RSS-BOOKSTORE

Alpha — nicht produktiv getestet / Alpha — not production-tested This is an alpha release. Core features are implemented and covered by automated tests, but the extension has not been validated in sustained everyday use. Use at your own risk. For a stable, store-distributed alternative see RSS-BOOK.

RSS-BOOKSTORE is the power-user edition of RSS-BOOK: a Manifest V3 browser extension that saves RSS/Atom entries as bookmarks and can also mirror them to a Windows folder with .url files through a Native Messaging host.

RSS-BOOKSTORE ist die Power-User-Variante von RSS-BOOK: eine Manifest-V3- Browser-Erweiterung, die RSS-/Atom-Einträge als Lesezeichen speichert und sie über einen Native-Messaging-Host bidirektional mit einem Windows-Ordner synchronisieren kann.

Scope

RSS-BOOKSTORE is intended for GitHub/sideloading distribution, not for browser extension stores. The Native Messaging host requires a local registry entry, so the simpler RSS-BOOK extension remains the store-friendly version.

Features

• RSS 2.0 and Atom feed updates
• Bookmark output for Chromium browsers
• Folder output as Windows .url files
• Bidirectional sync between browser bookmarks and the export folder
• Automatic OneDrive default export path: OneDrive\RSS-BOOKSTORE
• Per-feed optional host permissions instead of blanket <all_urls>
• Native Messaging host with install, dry-run, and uninstall support
• Dark-first popup and options UI with a terminal-refined visual style and a full light-mode fallback

Requirements

• Windows 10/11
• Python available as python on PATH
• Chrome, Edge, Brave, or another Chromium browser with unpacked extensions
• PowerShell for Native Messaging host registration

Install Extension

1. Download or clone this repository.
2. Open chrome://extensions, edge://extensions, or brave://extensions.
3. Enable developer mode.
4. Choose Load unpacked and select the RSS-BOOKSTORE project folder.
5. Copy the generated extension ID from the browser extension details page.

The extension ID is required for the Native Messaging manifest. Chromium IDs are 32 lowercase letters from a to p.

Install Native Messaging Host

Open PowerShell in the project folder and replace the example ID with the ID shown by your browser:

powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\_native_host\install_nm_host.ps1 -ExtensionId aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

The installer writes _native_host\nm_manifest.generated.json and registers the host name com.file_bricks.rss_bookstore for Chrome, Edge, and Brave under HKCU by default. The manifest points to _native_host\nm_host.bat, which starts _native_host\nm_host.py with PYTHONIOENCODING=utf-8.

Preview the registry and manifest plan without writing anything:

powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\_native_host\install_nm_host.ps1 -ExtensionId aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa -DryRun

Register only selected browsers:

powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\_native_host\install_nm_host.ps1 -ExtensionId aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa -Browser Edge

Uninstall the Native Messaging registration:

powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\_native_host\install_nm_host.ps1 -ExtensionId aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa -Uninstall

Use -Scope LocalMachine only when a machine-wide registration is explicitly needed and PowerShell is running with administrator rights.

Usage

Open the extension options page to add feeds and select a sync mode:

Mode	Bookmarks	Folder	Direction
BOOKMARKS	yes	no	feed to bookmarks
FOLDER	no	yes	feed to .url files
SYNC	yes	yes	bookmarks and folder stay mirrored

In FOLDER or SYNC mode, the OneDrive-Standard button asks the Native Messaging host for the default export root and stores it in extension settings. New feeds request only their specific host permission when they are added.

Troubleshooting

• If feed updates fail with a permission error, open options and grant host access for that feed.
• If folder export does nothing, run the installer with -DryRun and verify the extension ID and browser registry target.
• If the browser was already open while installing the host, restart the browser once so it reloads Native Messaging registrations.
• If Python is not found, install Python or adjust _native_host\nm_host.bat to call the correct interpreter.

Development

There is no build step. Run the JavaScript extension tests and Python Native Messaging host tests separately:

npm.cmd test
python -m unittest discover -s tests -p "test_*.py" -v

The same checks run on GitHub Actions in the RSS-BOOKSTORE tests workflow.

npm test may be blocked by PowerShell execution policy on Windows; npm.cmd test avoids that wrapper issue.

Regenerate the extension icon PNGs from the source drawing script:

python .\scripts\generate_icons.py

This developer helper uses Pillow; it is not required for installing or running the extension.

GitHub Release ZIP

RSS-BOOKSTORE is distributed as a GitHub/sideloading ZIP. Build the package from the project root:

powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\scripts\package_github_release.ps1

Preview the release contents without creating files:

powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\scripts\package_github_release.ps1 -DryRun

The package script writes releases\v1.0.0\RSS-BOOKSTORE-1.0.0-github.zip and releases\v1.0.0\SHA256SUMS.txt. The ZIP contains the unpacked extension, the release packaging script, the Native Messaging host, _native_host\install_nm_host.ps1, and a short INSTALL_NATIVE_HOST.txt setup note. Tests, caches, generated host manifests, and prior release output are excluded.

Project Structure

RSS-BOOKSTORE/
|-- manifest.json
|-- scripts/
|   |-- generate_icons.py
|   `-- package_github_release.ps1
|-- sw.js
|-- lib/
|   |-- bookmarks.js
|   |-- native.js
|   |-- permissions.js
|   `-- sync.js
|-- ui/
|   |-- options.html
|   `-- options.js
|-- _native_host/
|   |-- favextract_core.py
|   |-- install_nm_host.ps1
|   |-- nm_host.bat
|   |-- nm_host.py
|   `-- nm_manifest.json
|-- RELEASES.md
`-- tests/

Status

Native Messaging export and bidirectional sync are implemented and covered by automated tests. The extension ships an original generated icon set and a dark-first popup/options interface. It remains an alpha sideloading build until there is sustained everyday-use validation.

Related Project / Geschwisterprojekt

Projekt	Distribution	Sync	Native Messaging
RSS-BOOK	Chrome Web Store + GitHub	Einweg (Feeds → Lesezeichen)	Nein
RSS-BOOKSTORE (dieses Projekt)	GitHub / Sideloading	Bidirektional (Lesezeichen ↔ Ordner)	Ja

RSS-BOOK is the store-friendly sibling: no Native Messaging, one-way feed-to-bookmark sync, installable from the Chrome Web Store for any Chromium browser. RSS-BOOKSTORE adds a local Windows folder mirror and bidirectional sync via a Python Native Messaging host — at the cost of a manual sideload installation.