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     19   <title>Content Scripts - Google Chrome Extensions - Google Code</title></head>
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     29 
     30         <!-- VALUE -->
     31         <div id="valueTemplate">
     32           <dt>
     33             <var>paramName</var>
     34               <em>
     35 
     36                 <!-- TYPE -->
     37                 <div style="display:inline">
     38                   (
     39                     <span class="optional">optional</span>
     40                     <span class="enum">enumerated</span>
     41                     <span id="typeTemplate">
     42                       <span>
     43                         <a> Type</a>
     44                       </span>
     45                       <span>
     46                         <span>
     47                           array of <span><span></span></span>
     48                         </span>
     49                         <span>paramType</span>
     50                         <span></span>
     51                       </span>
     52                     </span>
     53                   )
     54                 </div>
     55 
     56               </em>
     57           </dt>
     58           <dd class="todo">
     59             Undocumented.
     60           </dd>
     61           <dd>
     62             Description of this parameter from the json schema.
     63           </dd>
     64           <dd>
     65             This parameter was added in version
     66             <b><span></span></b>.
     67             You must omit this parameter in earlier versions,
     68             and you may omit it in any version.  If you require this
     69             parameter, the manifest key
     70             <a href="manifest.html#minimum_chrome_version">minimum_chrome_version</a>
     71             can ensure that your extension won't be run in an earlier browser version.
     72           </dd>
     73 
     74           <!-- OBJECT PROPERTIES -->
     75           <dd>
     76             <dl>
     77               <div>
     78                 <div>
     79                 </div>
     80               </div>
     81             </dl>
     82           </dd>
     83 
     84           <!-- OBJECT METHODS -->
     85           <dd>
     86             <div></div>
     87           </dd>
     88 
     89           <!-- OBJECT EVENT FIELDS -->
     90           <dd>
     91             <div></div>
     92           </dd>
     93 
     94           <!-- FUNCTION PARAMETERS -->
     95           <dd>
     96             <div></div>
     97           </dd>
     98 
     99         </div> <!-- /VALUE -->
    100 
    101         <div id="functionParametersTemplate">
    102           <h5>Parameters</h5>
    103           <dl>
    104             <div>
    105               <div>
    106               </div>
    107             </div>
    108           </dl>
    109         </div>
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    117     <!-- API HEADER -->
    118     <table id="header" width="100%" cellspacing="0" border="0">
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    120         <td valign="middle"><a href="http://code.google.com/"><img src="images/code_labs_logo.gif" height="43" width="161" alt="Google Code Labs" style="border:0; margin:0;"></a></td>
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    126               <input type="text" name="q" value="" size="55">
    127               <input class="gsc-search-button" type="submit" name="sa" value="Search">
    128               <br>
    129               <span class="greytext">e.g. "page action" or "tabs"</span>
    130             </div>
    131           </form>
    132 
    133           <script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.google.com/jsapi"></script>
    134           <script type="text/javascript">google.load("elements", "1", {packages: "transliteration"});</script>
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    140 
    141     <div id="codesiteContent" class="">
    142 
    143       <a id="gc-topnav-anchor"></a>
    144       <div id="gc-topnav">
    145         <h1>Google Chrome Extensions (<a href="http://code.google.com/labs/">Labs</a>)</h1>
    146         <ul id="home" class="gc-topnav-tabs">
    147           <li id="home_link">
    148             <a href="index.html" title="Google Chrome Extensions home page">Home</a>
    149           </li>
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    151             <a href="docs.html" title="Official Google Chrome Extensions documentation">Docs</a>
    152           </li>
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    154             <a href="faq.html" title="Answers to frequently asked questions about Google Chrome Extensions">FAQ</a>
    155           </li>
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    157             <a href="samples.html" title="Sample extensions (with source code)">Samples</a>
    158           </li>
    159           <li id="group_link">
    160             <a href="http://groups.google.com/a/chromium.org/group/chromium-extensions" title="Google Chrome Extensions developer forum">Group</a>
    161           </li>
    162         </ul>
    163       </div> <!-- end gc-topnav -->
    164 
    165     <div class="g-section g-tpl-170">
    166       <!-- SIDENAV -->
