Last Chrome update (119) breaks Fauxbar 1.8.1

[Tki2000]

Fauxbar is working properly on previous Chrome versions. As soon as Chrome is updated to version 119 Fauxbar is not working anymore. The tiles page is not displayed and the address bar cannot find any typed addresses.

Javascript console shows errors about database opening in common.js:

Uncaught ReferenceError: openDatabase is not defined js/common.js, line 233 Uncaught ReferenceError: openDatabase is not defined at openDb (common.js:233:3) at populateOpenSearchMenu (chrome-extension://hibkhcnpkakjniplpfblaoikiggkopka/js/fauxbar-1.js:1215:6) at chrome-extension://hibkhcnpkakjniplpfblaoikiggkopka/js/fauxbar-1.js:1275:1 Uncaught ReferenceError: openDatabase is not defined at openDb (common.js:233:3) at logError (logerror.js:238:7)

On fauxbar.html:1

Error handling response: ReferenceError: openDatabase is not defined at openDb (chrome-extension://hibkhcnpkakjniplpfblaoikiggkopka/js/common.js:233:3) at chrome-extension://hibkhcnpkakjniplpfblaoikiggkopka/js/fauxbar-2.js:123:9

If I uninstall latest version of Chrome and reinstall previous version (110) Fauxbar works again (no data is lost). But as soon as Chrome updates it breaks completely.

Please, find a solution.

[ChrisNZL]

It seems Chromium has finally removed WebSQL in Chromium 119, which is what Fauxbar used as its core backend to manage the frecency scores and fast lookups for history and bookmark items.

Chromium apparently has some flag you can enable to re-enable WebSQL:

1. Go to chrome://flags
2. Search for websql
3. Set Allows access to WebSQL APIs to Enabled
4. Relaunch Chromium

Which seems to work.

However, since this is such a tucked-away thing now, I do not know how long this will be available.

I've unpublished Fauxbar from the Chrome Web Store for now.

I've experimented with using a basic JavaScript array as a replacement, which seemed ample, but would require rewriting and refactoring most of the extension. I would have to find motivation to do all this again. Time will tell.

[pannetron]

Chris,

You created a wonderful extension in Fauxbar thatI've used for many years! But I understand needing motivation for any sweeping rewrite needed by Google pulling WebSQL API. Would you be open to a retired software engineer pitching in to help? Or might that offer just motivate you to prevent outside "help" and fix it yourself? LOL! Anyway, let's hope re-enabling WebSQL works for a looooong time!

Best regards, thanks for Fauxbar, and take care,

Russ Panneton Nederland CO

On Wed, Nov 1, 2023 at 2:45 PM Chris McFarland @.***> wrote:

It seems Chromium has finally removed WebSQL in Chromium 119, which is what Fauxbar used as its core backend to manage the frecency scores and fast lookups for history and bookmark items.

Chromium apparently has some flag you can enable to re-enable WebSQL:

1. Go to chrome://flags
2. Search for websql
3. Set Allows access to WebSQL APIs to Enabled
4. Relaunch Chromium

Which seems to work.

However, since this is such a tucked-away thing now, I do not know how long this will be available.

I've unpublished Fauxbar from the Chrome Web Store for now.

I've experimented with using a basic JavaScript array as a replacement, which seemed ample, but would require rewriting and refactoring most of the extension. I would have to find motivation to do all this again. Time will tell.

— Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/ChrisNZL/Fauxbar/issues/75#issuecomment-1789652988, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AEN4ZEYYFIAWWJ4PS7QJ2PDYCKYF3AVCNFSM6AAAAAA6Z23FR2VHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMYTOOBZGY2TEOJYHA . You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread.Message ID: @.***>

[pbajorek]

Long time Fauxbar user. When I updated to 119 yesterday, it became obvious just how much I rely on Fauxbar. Was frustrated the rest of the day without the functionality. Thank you so much for your efforts. Will try the workaround listed and hope it lasts for a while!

