A lightweight, distraction-free browser extension for reading Medium and Medium-hosted publication articles using in-tab reader overlays and multi-provider archive integration. Built using Manifest V3 with zero build dependencies.
- In-Tab Reader Mode: Read full articles directly inside a clean, distraction-free reader modal without navigating away from the page.
- Multi-Provider Pipeline: Switch seamlessly between snapshot and mirror providers, including Archive.today, Archive.ph, Freedium, ReadMedium, and Wayback Machine.
- Dynamic Domain Detection: Automatically recognizes
medium.comand custom publication domains (e.g.,levelup.gitconnected.com,towardsdatascience.com) via runtime HTML metadata inspection. - Zero Build Overhead: Implemented in native modern JavaScript and CSS. No Webpack, Babel, or compilation steps required.
- Keyboard Shortcuts: Quickly toggle the reader overlay using
Alt + Uand close withEscape.
- Clone or download this repository.
- Open your browser and navigate to the extensions page:
- Chrome:
chrome://extensions - Brave:
brave://extensions - Edge:
edge://extensions
- Chrome:
- Enable Developer mode in the top-right corner.
- Click Load unpacked in the top-left corner and select this project directory.
- Open any Medium article and use the floating Unlock Article button or press
Alt + U.
Detailed technical documentation is available in the docs/ directory:
- Legacy Audit & Root Cause Analysis: Forensic review of previous failure points (Twitter referrer patching, SSR paywall truncation, and Manifest V2 deprecation).
- Architecture & Implementation: Overview of Manifest V3 design, declarativeNetRequest rules, and dynamic publication detection.
- Testing & Publishing Guide: Local verification workflows, debugging procedures, and store publishing guidelines.
| Action | Control |
|---|---|
| Toggle Reader View | Alt + U or Click floating button |
| Close Reader View | Escape or Click outside modal |
| Open in New Tab | Click New Tab in floating pill or modal header |
| Reload Reader Frame | Click Reload button in modal header |
| Context Menu Action | Right-click any Medium link or page |
This project is licensed under the MIT License.