Dumbify - Simplify Text

Dumbify it: turn wordy web pages into plain-speak summaries in seconds

A Chrome extension that automatically simplifies complex text on web pages, making them more accessible and easier to understand. Perfect for students, professionals, and anyone who wants to cut through jargon and complex language.

🚀 Features

Core Functionality

• Real-time Text Simplification: Automatically replaces complex words and phrases with simpler alternatives
• Three Simplification Levels:
  • Basic: Simple word replacements (utilize → use, facilitate → help)
  • Medium: More comprehensive simplification with phrase restructuring
  • Advanced: Aggressive simplification with sentence breaking and complex phrase replacement
• Smart Page Processing: Intelligently identifies and processes text content while preserving formatting
• Page Summarization: Generate quick summaries of web pages with key takeaways

Advanced Features

• AI Integration: Optional AI-powered text simplification using local models (Ollama) or OpenAI-compatible APIs
• Intelligent Filtering: Skips code blocks, technical terms, and preserves important context
• Customizable Settings: Control what gets simplified (articles, comments, UI elements)
• Performance Optimized: Uses efficient DOM processing and mutation observers
• Non-destructive: Original text is preserved and can be restored at any time

📦 Installation

From Source (Developer Mode)

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/Anemoriaa/dumbify.git
   cd dumbify

2. Load the extension in Chrome:

   • Open Chrome and go to chrome://extensions/
   • Enable "Developer mode" in the top right
   • Click "Load unpacked" and select the dumbify folder
   • The Dumbify icon should appear in your extensions toolbar

3. Pin the extension (optional):

   • Click the puzzle piece icon in Chrome's toolbar
   • Find Dumbify and click the pin icon

🎯 Usage

Basic Usage

1. Navigate to any webpage you want to simplify
2. Click the Dumbify extension icon in your toolbar
3. Toggle "Simplify Text" to enable/disable text simplification
4. Choose your simplification level:
   • Basic: Light simplification for everyday use
   • Medium: Balanced simplification (recommended)
   • Advanced: Heavy simplification for maximum readability

Page Summarization

1. Click the "Summarize Page" button in the popup
2. Get a quick bullet-point summary of the page's key content
3. Summaries are cached for performance

Advanced Settings

Access the options page by clicking "More Options" in the popup to configure:

• Content Types: Choose what to simplify (articles, comments, UI elements)
• AI Integration: Enable AI-powered simplification with local or cloud models
• Auto-enable: Automatically enable Dumbify on new pages
• Custom Endpoints: Configure your own AI model endpoints

🤖 AI Integration

Dumbify supports AI-powered text simplification through:

Local Models (Ollama)

# Install Ollama and run a model
ollama run llama3
# Configure endpoint: http://localhost:11434/api/generate

OpenAI-Compatible APIs

• OpenAI API
• Anthropic Claude
• Local models with OpenAI-compatible interfaces

Configuration

1. Go to extension options
2. Enable "Use AI for simplification"
3. Set your AI endpoint and model
4. Configure request limits and timeouts

🛠️ Development

Project Structure

dumbify/
├── manifest.json          # Extension manifest
├── popup.html/css/js      # Extension popup interface
├── content.js             # Main text processing logic
├── background.js          # AI integration and messaging
├── options.html/js        # Settings page
├── icons/                 # Extension icons
└── test.html             # Development testing page

Key Components

• TextDumbifier Class: Core text processing and simplification engine
• Content Script: Runs on web pages to process text in real-time
• Background Script: Handles AI requests and extension messaging
• Popup Interface: User controls and status display

Building and Testing

1. Load in Chrome using developer mode
2. Test on various websites to ensure compatibility
3. Use test.html for isolated testing of text processing
4. Check console logs for debugging information

🎨 Customization

Adding Custom Replacements

The extension uses a comprehensive dictionary of word and phrase replacements. You can extend this by modifying the getReplacements() method in content.js.

Styling

Customize the popup appearance by editing popup.css. The extension uses modern CSS with:

• Clean, minimal design
• Responsive layout
• Smooth animations
• Dark/light theme support

📊 Performance

• Efficient Processing: Uses requestIdleCallback for non-blocking text processing
• Smart Caching: Caches summaries and processed text to avoid reprocessing
• Memory Management: Cleans up removed DOM nodes and unused references
• Rate Limiting: Limits AI requests to prevent API abuse

🔧 Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. Extension not working: Check that it's enabled in chrome://extensions/
2. Text not simplifying: Ensure the toggle is on and try refreshing the page
3. AI not responding: Verify your AI endpoint is accessible and properly configured
4. Performance issues: Try reducing the simplification level or disabling AI features

Debug Mode

Enable debug mode in the console to see detailed processing information:

// In browser console on a page with Dumbify active
window.dumbifier.debugMode = true;

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit issues, feature requests, or pull requests.

Development Setup

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Test thoroughly
5. Submit a pull request

📄 License

This project is open source. Please check the repository for license details.

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Built for accessibility and readability
• Inspired by the need for clearer communication
• Thanks to the open-source community for tools and inspiration

---

Made with ❤️ for clearer communication

Dumbify: Because everyone deserves to understand what they're reading.