Developers

Developer Resources

Everything you need to contribute to Lokus, create plugins, and understand the technical architecture.

Getting Started

Whether you're contributing to Lokus core or building plugins, this section has you covered:

Development Setup

Set up your development environment:

Architecture

Understand how Lokus works:

  • Platform Architecture - Cross-platform abstraction layer and technical implementation
  • Editor Architecture - How the editor system works (coming soon)
  • Plugin System - Plugin architecture and APIs (coming soon)

Cross-Platform Development

Build for Windows, macOS, and Linux:

  • Cross-Platform Overview - Platform support and capabilities
  • Migration Guide - Upgrading and migrating between platforms
  • Platform-Specific Features - Leveraging native capabilities on each platform

Plugin Development

Create powerful extensions for Lokus:

  • Plugin Development Guide - Complete guide to building plugins
  • API Reference - Full plugin API documentation (coming soon)
  • Examples - Real plugin examples to learn from (coming soon)
  • Testing - Plugin testing strategies (coming soon)

Quick Start

For Contributors

  1. Clone the repository: git clone https://github.com/lokus-ai/lokus
  2. Set up development: Follow the Developer Setup Guide
  3. Run in development: npm run tauri dev (or platform-specific: npm run dev:windows, npm run dev:macos, npm run dev:linux)
  4. Make changes: Follow our contributing guidelines
  5. Submit PR: Create a pull request with your improvements

For Plugin Developers

  1. Install Plugin CLI: npm install -g @lokus/plugin-cli
  2. Create plugin: lokus-plugin create my-plugin
  3. Develop: Use the Plugin Development Guide
  4. Test: Follow plugin testing best practices
  5. Publish: Share with the community

Technical Stack

Core Technologies

  • Frontend: React 19, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS
  • Backend: Rust, Tauri 2.0
  • Editor: TipTap with custom extensions
  • Build: Vite, Vitest for testing
  • Platform: Cross-platform abstraction layer with Windows, macOS, and Linux support

Key Libraries

  • UI Framework: React with modern hooks
  • Styling: Tailwind CSS with custom design system
  • State Management: React Context and custom hooks
  • File System: Tauri's native file system APIs
  • Plugin System: Custom runtime with security sandboxing

Architecture Highlights

  • Native Performance: Rust backend for desktop-class performance
  • Cross-Platform: Unified codebase supporting Windows, macOS, and Linux
  • Security: Sandboxed plugin execution
  • Extensibility: Comprehensive plugin API
  • Modern: Latest web technologies with native integration
  • Platform Abstraction: Trait-based architecture for platform-specific operations

Development Areas

Core Application

Contribute to the main Lokus application:

  • Editor Features: Enhance the writing experience
  • File Management: Improve workspace navigation
  • UI/UX: Design and usability improvements
  • Performance: Optimization and efficiency
  • Cross-Platform Features: Platform-specific integrations and optimizations
  • Testing: Improve test coverage and quality

Plugin Ecosystem

Build the plugin ecosystem:

  • Plugin Examples: Create reference implementations
  • Plugin Tools: Improve development tools
  • Plugin Registry: Help with plugin discovery
  • Documentation: Improve plugin development docs

Documentation

Help improve this documentation:

  • Content: Add missing documentation
  • Examples: Create better code examples
  • Tutorials: Write step-by-step guides
  • Translation: Internationalization support

API Overview

Core APIs

  • Editor API: Programmatic editor control
  • File System API: Secure file operations
  • UI API: Interface components and dialogs
  • Events API: Application event system

Plugin APIs

  • Plugin Lifecycle: Activation, deactivation, management
  • Status Bar API: Custom status bar components
  • Command API: Register custom commands
  • Settings API: Plugin configuration

Advanced APIs

  • Template API: Template system integration
  • Theme API: Custom theme development
  • Notification API: User notifications
  • Storage API: Plugin data persistence

Code Examples

Basic Plugin Structure

import { LokusPlugin } from '@lokus/plugin-api';
 
const myPlugin: LokusPlugin = {
  id: 'my-plugin',
  name: 'My Plugin',
  version: '1.0.0',
  
  activate(context) {
    // Plugin initialization
  },
  
  deactivate(context) {
    // Plugin cleanup
  }
};
 
export default myPlugin;

Editor Integration

// Get current content
const content = lokus.editor.getContent();
 
// Insert at cursor
lokus.editor.insertAtCursor('Hello, World!');
 
// Listen for changes
lokus.editor.onContentChange((newContent) => {
  console.log('Content updated:', newContent);
});

Status Bar Component

const StatusComponent = () => {
  const [count, setCount] = React.useState(0);
  
  return React.createElement('div', {
    onClick: () => setCount(c => c + 1)
  }, `Clicks: ${count}`);
};
 
context.statusBar.register('click-counter', StatusComponent);

Testing

Running Tests

# Unit tests
npm test
 
# E2E tests  
npm run test:e2e
 
# Plugin tests
npm run test:plugins

Test Coverage

  • Core Features: Comprehensive unit test coverage
  • Plugin API: Integration test coverage
  • E2E Testing: User workflow validation
  • Performance: Benchmarking and optimization

Resources

Documentation

Community

Tools

Contribution Guidelines

Getting Started

  1. Read the Code of Conduct: Ensure you understand our community standards
  2. Check Existing Issues: Look for good first issues or areas needing help
  3. Fork and Clone: Set up your development environment
  4. Make Changes: Follow our coding standards and practices
  5. Test Thoroughly: Ensure your changes work and don't break existing functionality
  6. Submit PR: Create a clear pull request with description of changes

Code Standards

  • TypeScript: Use TypeScript for all new code
  • ESLint: Follow our linting rules
  • Prettier: Use consistent code formatting
  • Testing: Include tests for new features
  • Documentation: Update docs for any API changes

Support

Getting Help

  • Technical Questions: GitHub Discussions
  • Bug Reports: GitHub Issues
  • Feature Requests: GitHub Issues with feature label
  • Plugin Development: Plugin development discussions

Contributing Support

  • Code Review: Core team provides feedback on pull requests
  • Mentorship: Available for significant contributions
  • Recognition: Contributors acknowledged in release notes

Join the Lokus development community and help build the future of note-taking!

Cross-PlatformDevelopment Setup