The omnibox API allows you to register a keyword with Google Chrome's address bar, which is also known as the omnibox.

When the user enters your extension's keyword, the user starts interacting solely with your extension. Each keystroke is sent to your extension, and you can provide suggestions in response.

The suggestions can be richly formatted in a variety of ways. When the user accepts a suggestion, your extension is notified and can take action.

Manifest

You must include an omnibox keyword field in the manifest to use the omnibox API. You should also specify a 16x16-pixel icon, which will be displayed in the address bar when suggesting that users enter keyword mode.

For example:

{
  "name": "Aaron's omnibox extension",
  "version": "1.0",
  "omnibox": { "keyword" : "aaron" },
  "icons": {
    "16": "16-full-color.png"
  },
  "background_page": "background.html"
}

Note: Chrome automatically creates a grayscale version of your 16x16-pixel icon. You should provide a full-color version so that it can also be used in other situations that require color. For example, the context menus API also uses a 16x16-pixel icon, but it is displayed in color.

Examples

You can find samples of this API on the sample page.