[fhoshino]

Chris, You created a wonderful extension in Fauxbar thatI've used for many years! But I understand needing motivation for any sweeping rewrite needed by Google pulling WebSQL API. Would you be open to a retired software engineer pitching in to help? Or might that offer just motivate you to prevent outside "help" and fix it yourself? LOL! Anyway, let's hope re-enabling WebSQL works for a looooong time! Best regards, thanks for Fauxbar, and take care, Russ Panneton Nederland CO … On Wed, Nov 1, 2023 at 2:45 PM Chris McFarland @.> wrote: It seems Chromium has finally removed WebSQL in Chromium 119, which is what Fauxbar used as its core backend to manage the frecency scores and fast lookups for history and bookmark items. Chromium apparently has some flag you can enable to re-enable WebSQL: 1. Go to chrome://flags 2. Search for websql 3. Set Allows access to WebSQL APIs to Enabled 4. Relaunch Chromium Which seems to work. However, since this is such a tucked-away thing now, I do not know how long this will be available. I've unpublished Fauxbar from the Chrome Web Store for now. I've experimented with using a basic JavaScript array as a replacement, which seemed ample, but would require rewriting and refactoring most of the extension. I would have to find motivation to do all this again. Time will tell. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#75 (comment)>, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AEN4ZEYYFIAWWJ4PS7QJ2PDYCKYF3AVCNFSM6AAAAAA6Z23FR2VHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMYTOOBZGY2TEOJYHA . You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread.Message ID: @.>

websql will completely be removed in chrome 123

[goamn]

Long time user of Fauxbar as well. It's the only thing that made me hate Chrome a little bit less after seeing it's useless Omnibar and getting super comfortable with Firefox's amazing bar. Thanks for the amazing work Chris! Appreciate your hard work. I'm a dev as well and it definitely agree that it needs a lot of time and motivation. I don't expect anything, just came here to say thank you :)

[ChrisNZL]

websql will completely be removed in chrome 123

Thanks. Yeah, so, current version of Fauxbar will be dead completely in about 4 months from now.

I'll be testing Firefox as my main browser starting today.

Using Chrome's Omnibox again still infuriates me. Chrome does not show URLs for favorites. Doesn't bring up known history URLs I know I've been to before. And presents many search suggestions before the actual history results, sigh.

The whole point of me making Fauxbar back in 2011 was because Firefox was crashy, and Chrome was new and stable, but Chrome's Omnibox sucked. And 12 years later, still sucks.

On and off over the years, I have tried Edge, Opera, a couple of others... they just don't feel great to use. Firefox always sits as my backup / alternative browser for various use cases.

And Chrome's latest UI / theme change with the tab bar and Omnibox bar is not super great either.

I think I need a bit of time to decide if it's worth just returning to Firefox, or take a stab at refactoring a Fauxbar version 2.0.

I had a proof-of-concept going with Manifest V3 (which was going to be another nail in the coffin anyhow, as Manifest V3 changes how Chrome extensions communicate with the browser's back-end to save to local storage / local databases). I wonder if there would be some async / threading issues with trying to manipulate one JavaScript array from many tabs at the same time (like if you visited many webpages all at once, when launching the browser or opening a bookmark folder). But I suppose such issues would have to be tackled as best as possible if needed.

Really, I just need motivation, either from money (which Fauxbar makes none), or out of sheer spite to resolve an issue (Omnibox sucking). I've rejected various offers over the years from advertisers wanting me to implement their advertisement or tracking schemes into the extension...

Maybe Firefox will feel better and be stable these days.

Personally, I still struggle with coding some days... Mix of psoriatic arthritis + after effects of having a Cushing's Disease tumour for about 5 years recently (had the tumour removed last year). My body does not like cortisol... Too much brain fog comes with it. And coupled with trying to work on my computer game (Tallowmere 2), it may be hard to want to code a new Chrome extension.

There are also hidden goodies that Chrome offers, like their server-based spellcheck enhancements, and automatic page translations...

Back in 2011, it was also a time where extension monetization was not really a thing. So I didn't mind just making it for free. These days, I think I could charge like $5 or something as a one-off. Maybe. Or a $1 subscription or something. I don't know. Looks like Google's own Chrome extension monetisation support came and went recently, haha. Some extensions have their own license system. Food for thought for some motivation.

You created a wonderful extension in Fauxbar thatI've used for many years! But I understand needing motivation for any sweeping rewrite needed by Google pulling WebSQL API. Would you be open to a retired software engineer pitching in to help? Or might that offer just motivate you to prevent outside "help" and fix it yourself?

Thanks... I don't know right now. Need some time to digest of how to go forward. Firefox, or Chrome extension revamp. Is Chrome actually worth still supporting. Is the Firefox experience better than the Chrome experience these days.

