2026
Year of the current release
Case study · Extension · Chrome & Firefox
New Tab from Webdoka
Browser extension for Chrome and Firefox that replaces the default new tab with a working start page: visual bookmarks, folders, notes, time and weather widgets, custom background. Data stays local; UI in 50+ languages.
Chrome + Firefox
Published in both stores
50+ languages
UI via extension locales
MV3
Manifest V3 architecture
Local-first
Bookmarks stay on device
Challenge
The task
Turn an empty new tab into a daily start page - without sending bookmark data to the cloud.
Starting point
The standard new tab is empty and useless for people who juggle many sites, keep projects in folders, leave notes on cards, pick a custom background and choose a UI language without changing the browser language.
The goal was a product-grade NTP for Chrome and Firefox: visual cards with previews, folders and subfolders, notes, quick save, widgets and store publication - with data staying local.
Core complexity
Several product requirements had to land in one extension:
- Own NTP for Chrome and Firefox
- Visual cards with previews
- Folders and subfolders
- Notes on folders and cards
- Quick save via menu, hotkeys and popup
- Time and weather widgets
- Local storage and 50+ languages
- Publish to Chrome Web Store and Firefox Add-ons
Solution
What we built
A local-first new-tab product for Chrome and Firefox - shipped to both stores.
Product approach
New Tab from Webdoka is a product by the Webdoka team. It replaces the default new tab with a working start page: visual bookmarks, folders, notes, widgets and a custom background.
Architecture: service worker, content script, newtab page and popup. Storage is local; IndexedDB holds previews. Weather comes from Open-Meteo with a local cache. Backgrounds are served from the Webdoka CDN.
Delivery and stores
Built with Vite 6 and TypeScript on a vanilla DOM stack (no React). Product site: newtab.webdoka.com.
Live in Chrome Web Store (id jjjdedmaiehjfdokniaggdikpbljmalc) and Firefox Add-ons (new-tab-webdoka).
Scope of delivery
From NTP UX to store publication - what was actually delivered.
- Product concept and NTP UX
- Chrome MV3 and Firefox extensions
- Visual bookmarks, folders and notes
- Context menu and hotkeys
- Time and weather widgets
- Background catalog and Preferences Lab
- 50+ locales and store publication
Features
What the extension does
From visual bookmarks to store publishing - the product surface in five blocks.
Visual bookmarks
Cards with previews, folders and an Unsorted inbox. Drag-and-drop keeps projects tidy; open all links in a folder at once, or copy links for chats without leaving the start page.
The NTP becomes a visual workspace instead of a blank browser surface - sites and projects stay one click away.
Previews
Folders
Unsorted
Drag-and-drop
Notes on folders and cards
Brief or template notes on folders, plus per-site notes on cards. Copy to clipboard when you need the text in a ticket, chat or draft.
Context stays next to the bookmark - not in a separate notes app that you open after the page load.
Folder notes
Card notes
Clipboard
Save pages
Context menu, hotkeys and popup: Alt+S saves a selected area, Shift+Alt+S sends the page to Unsorted. Custom preview when the default capture is not enough.
Capture fits the browsing flow - no separate add-bookmark ritual for every tab you want to keep.
Context menu
Hotkeys
Popup
Custom preview
Widgets, background, settings
Multi-city time, a 7-day weather cache via Open-Meteo, background presets, Preferences Lab and HTML bookmark import for people who already have a library.
The start page feels personal without a cloud account for bookmarks - settings stay on the device.
Time
Weather
Backgrounds
Preferences Lab
Localization and publishing
UI in 50+ languages via _locales. Landing on
newtab.webdoka.com,
listing in Chrome Web Store and Firefox Add-ons.
The product is not only an internal demo - it is a published extension with a public site and store pages.
50+ locales
Landing
CWS
Firefox Add-ons
How it looks
Extracts from the extension UI - overview, folders, notes, preferences.
Technology
Tech stack
TypeScript and Vite 6 - MV3 extensions with local storage and IndexedDB.
TypeScript
Typed UI and extension logic across newtab, popup, content script and service worker.
Vite 6
Build pipeline for the extension packages - fast iteration without a React runtime.
Chrome MV3 / Firefox
Manifest V3 for Chromium and a matching Firefox add-on, published to both stores.
IndexedDB + local storage
Previews in IndexedDB; bookmark structure and settings in local storage - no cloud account required.
TypeScript
Vite 6
MV3
Firefox
IndexedDB
Local-first
Results
Outcome - shipped
Product live in both stores - local-first privacy and a multilingual NTP.
2 stores
Chrome Web Store and Firefox Add-ons
Local-first
No cloud account for bookmarks
50+
UI languages
MV3
Modern extension architecture
2026
Current product year
Result for the product
A working NTP with visual bookmarks, folders, notes and widgets. Privacy stays local-first: no cloud account is required to keep the bookmark library. The UI ships in 50+ languages, and the extension is live in both major stores.
For Webdoka
The case shows product delivery beyond client sites: a public extension, a landing on newtab.webdoka.com and store publication for Chrome and Firefox.
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