    167       <div class="g-unit g-first" id="gc-toc">
    168         <ul>
    169           <li><a href="getstarted.html">Getting Started</a></li>
    170           <li><a href="overview.html">Overview</a></li>
    171           <li><a href="whats_new.html">What's New?</a></li>
    172           <li><h2><a href="devguide.html">Developer's Guide</a></h2>
    173             <ul>
    174               <li>Browser UI
    175                 <ul>
    176                   <li><a href="browserAction.html">Browser Actions</a></li>
    177                   <li><a href="contextMenus.html">Context Menus</a></li>
    178                   <li><a href="notifications.html">Desktop Notifications</a></li>
    179                   <li><a href="omnibox.html">Omnibox</a></li>
    180                   <li><a href="options.html">Options Pages</a></li>
    181                   <li><a href="override.html">Override Pages</a></li>
    182                   <li><a href="pageAction.html">Page Actions</a></li>
    183                 </ul>
    184               </li>
    185               <li>Browser Interaction
    186                 <ul>
    187                   <li><a href="bookmarks.html">Bookmarks</a></li>
    188                   <li><a href="cookies.html">Cookies</a></li>
    189                   <li><a href="events.html">Events</a></li>
    190                   <li><a href="history.html">History</a></li>
    191                   <li><a href="management.html">Management</a></li>
    192                   <li><a href="tabs.html">Tabs</a></li>
    193                   <li><a href="windows.html">Windows</a></li>
    194                 </ul>
    195               </li>
    196               <li>Implementation
    197                 <ul>
    198                   <li><a href="a11y.html">Accessibility</a></li>
    199                   <li><a href="background_pages.html">Background Pages</a></li>
    200                   <li class="leftNavSelected">Content Scripts</li>
    201                   <li><a href="xhr.html">Cross-Origin XHR</a></li>
    202                   <li><a href="idle.html">Idle</a></li>
    203                   <li><a href="i18n.html">Internationalization</a></li>
    204                   <li><a href="messaging.html">Message Passing</a></li>
    205                   <li><a href="npapi.html">NPAPI Plugins</a></li>
    206                 </ul>
    207               </li>
    208               <li>Finishing
    209                 <ul>
    210                   <li><a href="hosting.html">Hosting</a></li>
    211                   <li><a href="external_extensions.html">Other Deployment Options</a></li>
    212                 </ul>
    213               </li>
    214             </ul>
    215           </li>
    216           <li><h2><a href="apps.html">Packaged Apps</a></h2></li>
    217           <li><h2><a href="tutorials.html">Tutorials</a></h2>
    218             <ul>
    219               <li><a href="tut_debugging.html">Debugging</a></li>
    220               <li><a href="tut_analytics.html">Google Analytics</a></li>
    221               <li><a href="tut_oauth.html">OAuth</a></li>
    222             </ul>
    223           </li>
    224           <li><h2>Reference</h2>
    225             <ul>
    226               <li>Formats
    227                 <ul>
    228                   <li><a href="manifest.html">Manifest Files</a></li>
    229                   <li><a href="match_patterns.html">Match Patterns</a></li>
    230                 </ul>
    231               </li>
    232               <li><a href="permission_warnings.html">Permission Warnings</a></li>
    233               <li><a href="api_index.html">chrome.* APIs</a></li>
    234               <li><a href="api_other.html">Other APIs</a></li>
    235             </ul>
    236           </li>
    237           <li><h2><a href="samples.html">Samples</a></h2></li>
    238           <div class="line"> </div>
    239           <li><h2>More</h2>
    240             <ul>
    241               <li><a href="http://code.google.com/chrome/webstore/docs/index.html">Chrome Web Store</a></li>
    242               <li><a href="http://code.google.com/chrome/apps/docs/developers_guide.html">Hosted Apps</a></li>
    243               <li><a href="themes.html">Themes</a></li>
    244             </ul>
    245           </li>
    246         </ul>
    247       </div>
    248       <script>
    249         initToggles();
    250       </script>
    251 
    252     <div class="g-unit" id="gc-pagecontent">
    253       <div id="pageTitle">
    254         <h1 class="page_title">Content Scripts</h1>
    255       </div>
    256         <!-- TABLE OF CONTENTS -->
    257         <div id="toc">
    258           <h2>Contents</h2>
    259           <ol>
    260             <li>
    261               <a href="#registration">Manifest</a>
    262               <ol>
    263                 <li>
    264                   <a href="#include-exclude-globs">Include and exclude globs</a>
    265                 </li>
    266               </ol>
    267             </li><li>
    268               <a href="#pi">Programmatic injection</a>
    269               <ol>
    270                 <li style="display: none; ">
    271                   <a>h3Name</a>
    272                 </li>
    273               </ol>
    274             </li><li>
    275               <a href="#execution-environment">Execution environment</a>
    276               <ol>
    277                 <li style="display: none; ">