[shaoran]

I'm on the same boat here, since the update my fauxbar does not work anymore. Fauxbar made chrome usable, so it's a shame to see it die it like this, but I fully understand what you mean by the loss if motivation, so I'm not expecting you to do it for free. I wanted to say thank you for that amazing extension.

At least the chrome:flags is a work around that works for the time being.

These days, I think I could charge like $5 or something as a one-off. Maybe. Or a $1 subscription or something.

I personally would pay a subscription for this extension.

[shaoran]

I've unpublished Fauxbar from the Chrome Web Store for now.

I'm so glad that I looked it up first in github because I was this close to uninstall the extension and install the extension again and reimport the settings from my backup.

How can you install an extension without the chrome web store? If I have to install fauxbar again (or an another chrome < 119), how can I install this extension when it's not the web store anymore?

Would you consider putting the extension again in the chrome web store and simply adding a note that it won't work with 119 unless you enable websql in chome:flags?

[fhoshino]

I've unpublished Fauxbar from the Chrome Web Store for now.

I'm so glad that I looked it up first in github because I was this close to uninstall the extension and install the extension again and reimport the settings from my backup.

How can you install an extension without the chrome web store? If I have to install fauxbar again (or an another chrome < 119), how can I install this extension when it's not the web store anymore?

Would you consider putting the extension again in the chrome web store and simply adding a note that it won't work with 119 unless you enable websql in chome:flags?

You need to enable developer mode in extensions page, then load unpacked extension, select the folder where you donloaded and unzipped fauxbar in

[e14mattc]

These days, I think I could charge like $5 or something as a one-off. Maybe. Or a $1 subscription or something_

I'd pay a 1-off $5, but really dislike subscriptions.

I'd also be fine with the tiled view having an unobtrusive advert tile or 2 added to it, if that meant you were getting a bit of cash for supporting the dev work.

[e14mattc]

Is the Firefox experience better than the Chrome experience these days.

IMO, no.. Chrome is still where you'll find 99% of the audience.

I've experimented with using a basic JavaScript array as a replacement, which seemed ample, but would require rewriting and refactoring most of the extension

Would it be easier to switch out the Web SQL code to use IndexedDB instead? Update; ah, I see you've considered this before, so not an easy switch :(

[shaoran]

I've unpublished Fauxbar from the Chrome Web Store for now.

I'm so glad that I looked it up first in github because I was this close to uninstall the extension and install the extension again and reimport the settings from my backup. How can you install an extension without the chrome web store? If I have to install fauxbar again (or an another chrome < 119), how can I install this extension when it's not the web store anymore? Would you consider putting the extension again in the chrome web store and simply adding a note that it won't work with 119 unless you enable websql in chome:flags?

You need to enable developer mode in extensions page, then load unpacked extension, select the folder where you donloaded and unzipped fauxbar in

I remember that I played with these settings years ago when another extension stopped working (I don't remember which one). But as far as I remember this was nor persistent meaning that you needed to repeat these steps every time you restart chrome? Am I remembering it incorrectly?

[e14mattc]

I remember that I played with these settings years ago when another extension stopped working (I don't remember which one). But as far as I remember this was nor persistent meaning that you needed to repeat these steps every time you restart chrome? Am I remembering it incorrectly?

It should persist between restarts, in fact changing the flag/setting prompts you to restart the browser for the change to take effect.

[pannetron]

I would be happy to pay a one-time fee, less happy to pay for a subscription but would still be willing.

On Fri, Nov 3, 2023 at 12:28 AM Chris McFarland @.***> wrote:

websql will completely be removed in chrome 123

Thanks. Yeah, so, current version of Fauxbar will be dead completely in about 4 months from now.

I'll be testing Firefox as my main browser starting today.

Using Chrome's Omnibox again still infuriates me. Chrome does not show URLs for favorites. Doesn't bring up known history URLs I know I've been to before. And presents many search suggestions before the actual history results, sigh.

The whole point of me making Fauxbar back in 2011 was because Firefox was crashy, and Chrome was new and stable, but Chrome's Omnibox sucked. And 12 years later, still sucks.

On and off over the years, I have tried Edge, Opera, a couple of others... they just don't feel great to use. Firefox always sits as my backup / alternative browser for various use cases.

And Chrome's latest UI / theme change with the tab bar and Omnibox bar is not super great either.

I think I need a bit of time to decide if it's worth just returning to Firefox, or take a stab at refactoring a Fauxbar version 2.0.

