Creating plugins

If you want to add custom functionality to flutter_deck, you can create your own plugins. A plugin can be used to wrap the FlutterDeckApp with required providers or add a custom action to the controls that could be selected and execute custom logic.

Plugins are designed to be reusable components that can be shared across multiple slide decks. If you create a plugin that provides general-purpose functionality, consider publishing it to pub.dev so others in the community can benefit from it.

FlutterDeckPlugin

To create a plugin, you need to extend the FlutterDeckPlugin class. This class has four methods: init, dispose, buildControls, and wrap.

init

The init method is called once when the FlutterDeck is created. It can be used to initialize the plugin.

The flutterDeck parameter provides access to the state of the slide deck, such as the current slide number, the configuration, and the router. You can use it to listen to state changes or to navigate programmatically.

@override
void init(FlutterDeck flutterDeck) {
  // Initialize the plugin
}

dispose

The dispose method is called once when the FlutterDeck is disposed. It can be used to dispose of any resources used by the plugin.

@override
void dispose() {
  // Dispose the plugin
}

buildControls

The buildControls method is called when the controls are built. It can be used to add custom controls to the presenter toolbar. The method returns a list of widgets that will be added to the controls.

The method also provides a FlutterDeckPluginMenuItemBuilder that can be used to help you build menu items for the controls.

@override
List<Widget> buildControls(BuildContext context, FlutterDeckPluginMenuItemBuilder menuItemBuilder) {
  return [
    menuItemBuilder(
      context,
      label: 'My Plugin',
      onPressed: () {
        // Execute custom logic
      },
    ),
  ];
}

wrap

The wrap method is called when the FlutterDeckApp is built. It can be used to inject providers or other widgets into the tree.

@override
Widget wrap(BuildContext context, Widget child) {
  return SomeProvider(
    child: child,
  );
}

Example

Here is an example of a simple plugin that prints a message to the console when initialized and adds a custom action to the controls. When the action is clicked, a SnackBar is shown with a message.

class MyPlugin extends FlutterDeckPlugin {
  const MyPlugin();

  @override
  void init(FlutterDeck flutterDeck) {
    print('MyPlugin initialized');
  }

  @override
  void dispose() {
    print('MyPlugin disposed');
  }

  @override
  List<Widget> buildControls(BuildContext context, FlutterDeckPluginMenuItemBuilder menuItemBuilder) {
    return [
      menuItemBuilder(
        context,
        label: 'Show message',
        icon: const Icon(Icons.message),
        onPressed: () {
          ScaffoldMessenger.of(context).showSnackBar(
            const SnackBar(
              content: Text('Hello from MyPlugin!'),
            ),
          );
        },
      ),
    ];
  }
}

For a more complex example, see the auto-play plugin.