Cannot activate "Google Docs Offline" extension

[James E. LaBarre]

~ $ lsb_release -rd
Description: Linux Mint 18.1 Serena
Release: 18.1

~ $ apt-cache policy chromium-browser
chromium-browser:
  Installed: 58.0.3029.110-0ubuntu0.16.04.1281
  Candidate: 58.0.3029.110-0ubuntu0.16.04.1281
  Version table:
 *** 58.0.3029.110-0ubuntu0.16.04.1281 500
        500 http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial-updates/universe i386 Packages
        500 http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial-security/universe i386 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
     49.0.2623.108-0ubuntu1.1233 500
        500 http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial/universe i386 Packages

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Have tried this under both 32 and 64bit installs, slightly different behaviour. My concern is with the 32bit build, so I will focus on that, with a footnote on 64bit.

On a 32bit netbook (Acer AspireOne) I have LinuxMint 18.1 (Ubuntu 16.04-based) with the Chromium browser installed. I have installed the https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/google-docs-offline/ghbmnnjooekpmoecnnnilnnbdlolhkhi"Google Docs Offline" extension into the browser, and restarted the browser (multiple tries installing & uninstalling, to make sure there wasn't a failure in the install). Extension is at https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/google-docs-offline/ghbmnnjooekpmoecnnnilnnbdlolhkhi

According to directions I should make sure offline sync is enabled in Google Drive (which it is), and then make sure they are enabled in the settings for Google Docs. Once that is enabled I should have an option in each document's preferences to save offline.

Expected:
I should be able to enable the offline function in Google Docs by moving the switch to active. After that I should be able to mark a document for offline synchronization.

What Happened:
The setting in Google Drive is checked as enabled. However, when I go to the settings screen for Google Docs, the 'slider' to enable the option is stuck in a half-way position (neither off nor on). Consequentially the offline sync option will not be available for the document.

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I had tried this with the 64bit version on another system (same Mint 18.1 on a 64bit system). Same chromium version as above. It actually enables the option and lets me sync a document, and I can do an offline edit (disabling the network to test). However, it will only work for a couple exits/restarts of the browser, at which point it will disable itself. Strange behaviour in itself; perhaps related or not, just put here in case it's relevant.

I have tried this on the official Google Chrome (58.0.3029.96-1) on the same 64bit system and it works no problem. Obviously I cannot do the comparable test on 32bit (no 32bit Linux can be found anywhere, Google wiped out every copy in existence).

[James E. LaBarre (jamesl-bestweb)]

I did see a question on the main Chromium Discuss forum when I asked about this there:

"Does your chromium build have up to date API keys with all the APIs used by current Chrome enabled? It's possible the extension is relying on an extension API that's backed by a Google API that your build can't reach.."

Seeing as I didn't compile it, or work on the binary package, I don't know how to answer that question. I would look at the install itself (presuming there would be something equivalent to the "about:config" screens in Firefox) if I knew what I had to look for.

[James E. LaBarre (jamesl-bestweb)]

I did find an link to the very-last version of GoogleChrome for 32bit Linux (one that Google didn't manage to obliterate from the internet) and the extension works there, although it whines and moans that it's an obsolete and unsupported version. So I know it is not dependent on 64bit. Would really prefer to use this under Chromium so I don't have to have the old GChrome build just to edit GoogleDocs offline.

[Olivier Tilloy (osomon)]

For reference, here is the link to the chromium-discuss thread mentioned in comment #1: https://groups.google.com/a/chromium.org/forum/#!topic/chromium-discuss/VoNNKLgmAzg.

[Olivier Tilloy (osomon)]

And as I mentioned there, if the same extension works (although briefly) on a 64bits system with the same version of chromium, it's unlikely that the issue lies with the API keys, as they are exactly the same shared by all builds.

[Nathan Teodosio (nteodosio)]

Is this still an issue for the current Chromium stable?

[James E. LaBarre (jamesl-bestweb)]

The old Acer AspireOne netbook no longer has Linux on it (I was making it into a FreeDOS machine), but I made a VM of LMDE5 (32-bit edition) with a "qemu32" processor, and tested this with the v106 Chromium build there.

The extension installed on that Chromium browser, and I was able to mark some files for "offline" storage. Closed the browser, disabled the network on the VM, then opened Chromium and started GoogleDocs. I was able to edit one of the offline docs, and then when I re-enabled networking it uploaded my changes (comfirmed by viewing the doc from my host machine).

It would seem to be working now, at least in a Debian/Ubuntu-based system similar to what I had on the AspireOne.

[Nathan Teodosio (nteodosio)]

Thanks for trying to reproduce this, that's much appreciated! And glad
to hear it (apparently) solved itself.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for chromium-browser (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]