Third-Party Libraries
With the @require metadata imperative, one can include entire extra files into a user script. This can also be used for including entire third-party libraries like jQuery or YUI.
Most general purpose libraries are not written to operate within the Greasemonkey sandbox and thus may not work properly, so tread carefully.
jQuery
For a simple example, here is a way to load and use jQuery in your user scripts. Note that @require works by downloading the files once, at install time, and is thus fast and efficient.
// ==UserScript==
// @name jQuery Example
// @require http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.8.2/jquery.min.js
// ==/UserScript==
// Append some text to the element with id someText using the jQuery library.
$("#someText").append(" more text.");
Compatibility
Some versions of jQuery may not run inside the Greasemonkey sandbox. But, as of this writing, all released versions, from 1.3.2 onward, work with no known issues except the potential conflict discussed below. (The current jQuery version is 1.8.2.)
Potential conflict
In some cases, @required jQuery can conflict with the web page. In that case it's best to use use jQuery in noConflict mode. At the top of your script:
this.$ = this.jQuery = jQuery.noConflict(true);
It's also possible, but less preferable, to force execution in the legacy sandbox, thus isolating your script further from the content page.
Specify specify any @grant value other than none to do this.
See @grant Scope for more information.
// ==UserScript== // @grant unsafeWindow // ==/UserScript==
Links and References
- http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.8.2/jquery.min.js
- StackOverflow: How to embed additional jQuery plugins into Greasemonkey
jQuery UI
All jQuery UI framework releases, from 1.5.2 onward, work with no know issues -- except that the CSS files have to be modified to take full advantage of some images.
jQuery Tools
Version 1.2.4 of jQuery Tools is reported to be at least minimally compatible.
YUI
Sometimes using the @resource imperative alongside @require can be helpful.
YUI has a nice tool to bundle your required libraries on the fly. After you receive your script source (Loading Script and CSS Directly box) use the @require key for the script and @resource for the CSS (if any).
For example:
// ==UserScript==
// @name YUI Example
// @require http://yui.yahooapis.com/combo?2.8.0r4/build/yahoo-dom-event/yahoo-dom-event.js&2.8.0r4/build/element/element-min.js&2.8.0r4/build/datasource/datasource-min.js&2.8.0r4/build/datatable/datatable-min.js
// @resource yCSS http://yui.yahooapis.com/combo?2.8.0r4/build/datatable/assets/skins/sam/datatable.css
// ==/UserScript==
// add Yahoo! css to head
var yCSS = GM_getResourceText("yCSS");
GM_addStyle(yCSS);
Without @require
For older versions of Greasemonkey (before 0.8) or for other user script managers, there is an alternative approach. This, however, does not have the download-once-at-install-time benefit, so you should not reference servers that you do not own (i.e. jquery.com or yahoo.com). Read about this technique at jQuery & Greasemonkey.
