plugins:
  enabled: true
  directory: "plugins"  # Optional, defaults to "plugins"
  load: []              # Optional, loads all .js files if empty

Create a plugins directory in your project root:
```
mkdir plugins
```

Create a plugin file (e.g., plugins/my-helpers.js):

For ES modules projects (recommended - add "type": "module" to your package.json):

export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('uppercase', function(str) {
        return str.toUpperCase();
    });
}

For CommonJS projects (use .cjs extension):

// plugins/my-helpers.cjs
module.exports = function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('uppercase', function(str) {
        return str.toUpperCase();
    });
};

Use your helper in markdown:

# My Page

Hello {{uppercase "world"}}!

Plugin Patterns

Pattern 1: Function Export (Recommended)

The most flexible pattern - export a function that receives the handlebars instance:

// plugins/my-helpers.js
export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    // Register as many helpers as you want
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('myHelper', function(value) {
        return `Processed: ${value}`;
    });
    
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('anotherHelper', function(a, b) {
        return a + b;
    });
    
    console.log('✅ My custom helpers loaded');
}

Pattern 2: Object Export

Export an object with a helpers property:

// plugins/utilities.js
export default {
    helpers: {
        capitalize: function(str) {
            return str.charAt(0).toUpperCase() + str.slice(1);
        },
        
        truncate: function(str, length) {
            return str.length > length ? str.substring(0, length) + '...' : str;
        }
    }
};

Configuration Options

Basic Configuration

# okidoki.yaml
plugins:
  enabled: true                    # Enable/disable plugin system
  directory: "plugins"             # Directory containing plugin files

Advanced Configuration

plugins:
  enabled: true
  directory: "my-custom-plugins"   # Custom plugins directory
  load:                           # Load specific plugins only
    - "my-helpers"                # Loads my-helpers.js
    - "date-utils"                # Loads date-utils.js
    # If 'load' is empty or omitted, all .js files in directory are loaded

Example Helpers

Here are some practical examples of custom helpers you might want to create:

Date Formatting

export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('formatDate', function(date, format) {
        const d = new Date(date);
        switch(format) {
            case 'short': return d.toLocaleDateString();
            case 'long': return d.toLocaleDateString('en-US', { 
                year: 'numeric', month: 'long', day: 'numeric' 
            });
            case 'iso': return d.toISOString().split('T')[0];
            default: return d.toLocaleDateString();
        }
    });
}

Usage in markdown:

Last updated: {{raw-helper}}{{formatDate "2024-01-15" "long"}}{{/raw-helper}}

Conditional Logic

export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('ifAny', function() {
        const args = Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments);
        const options = args.pop();
        
        const hasValue = args.some(arg => !!arg);
        return hasValue ? options.fn(this) : options.inverse(this);
    });
}

Usage in markdown:

{{#ifAny author.name author.email}}
Author information available
{{else}}
No author information
{{/ifAny}}

HTML Generation

export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('youtube', function(videoId, options) {
        const width = options.hash.width || '560';
        const height = options.hash.height || '315';
        
        const html = `<iframe width="${width}" height="${height}" 
            src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/${videoId}" 
            frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>`;
            
        return new handlebarsInstance.SafeString(html);
    });
}

Usage in markdown:

{{{youtube "dQw4w9WgXcQ" width="800" height="450"}}}

Text Processing

export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('slugify', function(str) {
        return str.toLowerCase()
                  .replace(/[^\w\s-]/g, '')
                  .replace(/\s+/g, '-');
    });
    
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('excerpt', function(text, length) {
        length = length || 150;
        if (text.length <= length) return text;
        return text.substring(0, length).trim() + '...';
    });
}

Block Helpers

You can also create block helpers that process content:

export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('callout', function(type, options) {
        const content = options.fn(this);
        const alertType = type || 'info';
        
        const html = `<div class="callout callout-${alertType}">
            <div class="callout-content">${content}</div>
        </div>`;
        
        return new handlebarsInstance.SafeString(html);
    });
}

Usage in markdown:

{{#callout "warning"}}
This is important information that users should pay attention to.
{{/callout}}

Advanced Features

Accessing Context Data

Your helpers can access the current template context:

export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('siteInfo', function() {
        // Access site configuration
        const siteTitle = this.settings?.site?.title || 'Unknown';
        const baseUrl = this.baseUrl || '/';
        
        return `Site: ${siteTitle} (${baseUrl})`;
    });
}

Using External Dependencies

If your plugin needs external libraries, make sure they’re installed in your project:

// First: npm install moment
import moment from 'moment';

export default function(handlebarsInstance) {
    handlebarsInstance.registerHelper('momentDate', function(date, format) {
        return moment(date).format(format || 'MMMM Do YYYY');
    });
}

Best Practices

Error Handling: Always handle edge cases and invalid inputs
Security: Use handlebarsInstance.Utils.escapeExpression() for user content
Safe HTML: Use new handlebarsInstance.SafeString() for trusted HTML output
Naming: Use descriptive helper names that won’t conflict with built-ins
Documentation: Comment your helpers for future maintenance
Performance: Keep helpers lightweight for better build performance

Troubleshooting

Plugin Not Loading

Check that plugins.enabled: true in your okidoki.yaml
Verify the plugins directory exists and contains .js files
Check the console output for plugin loading messages
Ensure your plugin exports a function or helpers object

Helper Not Working

Verify the helper is registered (check console logs)
Test the helper with simple values first
Check for JavaScript syntax errors in your plugin file
Ensure you’re using the correct handlebars syntax in your templates

Common Issues

Module type warnings: If you see Node.js warnings about module types:
- ES modules: Add "type": "module" to your project’s package.json and use .js files
- CommonJS: Use .cjs file extension for your plugins (e.g., plugins/my-helpers.cjs)
Path issues: Plugin directory is relative to your project root (where okidoki.yaml is)
Caching: Plugins are reloaded on each build, but you may need to restart dev servers

Built-in Helpers Reference

OkiDoki comes with several built-in helpers you can reference or extend:

{{eq a b}} - Equality comparison
{{isArray value}} - Check if value is array
{{isObject value}} - Check if value is object
{{joinUrl baseUrl path}} - URL joining with slash handling
{{alert "text" "type"}} - Generate alert components
{{badge "text" "type"}} - Generate badge components
{{include "filename.html"}} - Include HTML files from assets
{{searchComponent variant="desktop"}} - Generate search components

Your custom helpers work alongside these built-in ones, giving you complete flexibility to create the documentation experience you need.