Vicinae Extension Authoring

Overview

Follow the repo’s established Vicinae extension patterns for structure, caching, actions, and build workflow. Prefer the same defaults and shortcut semantics used across existing extensions.

Workflow

1. Identify scope and complexity (single command vs multi-module extension).
2. Choose structure from references/extension-template.md.
3. Define manifest + preferences in package.json using the Vicinae schema.
4. Implement data access with React Query persistence using persistQueryClient (see references/cache-patterns.md).
5. Implement ActionPanel ordering and shortcuts (see references/action-ux-standards.md), preferring Keyboard.Shortcut.Common.* values before hardcoded key combos.
6. Add empty/loading/error states and toasts.
7. Run pnpm -C <extension> lint and pnpm -C <extension> build.
8. For dev sessions, run pnpm -C <extension> dev.

Decision points

• Single-file vs modular: use the expanded structure when you have API calls, caching, or >1 command.
• Cache strategy: use Vicinae Cache when data should persist across sessions or is expensive to recompute; otherwise React Query alone is fine.
• TTLs: keep Cache TTL and React Query staleTime aligned unless there is a clear reason to diverge.

Manifest and structure rules

• Match directory name with package.json name.
• Include extension_icon.png (512x512) in assets/.
• Include at least one command with mode: "view".
• Use @vicinae/api in dependencies.

Local dev requirements

• NodeJS >= 20 and a npm-compatible package manager (pnpm preferred in this repo).

Data and cache rules

• Use React Query for fetches and local cache.
• Prefer persistQueryClient with a Vicinae Cache-backed persister for cross-session persistence.
• Keep gcTime aligned with persistQueryClient maxAge.
• Do not trigger toasts during render; trigger them from explicit actions, async handlers, or query onError.

Shortcut rules

• Prefer Keyboard.Shortcut.Common.* for standard actions so user-customized keybindings are respected.
• Use explicit { modifiers, key } shortcuts only when there is no matching common shortcut (for example: Toggle Detail).
• Use valid common keys only (Copy, CopyName, CopyPath, CopyDeeplink, Open, OpenWith, Refresh, Save, New, Edit, Duplicate, MoveUp, MoveDown, Pin, Remove, RemoveAll).
• Only bind shortcuts for actions that are currently available.
• Prefer Action.* wrappers (Action.OpenInBrowser, Action.CopyToClipboard, Action.RunInTerminal) before custom Action when behavior matches.

Anti-patterns (never)

• Never call showToast during render; it causes repeated toasts and jitter.
• Never leave debug logging in production commands.
• Never mix manual Cache persistence with React Query persistence in the same command.
• Never hardcode a shortcut when an equivalent Keyboard.Shortcut.Common.* value exists.
• Never bind shortcuts for actions that are unavailable.
• Never open external URLs without a success toast + closeMainWindow().

References

Official Vicinae Documentation:

• Introduction & architecture: https://docs.vicinae.com/extensions/introduction
• Creating extensions: https://docs.vicinae.com/extensions/create
• File structure: https://docs.vicinae.com/extensions/file-structure
• Manifest format: https://docs.vicinae.com/extensions/manifest
• View commands: https://docs.vicinae.com/extensions/view-command
• No-view commands: https://docs.vicinae.com/extensions/no-view-command
• Debugging Raycast extensions: https://docs.vicinae.com/extensions/debug-raycast
• API reference (TypeDoc): https://api-reference.vicinae.com/modules.html

Repo-specific patterns:

• If creating a new extension or adding modules, read references/extension-template.md.
• If implementing persistence or caching, read references/cache-patterns.md before coding.
• If adding or reordering actions/shortcuts, read references/action-ux-standards.md.