    278                   <a>h3Name</a>
    279                 </li>
    280               </ol>
    281             </li><li>
    282               <a href="#host-page-communication">Communication with the embedding page</a>
    283               <ol>
    284                 <li style="display: none; ">
    285                   <a>h3Name</a>
    286                 </li>
    287               </ol>
    288             </li><li>
    289               <a href="#security-considerations">Security considerations</a>
    290               <ol>
    291                 <li style="display: none; ">
    292                   <a>h3Name</a>
    293                 </li>
    294               </ol>
    295             </li><li>
    296               <a href="#extension-files">Referring to extension files</a>
    297               <ol>
    298                 <li style="display: none; ">
    299                   <a>h3Name</a>
    300                 </li>
    301               </ol>
    302             </li><li>
    303               <a href="#examples"> Examples </a>
    304               <ol>
    305                 <li style="display: none; ">
    306                   <a>h3Name</a>
    307                 </li>
    308               </ol>
    309             </li><li>
    310               <a href="#videos"> Videos </a>
    311               <ol>
    312                 <li style="display: none; ">
    313                   <a>h3Name</a>
    314                 </li>
    315               </ol>
    316             </li>
    317               <li style="display: none; ">
    318                 <a href="#apiReference">API reference</a>
    319                 <ol>
    320                   <li>
    321                     <a href="#properties">Properties</a>
    322                     <ol>
    323                       <li>
    324                         <a href="#property-anchor">propertyName</a>
    325                       </li>
    326                     </ol>
    327                   </li>
    328                   <li>
    329                     <a>Methods</a>
    330                     <ol>
    331                       <li>
    332                         <a href="#method-anchor">methodName</a>
    333                       </li>
    334                     </ol>
    335                   </li>
    336                   <li>
    337                     <a>Events</a>
    338                     <ol>
    339                       <li>
    340                         <a href="#event-anchor">eventName</a>
    341                       </li>
    342                     </ol>
    343                   </li>
    344                   <li>
    345                     <a href="#types">Types</a>
    346                     <ol>
    347                       <li>
    348                         <a href="#id-anchor">id</a>
    349                       </li>
    350                     </ol>
    351                   </li>
    352                 </ol>
    353               </li>
    354           </ol>
    355         </div>
    356         <!-- /TABLE OF CONTENTS -->
    357 
    358         <!-- Standard content lead-in for experimental API pages -->
    359         <p id="classSummary" style="display: none; ">
    360           For information on how to use experimental APIs, see the <a href="experimental.html">chrome.experimental.* APIs</a> page.
    361         </p>
    362 
    363         <!-- STATIC CONTENT PLACEHOLDER -->
    364         <div id="static"><div id="pageData-name" class="pageData">Content Scripts</div>
    365 <div id="pageData-showTOC" class="pageData">true</div>
    366 
    367 <p>
    368 Content scripts are JavaScript files that run in the context of web pages.
    369 By using the standard
    370 <a href="http://www.w3.org/TR/DOM-Level-2-HTML/">Document
    371 Object Model</a> (DOM),
    372 they can read details of the web pages the browser visits,
    373 or make changes to them.
    374 </p>
    375 
    376 <p>
    377 Here are some examples of what content scripts can do:
    378 </p>
    379 
    380 <ul>
    381   <li>Find unlinked URLs in web pages and convert them into hyperlinks
    382   </li><li>Increase the font size to make text more legible
    383   </li><li>Find and process <a href="http://microformats.org/">microformat</a> data in the DOM
    384 </li></ul>
    385 
    386 <p>
    387 However, content scripts have some limitations.
    388 They <b>cannot</b>:
    389 </p>
    390 
    391 <ul>
    392   <li>
    393     Use chrome.* APIs
    394     (except for parts of
    395     <a href="extension.html"><code>chrome.extension</code></a>)
    396   </li>
    397   <li>
    398     Use variables or functions defined by their extension's pages
    399   </li>
    400   <li>
    401     Use variables or functions defined by web pages or by other content scripts
    402   </li>
    403   <li>
    404     Make <a href="xhr.html">cross-site XMLHttpRequests</a>
    405   </li>
    406 </ul>
    407 
    408 <p>
    409 These limitations aren't as bad as they sound.
    410 Content scripts can <em>indirectly</em> use the chrome.* APIs,
    411 get access to extension data,
    412 and request extension actions
    413 by exchanging <a href="messaging.html">messages</a>
    414 with their parent extension.
    415 Content scripts can also
    416 <a href="#host-page-communication">communicate with web pages</a>
    417 using the shared DOM.