I had a proof-of-concept going with Manifest V3 (which was going to be another nail in the coffin anyhow, as Manifest V3 changes how Chrome extensions communicate with the browser's back-end to save to local storage / local databases). I wonder if there would be some async / threading issues with trying to manipulate one JavaScript array from many tabs at the same time (like if you visited many webpages all at once, when launching the browser or opening a bookmark folder). But I suppose such issues would have to be tackled as best as possible if needed.

Really, I just need motivation, either from money (which Fauxbar makes none), or out of sheer spite to resolve an issue (Omnibox sucking). I've rejected various offers over the years from advertisers wanting me to implement their advertisement or tracking schemes into the extension...

Maybe Firefox will feel better and be stable these days.

Personally, I still struggle with coding some days... Mix of psoriatic arthritis + after effects of having a Cushing's Disease for about 5 years recently (had the tumour removed last year). My body does not like cortisol... Too much brain fog comes with it. And coupled with trying to work on my computer game (Tallowmere 2), it may be hard to want to code a new Chrome extension.

There are also hidden goodies that Chrome offers, like their server-based spellcheck enhancements, and automatic page translations...

Back in 2011, it was also a time where extension monetization was not really a thing. So I didn't mind just making it for free. These days, I think I could charge like $5 or something as a one-off. Maybe. Or a $1 subscription or something. I don't know. Looks like Google's own Chrome extension monetisation support came and went recently, haha. Some extensions their own license system. Food for though for some motivation.

You created a wonderful extension in Fauxbar thatI've used for many years! But I understand needing motivation for any sweeping rewrite needed by Google pulling WebSQL API. Would you be open to a retired software engineer pitching in to help? Or might that offer just motivate you to prevent outside "help" and fix it yourself?

Thanks... I don't know right now. Need some time to digest of how to go forward. Firefox, or Chrome extension revamp. Is Chrome actually worth still supporting. Is the Firefox experience better than the Chrome experience these days.

— Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/ChrisNZL/Fauxbar/issues/75#issuecomment-1791944151, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AEN4ZE2NIXBS4MYFPE3PPITYCSFITAVCNFSM6AAAAAA6Z23FR2VHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMYTOOJRHE2DIMJVGE . You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: @.***>

[superkev73]

I'd also like to add my support for Fauxbar. It is essential to me because Google's address bar is just unusable. I would be willing to pay a one-time fee or donate to help fund the update

[incoog]

Since Chrome is practically unusable without Fauxbar, and I'm not willing to switch browsers, I would happily pay monthly if that enables the continued development of Fauxbar. For a one-off payment, you could charge a lot more than $5

[edisgreat]

Joining the chorus, would be 100% willing to pay for Fauxbar

[shadowmouse89]

Would definitely be willing to pay $5 dollar one off for Fauxbar. Love that it has the option to not autofill with bookmarks. If you did a go fund me id be very down to contribute.

[bohlec]

Also willing to pay or contribute to bring it back!!

[anteyk]

Fauxbar was an amazing extension - I think I used it till 2013-2015 (it's hard to remember) Without it Chrome becomes annoying and frustrating. Thank you so much, Chris, for your effort and this extremely useful extension! Hoping you will return it back. And I'm also ready to pay)

[heliedharia]

Willing to chip in as well! Chrome is the preferred browser at work, and Fauxbar makes Chrome usable!!

[fadster]

Yet another reason to ditch Chrome. It will just keep getting worse from now on.

@ChrisNZL Please consider keeping the extension on the webstore for a while longer. I have a couple old machines with an older version of Chrome that need this extension and I'd rather not enable developer mode to install it. Thanks!

[e14mattc]

Yet another reason to ditch Chrome. It will just keep getting worse from now on.

Is there a viable alternative with a 'bar' that's just as good as Fauxbar?

[e14mattc]

Chrome v123 is expected to be released in mid-March, which will completely remove the feature that Fauxbar relies on to work. Hoping we'll see a new version by then, but it doesn't seem likely given the lack of updates :(

[ChrisNZL]

Hi, sorry, due to the permanent cognitive issues from the Cushing's Disease tumour I had, it is unlikely that I will be doing any programming on this further.

My ability to think, executive function, the ability to process words/code/texts/emails/numbers... I am cognitively impaired. It is super hard for me to work. To the point that I'm on the verge of retiring from programming.

Unless some sort of medical miracle happens, I would not count on anything happening further with Fauxbar.

