@sobree/core

Embeddable, print-view-first WYSIWYG editor for .docx. Framework-free core, plugin architecture, native OOXML round-trip.

→ Docs: docs.sobree.dev → Live editor: sobree.dev/try

Install

@sobree/core is the minimal editor kernel — AST + paginator + DOCX I/O + history + fonts. It ships with zero plugin packages. Install the plugins you want and pass them to createSobree().

For an interactive editor with toolbar, keyboard shortcuts, and zoom dock:

pnpm add @sobree/core @sobree/keyboard @sobree/block-tools @sobree/zoom-controls

For a headless / API-driven peer (LLM agent, automation):

pnpm add @sobree/core yjs

Use HeadlessSobree — the no-DOM counterpart of the browser editor. For multi-user collab, add @sobree/collab-providers (client glue) and run @sobree/collab-server somewhere.

Hello world

import { createSobree } from "@sobree/core";
import { keyboard } from "@sobree/keyboard";
import { blockTools } from "@sobree/block-tools";
import { zoomControls } from "@sobree/zoom-controls";
import "@sobree/core/tokens.css";

const editor = createSobree("#editor", {
  content: "# Hello\n\nStart typing.",
  plugins: [
    keyboard(),       // Cmd+B / Cmd+Z / …
    blockTools(),     // floating toolbar + gutter indicator
    zoomControls(),   // bottom-right zoom dock
  ],
});

editor.on("change", ({ doc }) => {
  console.log("body has", doc.body.length, "blocks");
});

createSobree() mounts the viewport, the paginated paper stack, runs each plugin's setup() against a shared context, and returns a single handle. Plugins are torn down in reverse-of-mount order on editor.destroy().

What's in the box

• Native OOXML AST. Every node maps 1:1 to a <w:…> element.
• Y.Doc backed. Every editor is backed by a Yjs Y.Doc; mutations mirror in via Y.Doc.transact. Embedders attach y-websocket / y-indexeddb / y-webrtc providers for persistence + collaboration. editor.ydoc is the escape hatch.
• Pure paginator. TeX-style break selection, widow / orphan, keep-with-next, multi-section. No DOM, no I/O.
• Per-peer undo / redo. Thin wrapper around Y.UndoManager — each peer's Cmd+Z reverses only its own edits via tracked Y origins; remote edits flow through but stay off the local stack. Selection restored from stackItem.meta.
• OOXML font embedding. word/fontTable.xml round-trip + ODTTF obfuscation + OS/2 fsType licence check + runtime @font-face registration. Note: fsType is an advisory gate — the embedder is responsible for ensuring they have rights to ship any font they pass to editor.embedFont(...). Pass { allowRestricted: true } only when you do.
• Minimal core, opt-in plugins. Toolbar (@sobree/block-tools), keyboard (@sobree/keyboard), zoom dock (@sobree/zoom-controls) ship as siblings. For multi-user collab: @sobree/collab-providers (client) + @sobree/collab-server (Node relay). @sobree/core has no plugin dependencies — only fflate for ZIP and yjs for the CRDT.
• Y-protocol IS the wire. No separate RPC plugin. Headless callers (LLMs, automation) participate via HeadlessSobree — same commands, same Y.Doc.
• Wire-ready surface. editor.commands.execute(name, args) is the single dispatch path used by keyboard, toolbar, and external transports.
• JSON-clean projection. editor.getDocument() returns a JSON-clean SobreeDocument snapshot of the underlying Y.Doc — survives structuredClone and any wire.

Polymorphic content

createSobree("#editor", { content: "# Markdown" });          // seed string
createSobree("#editor", { content: docxBlob });              // .docx bytes
createSobree("#editor", { content: astLiteral });            // built with the doc builders
createSobree("#editor");                                      // empty

For the .docx path, await editor.ready resolves once the import lands.

Save back to .docx

const { blob } = editor.toDocx();

Or load a different file at runtime:

const { warnings } = await editor.loadDocx(file);

Documentation

• Quick start
• createSobree() API
• History (undo / redo)
• Fonts (embedding + fontTable)
• Architecture
• Document model
• Plugin model
• Building your own plugin

License

MIT.