    418 For more insight into what content scripts can and can't do,
    419 learn about the
    420 <a href="#execution-environment">execution environment</a>.
    421 </p>
    422 
    423 <h2 id="registration">Manifest</h2>
    424 
    425 <p>If your content script's code should always be injected,
    426 register it in the
    427 <a href="manifest.html">extension manifest</a>
    428 using the <code>content_scripts</code> field,
    429 as in the following example.
    430 </p>
    431 
    432 <pre>{
    433   "name": "My extension",
    434   ...
    435   <b>"content_scripts": [
    436     {
    437       "matches": ["http://www.google.com/*"],
    438       "css": ["mystyles.css"],
    439       "js": ["jquery.js", "myscript.js"]
    440     }
    441   ]</b>,
    442   ...
    443 }</pre>
    444 
    445 <p>
    446 If you want to inject the code only sometimes,
    447 use the
    448 <a href="manifest.html#permissions"><code>permissions</code></a> field instead,
    449 as described in <a href="#pi">Programmatic injection</a>.
    450 </p>
    451 
    452 <pre>{
    453   "name": "My extension",
    454   ...
    455   <b>"permissions": [
    456     "tabs", "http://www.google.com/*"
    457   ]</b>,
    458   ...
    459 }</pre>
    460 
    461 <p>
    462 Using the <code>content_scripts</code> field,
    463 an extension can insert multiple content scripts into a page;
    464 each of these content scripts can have multiple JavaScript and CSS files.
    465 Each item in the <code>content_scripts</code> array
    466 can have the following properties:</p>
    467 
    468 <table>
    469   <tbody><tr>
    470     <th>Name</th>
    471     <th>Type</th>
    472     <th>Description</th>
    473   </tr>
    474   <tr>
    475     <td><code>matches</code></td>
    476     <td>array of strings</td>
    477     <td><em>Required.</em>
    478     Controls the pages this content script will be injected into.
    479     See <a href="match_patterns.html">Match Patterns</a>
    480     for more details on the syntax of these strings.</td>
    481   </tr>
    482   <tr>
    483     <td><code>css<code></code></code></td>
    484     <td>array of strings</td>
    485     <td><em>Optional.</em>
    486     The list of CSS files to be injected into matching pages. These are injected in the order they appear in this array, before any DOM is constructed or displayed for the page.</td>
    487   </tr>
    488   <tr>
    489     <td><code>js<code></code></code></td>
    490     <td><nobr>array of strings</nobr></td>
    491     <td><em>Optional.</em>
    492     The list of JavaScript files to be injected into matching pages. These are injected in the order they appear in this array.</td>
    493   </tr>
    494   <tr>
    495     <td><code>run_at<code></code></code></td>
    496     <td>string</td>
    497     <td><em>Optional.</em>
    498     Controls when the files in <code>js</code> are injected. Can be "document_start", "document_end", or "document_idle". Defaults to "document_idle".
    499 
    500     <br><br>
    501 
    502     In the case of "document_start", the files are injected after any files from <code>css</code>, but before any other DOM is constructed or any other script is run.
    503 
    504     <br><br>
    505 
    506     In the case of "document_end", the files are injected immediately after the DOM is complete, but before subresources like images and frames have loaded.
    507 
    508     <br><br>
    509 
    510     In the case of "document_idle", the browser chooses a time to inject scripts between "document_end" and immediately after the <code><a href="http://www.whatwg.org/specs/web-apps/current-work/#handler-onload">window.onload</a></code> event fires. The exact moment of injection depends on how complex the document is and how long it is taking to load, and is optimized for page load speed.
    511 
    512     <br><br>
    513 
    514     <b>Note:</b> With "document_idle", content scripts may not necessarily receive the <code>window.onload</code> event, because they may run after it has
    515     already fired. In most cases, listening for the <code>onload</code> event is unnecessary for content scripts running at "document_idle" because they are guaranteed to run after the DOM is complete. If your script definitely needs to run after <code>window.onload</code>, you can check if <code>onload</code> has already fired by using the <code><a href="http://www.whatwg.org/specs/web-apps/current-work/#dom-document-readystate">document.readyState</a></code> property.</td>
