Package Manager
Visual package browsing
Card-based UI for discovering and installing Node-RED packages. Replacing text lists with visual cards.
Why We're Building This
"The default package manager shows plain text lists. I can't tell what packages do without clicking through each one."
Node-RED's default package manager is functional but basic. Text lists make it hard to browse. No visual previews. No rich metadata. No smart caching means slow loading.
We wanted something modern - visual cards showing what each package does, smart caching for speed, better search and filtering. Like browsing an app store instead of reading a phone book.
What It Will Become
Planned Features:
- Visual Cards: See package descriptions, screenshots, ratings
- Smart Caching: localStorage with TTL for fast browsing
- Advanced Search: Filter by category, tags, keywords
- One-Click Install: Streamlined installation workflow
- Dependency Preview: See what else gets installed
- Multi-Registry: Support for multiple package sources
Current Capabilities:
- Menu integration ("Manage Packages" replaces "Manage Palette")
- Full-screen modal UI framework
- Smart caching layer with TTL
- Modular architecture ready for features
Try the Early Version
You can install the current Phase 2 build to see progress. The UI framework is complete, browsing functionality is being added.
# Install current version cd ~/.node-red npm install @fierylab.io/fiery-contrib-plugin-package-manager node-red-restart
What Works Now:
- Menu item appears under "Manage Packages"
- Full-screen modal opens
- ESC key closes the modal
- Caching layer is functional
What's Coming:
- Card grid with package visualizations
- Search and filter controls
- Package installation (Phase 3)
Follow Development Progress
This is an active experiment. Features are being added regularly.