Function roles
A package can contain functions that get discovered and integrated with the platform at runtime. Typically, each function type has a special tag denoting what the function does, for example:
#app
for applications#dashboard
for dashboards#panel
for info panels#init
for package initialization#autostart
for automatic execution at platform startup#semTypeDetector
for semantic types detectors#cellRenderer
for custom cell renderers#fileViewer
and#fileExporter
for file viewers and exporters#packageSettingsEditor
for settings editors
You can use these tags to search for certain functions either from the platform's interface (https://public.datagrok.ai/functions?q) or from within your code:
const applications = DG.Func.find({tags: [DG.FUNC_TYPES.APP]});
TIP To disable all package functions (for debug purposes), use the
initPackageFunctions=false
flag in the start URL, such as
https://public.datagrok.ai?initPackageFunctions=false
.
Applications
Applications are functions tagged with the #app
tag. Use datagrok-tools
to get
a template:
cd <package-name>
grok add app <name>
Details: How to build an application
Info panels
Functions tagged as #panel
extend the context panel with additional content for the current object.
Use datagrok-tools
to get a template:
cd <package-name>
grok add function panel <name>
grok add script panel <language> <name>
Details: How to add an info panel
Package initialization
init
function gets invoked before the first time any of the package functions is invoked. This is a good place to
initialize some common structures
(load WebAssembly, fetch files) that some of exposed functions use. It gets invoked at most once.
Use datagrok-tools
to get a template:
cd <package-name>
grok add function init <packageName>Init
See also autostart.
Autostart
autostart
function get invoked at platform startup. It starts immediately if it is tagged
as meta.autostartImmediate: true
, otherwise it starts three seconds later.
Use the meta.autostartImmediate: true
mode is good to subscribe to global events, change some default settings, or
change the UI right at the platform start. The default mode is good for preloading popular big packages (for instance,
Chem package preloads to eliminate the delays when a user opens a file with molecules). Keep in mind that some packages
are big, and unless the autostart
function resides in the detectors.js
file, the whole content of the package gets
loaded, so use this option wisely.
The autostart
function can reside in the detectors.js
file, in which case full package content is not loaded. You
might want to use it to quickly add some menu items or start listening to some events, and then you can load the full
package only when a user launches that functionality.
If the autostart
function is defined in the package where the init
is also defined, the init
function gets executed first. No one awaits on the autostart
function. You might have
zero, one, or more autostart
functions in a package.
Example from the PowerPack plugin that introduces a "Welcome" view at startup:
//name: welcomeView
//tags: autostart
//meta.autostartImmediate: true
export function _welcomeView(): void {
if (_properties['showWelcomeView'])
welcomeView();
}
Semantic type detectors
Functions that define semantic types have the #semTypeDetector
tag. Use datagrok-tools
to get a template:
cd <package-name>
grok add detector <semantic-type-name>
Details: How to define semantic type detectors
Cell renderers
Cell renderers allow customizing the appearance of cells in the grid. These functions
are annotated with two special tags: cellRenderer
and cellRenderer-<type>
.
Details: How to develop custom cell renderers
File viewers
File viewers are used in Datagrok's file share browser. The platform provides a way
to define custom viewers (or editors) in addition to the native ones. These functions work on files with a specific
extension, which is derived from the fileViewer-<extension>
tag.
Details: How to develop custom file viewers
File exporters
A file exporter is a function used for loading data from the platform. It is annotated with the #fileExporter
tag.
Exporters reside in the platform's top menu "export" section.
Details: How to create file exporters
Settings editors
Settings editors work with package properties and define how they will be displayed in
the Settings
pane of the context panel. An editor function should return a widget (DG.Widget
) and be tagged as
#packageSettingsEditor
.