    516   </tr>
    517   <tr>
    518     <td><code>all_frames<code></code></code></td>
    519     <td>boolean</td>
    520     <td><em>Optional.</em>
    521     Controls whether the content script runs in all frames of the matching page, or only the top frame.
    522     <br><br>
    523     Defaults to <code>false</code>, meaning that only the top frame is matched.</td>
    524   </tr>
    525   <tr>
    526     <td><code>include_globs</code></td>
    527     <td>array of string</td>
    528     <td><em>Optional.</em>
    529     Applied after <code>matches</code> to control the pages that this content script will be injected into. Intended to emulate the <a href="http://wiki.greasespot.net/Metadata_Block#.40include"><code>@include</code></a> Greasemonkey keyword. See <a href="#include-exclude-globs">Include and exclude globs</a> below for more details.</td>
    530   </tr>
    531   <tr>
    532     <td><code>exclude_globs</code></td>
    533     <td>array of string</td>
    534     <td><em>Optional.</em>
    535     Applied after <code>matches</code> to control the pages that this content script will be injected into. Intended to emulate the <a href="http://wiki.greasespot.net/Metadata_Block#.40include"><code>@exclude</code></a> Greasemonkey keyword. See <a href="#include-exclude-globs">Include and exclude globs</a> below for more details.</td>
    536   </tr>
    537 </tbody></table>
    538 
    539 <h3 id="include-exclude-globs">Include and exclude globs</h3>
    540 
    541 <p>
    542 The content script will be injected into a page if its URL matches any <code>matches</code> pattern and any <code>include_globs</code> pattern, as long as the URL doesn't also match an <code>exclude_globs</code> pattern. Because the <code>matches</code> property is required, <code>include_globs</code> and <code>exclude_globs</code> can only be used to limit which pages will be affected.
    543 </p>
    544 
    545 <p></p>
    546 However, these glob properties follow a different syntax than <code>matches</code>, which is much more flexible.  Acceptable strings are URLs that may contain "wildcard" asterisks and question marks. The asterisk (*) is used to match any string of any length (including the empty string); the question mark (?) is used to match any single character.
    547 <p></p>
    548 
    549 <p>
    550 For example, the glob "http://???.example.com/foo/*" matches any of the following:
    551 </p>
    552 <ul>
    553   <li>"http://www.example.com/foo/bar"</li>
    554   <li>"http://the.example.com/foo/"</li>
    555 </ul>
    556 <p>
    557 However, it does <em>not</em> match the following:
    558 </p>
    559 <ul>
    560   <li>"http://my.example.com/foo/bar"</li>
    561   <li>"http://example.com/foo/"</li>
    562   <li>"http://www.example.com/foo"</li>
    563 </ul>
    564 
    565 <h2 id="pi">Programmatic injection</h2>
    566 
    567 <p>
    568 Inserting code into a page programmatically is useful
    569 when your JavaScript or CSS code
    570 shouldn't be injected into every single page
    571 that matches the pattern 
    572 for example, if you want a script to run
    573 only when the user clicks a browser action's icon.
    574 </p>
    575 
    576 <p>
    577 To insert code into a page,
    578 your extension must have
    579 <a href="xhr.html#requesting-permission">cross-origin permissions</a>
    580 for the page.
    581 It also must be able to use the <code>chrome.tabs</code> module.
    582 You can get both kinds of permission
    583 using the manifest file's
    584 <a href="manifest.html#permissions">permissions</a> field.
    585 </p>
    586 
    587 <p>
    588 Once you have permissions set up,
    589 you can inject JavaScript into a page by calling
    590 <a href="tabs.html#method-executeScript"><code>executeScript()</code></a>.
    591 To inject CSS, use
    592 <a href="tabs.html#method-insertCSS"><code>insertCSS()</code></a>.
    593 </p>
    594 
    595 <p>
    596 The following code
    597 (from the
    598 <a href="http://src.chromium.org/viewvc/chrome/trunk/src/chrome/common/extensions/docs/examples/api/browserAction/make_page_red/">make_page_red</a> example)
    599 reacts to a user click
    600 by inserting JavaScript into the current tab's page
    601 and executing the script.
    602 </p>
    603 
    604 <pre><em>/* in background.html */</em>
    605 chrome.browserAction.onClicked.addListener(function(tab) {
    606   chrome.tabs.executeScript(null,
    607                            {code:"document.body.bgColor='red'"});
    608 });
    609 
    610 <em>/* in manifest.json */</em>
    611 "permissions": [
    612   "tabs", "http://*/*"
    613 ],
    614 </pre>
    615 
    616 <p>
    617 When the browser is displaying an HTTP page
    618 and the user clicks this extension's browser action,
    619 the extension sets the page's <code>bgcolor</code> property to 'red'.
    620 The result,
    621 unless the page has CSS that sets the background color,
    622 is that the page turns red.