[e14mattc]

I'm so incredibly sorry to hear about the ongoing challenges you're facing, I can only imagine how difficult and frustrating this must be. Please know that there's no pressure to continue working on Fauxbar. Your health and happiness are far more important than any project.

We love what you did with Fauxbar & hopefully the community can carry the torch, building upon your ideas and contributions.

Sending you strength and all the best.

[pannetron]

Thank you for your update and Fauxbar and I wish you the best.

On Mon, Jan 29, 2024, 15:51 Chris McFarland @.***> wrote:

Hi, sorry, due to the permanent cognitive issues from the Cushing's Disease tumour I had, it is unlikely that I will be doing any programming on this further.

My ability to think, executive function, the ability to process words/code/texts/emails/numbers... I am cognitively impaired. It is super hard for me to work. To the point that I'm on the verge of retiring from programming.

Unless some sort of medical miracle happens, I would not count on anything happening further with Fauxbar.

— Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/ChrisNZL/Fauxbar/issues/75#issuecomment-1915541525, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AEN4ZE5OIWHYU3CTPEFMAZLYRADVXAVCNFSM6AAAAAA6Z23FR2VHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMYTSMJVGU2DCNJSGU . You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: @.***>

[mattcuk]

For anyone with any dev skills, I've got a fork of the repo set up here; https://github.com/mattcuk/Fauxbar/

There's a v2 branch where I'm committing changes to make the extension run with Manifest v3, and move it away from WebSQL for the storage engine.

So far, I've done the simple stuff.. just getting it to run without kicking out errors. I'm running it in Edge so that I don't affect my day-to-day Chrome browser.

I've never done a Chrome Extension before, so it's using copious amounts of ChatGPT to help, however it's a big extension, so I'm not sure whether I'll ever really manage it. I'm more than happy to add folks in if they want to lend a hand!

[mattcuk]

For anyone with any dev skills, I've got a fork of the repo set up here; https://github.com/mattcuk/Fauxbar/

After devoting a bit of time to this, I've deemed it way too big for me to migrate. Fauxbar is very configurable & feature-rich, so there's a tonne to convert.. and coming at this with little knowledge of Chrome Extensions, it's a huge mountain to climb.

What I then tried was setting up an extension from scratch, starting on the basics of setting/getting settings, popping up panels, and talking to the Chrome API.. that worked pretty well, and I was starting to get to grips with things. I found that talking to the Bookmarks and History API was pretty easy, but in my use-cases they offered little benefit from simply using the Omnibar.

In further testing, I checked how Omnibar behaved compared to Fauxbar, and in general it surfaced the content I expected.. I'm therefore thinking that Chrome is somewhat better at doing this than it was when I first installed Fauxbar.

So, if the Omnibar is generally fit for purpose, the only thing I'd miss is the new tab page with tiles I've configured.. I'm dealing with that by having a toolbar bookmark folder that contains the same sites I had in the tiles. It's a bit of a change to my muscle memory, but I'll get used to it.

I'd be interested to know whether you're finding the same thing (i.e. Omnibar is a lot better these days).. are there any scenarios where it's night-and-day different?

[superkev73]

I still find Omnibar fails to easily find things from my browsing history, or presents new search results above the item I want from my history. Fauxbar nearly always comes up with my desired result immediately.

I also love Fauxbar's ability to direct your searches to a specific place, like typing "y" and a query to search YouTube, or "a" and a query to search Amazon. It's just so fast and intuitive to do this. I will really miss that feature.

In short, to me, the benefit of Fauxbar is the ability to quickly and easily separate history searches from history/bookmark searches all in one box. In Fauxbar, if I want to search my history, I just type a query. If I want to search Google, I type "g" and then my query.

[hussain-nz]

For anyone with any dev skills, I've got a fork of the repo set up here; https://github.com/mattcuk/Fauxbar/

After devoting a bit of time to this, I've deemed it way too big for me to migrate. Fauxbar is very configurable & feature-rich, so there's a tonne to convert.. and coming at this with little knowledge of Chrome Extensions, it's a huge mountain to climb.

What I then tried was setting up an extension from scratch, starting on the basics of setting/getting settings, popping up panels, and talking to the Chrome API.. that worked pretty well, and I was starting to get to grips with things. I found that talking to the Bookmarks and History API was pretty easy, but in my use-cases they offered little benefit from simply using the Omnibar.

