markdown-browser

Markdown Browser

A Chrome extension for reading and organizing local markdown files — fast, private, and fully offline.

Features

• Local file reading via the File System Access API — no uploads, no cloud
• Sidebar file tree with collapsible folders and live filter
• Hot reload — viewer auto-refreshes when you save in your editor
• Full-text search across all markdown files with ⌘K
• Table of contents with scroll-spy highlighting
• Syntax highlighting — JS, TS, Python, Go, Rust, SQL, CSS, HTML, Bash, JSON
• Front matter display (YAML metadata)
• Light & dark mode toggle
• Resizable sidebar, adjustable font size, reading width, font family
• Recent files history
• 100% offline — no data leaves your machine

Installation

From Chrome Web Store

(Coming soon)

Load unpacked (development)

1. Clone or download this repository
2. Open icons/generate-icons.html in Chrome → click Download All → place the 4 PNGs in icons/
3. Go to chrome://extensions
4. Enable Developer mode (top-right toggle)
5. Click Load unpacked → select this folder
6. Click the extension icon in your toolbar

Usage

1. Click the Markdown Browser icon in the Chrome toolbar
2. In the sidebar, click Open Folder and select a local directory
3. Click any .md file to open it
4. Press ⌘K to search across all files

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
⌘K	Open command palette / search
⌘[	Previous file
⌘]	Next file
⌘⇧F	Full-text search
ESC	Close palette or settings

Supported File Types

.md · .mdx · .markdown · .mdown · .mkd

Privacy

This extension operates entirely offline. It does not collect, transmit, or store any data outside your local machine. See the Privacy Policy for the full policy.

Development

Pure vanilla JS — no build step, no dependencies, no bundler.

markdown-browser/
├── manifest.json       MV3 manifest
├── background.js       Service worker (opens app tab)
├── app.html            Main single-page app
├── app.js              App logic
├── app.css             Anthropic-inspired dark/light theme
├── lib/
│   ├── markdown.js     Custom GFM parser
│   └── highlighter.js  Syntax highlighter
├── about.html          About page
├── privacy.html        Privacy policy
└── icons/              Extension icons (PNG)

License

MIT — see LICENSE

Author

abhikuchbhi.in

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