    623 </p>
    624 
    625 <p>
    626 Usually, instead of inserting code directly (as in the previous sample),
    627 you put the code in a file.
    628 You inject the file's contents like this:
    629 </p>
    630 
    631 <pre>chrome.tabs.executeScript(null, {file: "content_script.js"});</pre>
    632 
    633 
    634 <h2 id="execution-environment">Execution environment</h2>
    635 
    636 <p>Content scripts execute in a special environment called an <em>isolated world</em>. They have access to the DOM of the page they are injected into, but not to any JavaScript variables or functions created by the page. It looks to each content script as if there is no other JavaScript executing on the page it is running on. The same is true in reverse: JavaScript running on the page cannot call any functions or access any variables defined by content scripts.
    637 
    638 </p><p>For example, consider this simple page:
    639 
    640 </p><pre>hello.html
    641 ==========
    642 &lt;html&gt;
    643   &lt;button id="mybutton"&gt;click me&lt;/button&gt;
    644   &lt;script&gt;
    645     var greeting = "hello, ";
    646     var button = document.getElementById("mybutton");
    647     button.person_name = "Bob";
    648     button.addEventListener("click", function() {
    649       alert(greeting + button.person_name + ".");
    650     }, false);
    651   &lt;/script&gt;
    652 &lt;/html&gt;</pre>
    653 
    654 <p>Now, suppose this content script was injected into hello.html:
    655 
    656 </p><pre>contentscript.js
    657 ================
    658 var greeting = "hola, ";
    659 var button = document.getElementById("mybutton");
    660 button.person_name = "Roberto";
    661 button.addEventListener("click", function() {
    662   alert(greeting + button.person_name + ".");
    663 }, false);
    664 </pre>
    665 
    666 <p>Now, if the button is pressed, you will see both greetings.
    667 
    668 </p><p>Isolated worlds allow each content script to make changes to its JavaScript environment without worrying about conflicting with the page or with other content scripts. For example, a content script could include JQuery v1 and the page could include JQuery v2, and they wouldn't conflict with each other.
    669 
    670 </p><p>Another important benefit of isolated worlds is that they completely separate the JavaScript on the page from the JavaScript in extensions. This allows us to offer extra functionality to content scripts that should not be accessible from web pages without worrying about web pages accessing it.
    671 
    672 
    673 </p><h2 id="host-page-communication">Communication with the embedding page</h2>
    674 
    675 <p>Although the execution environments of content scripts and the pages that host them are isolated from each other, they share access to the page's DOM. If the page wishes to communicate with the content script (or with the extension via the content script), it must do so through the shared DOM.</p>
    676 
    677 <p>An example can be accomplished using custom DOM events and storing data in a known location. Consider: </p>
    678 
    679 <pre>http://foo.com/example.html
    680 ===========================
    681 var customEvent = document.createEvent('Event');
    682 customEvent.initEvent('myCustomEvent', true, true);
    683 
    684 function fireCustomEvent(data) {
    685   hiddenDiv = document.getElementById('myCustomEventDiv');
    686   hiddenDiv.innerText = data
    687   hiddenDiv.dispatchEvent(customEvent);
    688 }</pre>
    689 
    690 <pre>contentscript.js
    691 ================
    692 var port = chrome.extension.connect();
    693 
    694 document.getElementById('myCustomEventDiv').addEventListener('myCustomEvent', function() {
    695   var eventData = document.getElementById('myCustomEventDiv').innerText;
    696   port.postMessage({message: "myCustomEvent", values: eventData});
    697 });</pre>
    698 
    699 <p>In the above example, example.html (which is not a part of the extension) creates a custom event and then can decide to fire the event by setting the event data to a known location in the DOM and then dispatching the custom event. The content script listens for the name of the custom event on the known element and handles the event by inspecting the data of the element, and turning around to post the message to the extension process. In this way the page establishes a line of communication to the extension. The reverse is possible through similar means.</p>
    700 
    701 <h2 id="security-considerations">Security considerations</h2>
    702 
    703 <p>When writing a content script, you should be aware of two security issues.
    704 First, be careful not to introduce security vulnerabilities into the web site
    705 your content script is injected into.  For example, if your content script
    706 receives content from another web site (e.g., by <a href="messaging.html">asking your background page to make an
    707 XMLHttpRequest</a>), be careful to filter that content for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-site_scripting">cross-site
    708 scripting</a> attacks before injecting the content into the current page.