In further testing, I checked how Omnibar behaved compared to Fauxbar, and in general it surfaced the content I expected.. I'm therefore thinking that Chrome is somewhat better at doing this than it was when I first installed Fauxbar.

So, if the Omnibar is generally fit for purpose, the only thing I'd miss is the new tab page with tiles I've configured.. I'm dealing with that by having a toolbar bookmark folder that contains the same sites I had in the tiles. It's a bit of a change to my muscle memory, but I'll get used to it.

I'd be interested to know whether you're finding the same thing (i.e. Omnibar is a lot better these days).. are there any scenarios where it's night-and-day different?

Omnibar is absolute garbage 😢. It doesn't give me a website I just visited yesteday. I remember the websites domain, the websites title, I even know what Omnibar will show me (if it decides to show it). I couldn't get it to show! I tried like 5-10 combinations, nothing. I opened Fauxbar and found it in 0.1s with my first attempt. I went back to omnibar and made some obscure/retarded search and then it finally came up. Reason? It insisted on showing me "more popular" results. It's extremely flawed, it shows 5 results (less if you haven't configured it), there's only so much it can do with "smart" logic.

@mattcuk I had a look at the project and I saw a lot of deprecated methods (not just for Chrome extensions, but also for general Chromium). Am I right in saying that the only thing that needs to be updated is the websql usage? And we don't care about the other parts (for now)?

If that's the case, maybe it's doable? We can't use localstorage or indexedDB as they don't offer the query power that WebSQL comes with (thanks ChatGPT). So it looks like our only option is SQLite WASM with OPFS (as Chrome also recommends here: https://developer.chrome.com/blog/deprecating-web-sql).

So we need to change ~80 areas:

• Line 251 in common.js, the usage of opening the WebSQL database "openDatabase".
  • This needs to be rerunable, many places are calling "openDb"
• ~80 areas that call transaction and readTransaction

First step is to try out SQLIte WASM OPFS and see how to open a database and do a transaction. I checked a lot of the SQL operations and I can see they all exist (CREATE INDEX, ALTER TABLE). The only caveat is VACUUM, it might run for "too long" so we might need extra logic there.

[ChrisNZL]

The whole Manifest V3 makes the back-and-forth message passing annoying, compared to V2.

I believe IndexedDB is transactional, so wouldn't have to worry about clashing inserts. But IndexedDB is not like MySQL, so if you want SQL-like queries, you would need a third-party JavaScript plugin.

For now, I have settled with telling Chrome's options to only search history and bookmarks:

1. Go to chrome://settings/syncSetup
2. Disable "Improve search suggestions"

This at least shows pretty okay results without the unhelpful suggestions.

I have tried Firefox but it still crashes sometimes, so I am sticking with Chrome.

I couldn't get Firefox to add websites' search boxes to its search thing. It just feels behind the times.

And yeah, the more I read about Cushing's, it typically damages the prefrontal cortex, which explains my inability to think great. I've been trying to fix a PHP bug in my other project; it's been 3 days now trying to fix. Complex stuff is beyond me now unfortunately.

Attached, please find some work I was doing back in 2022, to get compatible with Manifest V3. I don't really remember how far I got, but maybe it will help. Fauxbar 2022-05-21 (localOptions refactor work WIP).zip

[mattcuk]

I also love Fauxbar's ability to direct your searches to a specific place, like typing "y" and a query to search YouTube, or "a" and a query to search Amazon. It's just so fast and intuitive to do this. I will really miss that feature.

Fyi, you can do this natively in Chrome using 'Site search'.. here's how you can set it up for Amazon;

As soon as you type a followed by a tab or space, it turns the Omnibar into an Amazon-specific search, e.g.

I have this working with a bunch of my work-based sites too & it's great for finding Jira tickets :)

[mattcuk]

Attached, please find some work I was doing back in 2022, to get compatible with Manifest V3. I don't really remember how far I got, but maybe it will help. Fauxbar 2022-05-21 (localOptions refactor work WIP).zip

Thanks for posting that Chris.. I'm sure that'll be really helpful.

[mattcuk]

Fyi, I here's where I started from scratch; I was going to strip it back to bare-bones & just have it concentrate on the search piece, rather than all the (amazing) options for a tiled new tab page that Fauxbar currently has.

https://github.com/mattcuk/fauxbarRedux

You'll see my experiments with saving to storage at the top, followed by a search box which will look through Bookmarks and History for whatever you type in;

The boxes fill up with results, and the number shown on the left is the frequency of your visits that History has for the site. That's where I started to see the Omnibar wasn't do as bad a job as I remember it did years ago. Your mileage may vary.