    709 For example, prefer to inject content via innerText rather than innerHTML.
    710 Be especially careful when retrieving HTTP content on an HTTPS page because
    711 the HTTP content might have been corrupted by a network <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man-in-the-middle_attack">"man-in-the-middle"</a>
    712 if the user is on a hostile network.</p>
    713 
    714 <p>Second, although running your content script in an isolated world provides
    715 some protection from the web page, a malicious web page might still be able
    716 to attack your content script if you use content from the web page
    717 indiscriminately.  For example, the following patterns are dangerous:
    718 </p><pre>contentscript.js
    719 ================
    720 var data = document.getElementById("json-data")
    721 // WARNING! Might be evaluating an evil script!
    722 var parsed = eval("(" + data + ")")
    723 
    724 contentscript.js
    725 ================
    726 var elmt_id = ...
    727 // WARNING! elmt_id might be "); ... evil script ... //"!
    728 window.setTimeout("animate(" + elmt_id + ")", 200);
    729 </pre>
    730 <p>Instead, prefer safer APIs that do not run scripts:</p>
    731 <pre>contentscript.js
    732 ================
    733 var data = document.getElementById("json-data")
    734 // JSON.parse does not evaluate the attacker's scripts.
    735 var parsed = JSON.parse(data)
    736 
    737 contentscript.js
    738 ================
    739 var elmt_id = ...
    740 // The closure form of setTimeout does not evaluate scripts.
    741 window.setTimeout(function() {
    742   animate(elmt_id);
    743 }, 200);
    744 </pre>
    745 
    746 <h2 id="extension-files">Referring to extension files</h2>
    747 
    748 <p>
    749 Get the URL of an extension's file using
    750 <code>chrome.extension.getURL()</code>.
    751 You can use the result
    752 just like you would any other URL,
    753 as the following code shows.
    754 </p>
    755 
    756 
    757 <pre><em>//Code for displaying &lt;extensionDir&gt;/images/myimage.png:</em>
    758 var imgURL = <b>chrome.extension.getURL("images/myimage.png")</b>;
    759 document.getElementById("someImage").src = imgURL;
    760 </pre>
    761 
    762 <h2 id="examples"> Examples </h2>
    763 
    764 <p>
    765 The 
    766 <a href="http://src.chromium.org/viewvc/chrome/trunk/src/chrome/common/extensions/docs/examples/howto/contentscript_xhr">contentscript_xhr</a> example
    767 shows how an extension can perform
    768 cross-site requests for its content script.
    769 You can find other simple examples of communication via messages in the
    770 <a href="http://src.chromium.org/viewvc/chrome/trunk/src/chrome/common/extensions/docs/examples/api/messaging/">examples/api/messaging</a>
    771 directory.
    772 </p>
    773 
    774 <p>
    775 See
    776 <a href="http://src.chromium.org/viewvc/chrome/trunk/src/chrome/common/extensions/docs/examples/api/browserAction/make_page_red/">make_page_red</a> and
    777 <a href="http://src.chromium.org/viewvc/chrome/trunk/src/chrome/common/extensions/docs/examples/extensions/email_this_page/">email_this_page</a>
    778 for examples of programmatic injection.
    779 
    780 </p>
    781 
    782 <p>
    783 For more examples and for help in viewing the source code, see
    784 <a href="samples.html">Samples</a>.
    785 </p>
    786 
    787 <h2 id="videos"> Videos </h2>
    788 
    789 <p>
    790 The following videos discuss concepts that are important for content scripts.
    791 The first video describes content scripts and isolated worlds.
    792 </p>
    793 
    794 <p>
    795 <iframe title="YouTube video player" width="640" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/laLudeUmXHM?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
    796 </p>
    797 
    798 <p>
    799 The next video describes message passing,
    800 featuring an example of a content script
    801 sending a request to its parent extension.
    802 </p>
    803 
    804 <p>
    805 <iframe title="YouTube video player" width="640" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/B4M_a7xejYI?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
    806 </p>
    807 </div>
    808 
    809         <!-- API PAGE -->
    810         <div class="apiPage" style="display: none; ">
    811         <a name="apiReference"></a>
    812         <h2>API reference: chrome.apiname </h2>
    813 
    814           <!-- PROPERTIES -->
    815           <div class="apiGroup">
    816             <a name="properties"></a>
    817             <h3 id="properties">Properties</h3>
    818 
    819             <div>
    820               <a></a>
    821               <h4>getLastError</h4>
    822               <div class="summary">
    823                 <!-- Note: intentionally longer 80 columns -->
    824                 <span>chrome.extension</span><span>lastError</span>
    825               </div>
    826               <div>
    827               </div>
    828             </div>
    829 
    830           </div> <!-- /apiGroup -->
    831 
    832           <!-- METHODS -->
    833           <div id="methodsTemplate" class="apiGroup">
    834             <a></a>
    835             <h3>Methods</h3>
    836 
    837             <!-- iterates over all functions -->
    838             <div class="apiItem">
    839               <a></a> <!-- method-anchor -->
    840               <h4>method name</h4>
    841 
    842               <div class="summary"><span>void</span>
    843                   <!-- Note: intentionally longer 80 columns -->
    844                   <span>chrome.module.methodName</span>(<span><span>, </span><span></span>
    845                       <var><span></span></var></span>)</div>
    846 
    847               <div class="description">
    848                 <p class="todo">Undocumented.</p>
    849                 <p>
    850                   A description from the json schema def of the function goes here.
    851                 </p>
    852 
    853                 <!-- PARAMETERS -->
    854                 <h4>Parameters</h4>
    855                 <dl>
    856                   <div>
    857                     <div>
    858                     </div>
    859                   </div>
    860                 </dl>
    861 
    862                 <!-- RETURNS -->
    863                 <h4>Returns</h4>
    864                 <dl>
    865                   <div>
    866                     <div>
    867                     </div>
    868                   </div>
    869                 </dl>
    870 
    871                 <!-- CALLBACK -->
    872                 <div>
    873                   <div>
    874                   <h4>Callback function</h4>
    875                   <p>
    876                     The callback <em>parameter</em> should specify a function
    877                     that looks like this:
    878                   </p>
    879                   <p>
    880                     If you specify the <em>callback</em> parameter, it should
    881                     specify a function that looks like this:
    882                   </p>
    883 
    884                   <!-- Note: intentionally longer 80 columns -->
    885                   <pre>function(<span>Type param1, Type param2</span>) <span class="subdued">{...}</span>;</pre>
    886                   <dl>
    887                     <div>
    888                       <div>
    889                       </div>
    890                     </div>
    891                   </dl>
    892                   </div>
    893                 </div>
    894 
    895                 <!-- MIN_VERSION -->
    896                 <p>
    897                   This function was added in version <b><span></span></b>.
    898                   If you require this function, the manifest key
    899                   <a href="manifest.html#minimum_chrome_version">minimum_chrome_version</a>
    900                   can ensure that your extension won't be run in an earlier browser version.
    901                 </p>
    902               </div> <!-- /description -->
    903 
    904             </div>  <!-- /apiItem -->
    905 
    906           </div>  <!-- /apiGroup -->
    907 
    908           <!-- EVENTS -->
    909           <div id="eventsTemplate" class="apiGroup">
    910             <a></a>
    911             <h3>Events</h3>
    912             <!-- iterates over all events -->
    913             <div class="apiItem">
    914               <a></a>
    915               <h4>event name</h4>
    916 
    917               <div class="summary">
    918                 <!-- Note: intentionally longer 80 columns -->
    919                 <span class="subdued">chrome.bookmarks</span><span>onEvent</span><span class="subdued">.addListener</span>(function(<span>Type param1, Type param2</span>) <span class="subdued">{...}</span>);
    920               </div>
    921 
    922               <div class="description">
    923                 <p class="todo">Undocumented.</p>
    924                 <p>
    925                   A description from the json schema def of the event goes here.
    926                 </p>
    927 
    928                 <!-- PARAMETERS -->
    929                 <div>
    930                   <h4>Parameters</h4>
    931                   <dl>
    932                     <div>
    933                       <div>
    934                       </div>
    935                     </div>
    936                   </dl>
    937                 </div>
    938               </div> <!-- /decription -->
    939 
    940             </div> <!-- /apiItem -->
    941 
    942           </div> <!-- /apiGroup -->
    943 
    944           <!-- TYPES -->
    945           <div class="apiGroup">
    946             <a name="types"></a>
    947             <h3 id="types">Types</h3>
    948 
    949             <!-- iterates over all types -->
    950             <div class="apiItem">
    951               <a></a>
    952               <h4>type name</h4>
    953 
    954               <div>
    955               </div>
    956 
    957             </div> <!-- /apiItem -->
    958 
    959           </div> <!-- /apiGroup -->
    960 
    961         </div> <!-- /apiPage -->
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    970   Attribution 3.0 License</a>, and code samples are licensed under the
    971   <a rel="license" href="http://code.google.com/google_bsd_license.html">BSD License</a>.
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    974   2011 Google
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