[superkev73]

Fyi, you can do this natively in Chrome using 'Site search'.. here's how you can set it up for Amazon;

Thanks Matt. This is helpful!

[mattcuk]

I've noticed Omnibar still isn't great.. in this example it's not showing something that's absolutely in my History;

And I can see it if I use Fauxbar Redux, which simply searches History + Bookmarks;

So maybe Fauxbar Redux does have some value if I put a bit more time into it. It won't be as fancy as Fauxbar was, or use the ranking algorithm, but in general I don't think it'll need to.. the results from using the Chrome APIs are good enough & I could sort by views and/or last accessed date.

I'll see what I can do when I have more time.

[mattcuk]

For anyone interested in trying it out, I've made some progress with my attempt at a Fauxbar replacement. Tentative name is OmniRedux. I've been able to get it to give you some good browse history results direct in the Chrome 'omnibox'..

Here's how it looks (triggered by typing 'f' followed by a tab or space);

You can also access it using the extension icon and type into the input box.. results for that come from bookmarks at the top, and browse history at the bottom. Double-clicking an entry will load the page.

At this stage, even without fancy algorithmic sorting or whatever it's actually doing a good job at surfacing what I need & goes further than the entries you get in the standard Chrome omnibox.

Give it a try if you like from this repo (which I will likely rename at some point in the future);

https://github.com/mattcuk/fauxbarRedux/

[mattcuk]

For anyone interested, I've published an extension (I've previously called FauxbarRedux) called OmniHistoryPlus which searches your browser history much the same as Fauxbar managed to do;

https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/omnihistoryplus/efahmnlmeplhbbbmoaemnhbolipglhpm

Source code is in GitHub here;

https://github.com/mattcuk/OmniHistoryPlus

In future versions I'm planning to extend the functionality to surface 1-2 bookmarks, 1-2 matching open tabs, and make these options configurable. Beyond this, I'm keeping it lean & focused on searching via the omnibar.

[devkev]

The chrome://flags/#web-sql-access override is still available in Chrome 123.0.6312.105 (on Linux, at least).

[fadster]

@mattcuk Awesome, thank you! I was wondering, would it be possible to add thumbnails for frequent/pinned sites to the new tab page in a future update?

EDIT: I just noticed your extension works directly from the existing browser's omni bar, so this feature would need to replace the new tab page altogether as Fauxbar did. Perhaps this is beyond the scope of what you're planning?

[mattcuk]

@fadster Yes, when I realised how easy it was to integrate with the existing omni bar I did that rather than create a new tab replacement page.

Google allow you to do a frequent/pinned sites on their standard new tab page, so I thought that would suit most people & didn't require any dev work :) Here's how mine looks;

It doesn't mean that someone couldn't add that functionality to OmniHistoryPlus (or putting a search box to that page), but it's beyond the scope of what I needed to implement to simply get at the full browse history with the minimum of effort.

[fadster]

@mattcuk Thanks for the info! I'm familiar with the tiles on Chrome's new tab page but I much prefer Fauxbar's thumbnails with dynamic page previews. Also, I really dislike the omnibar's behavior of opening a new page upon hitting shift-enter, which I unfortunately tend to do often by accident. Fauxbar treats shift-enter as enter so it provided much relief from that pesky behavior.

[mattcuk]

@mattcuk Thanks for the info! I'm familiar with the tiles on Chrome's new tab page but I much prefer Fauxbar's thumbnails with dynamic page previews. Also, I really dislike the omnibar's behavior of opening a new page upon hitting shift-enter, which I unfortunately tend to do often by accident. Fauxbar treats shift-enter as enter so it provided much relief from that pesky behavior.

When I started to look into writing Chrome Extensions, it's quite straight forward to add a page that opens on a new tab instead of the browser default. That page would be powered by HTML, CSS and JavaScript, so it's not a huge undertaking.. it's just a lot of faffy work to create the UI & a way to edit the options, etc. Some of that could be a lift-and-shift from Fauxbar.

If someone would like to take that on & submit a pull request on the OmniHistoryPlus repo I'd be more than happy to review it. Then if it looks good I'll publish a new release & get it on the Chrome Web Store.