Hey everyone, I’m trying to figure out how Google Docs talks to blog servers when you publish directly from the app. You know that feature in the Share menu where you can publish as a web page? I’m really curious about the data transmission standard they use for this.
I could probably dig into the code of one of the supported blog platforms to figure it out, but I’m hoping there’s an official spec somewhere. Does anyone know if Google has published anything about this? Or maybe you’ve worked with it before?
I’m thinking of setting up my own custom publishing server that could work with Google Docs. It would be super helpful to understand how the data is structured and sent. Any info or pointers would be awesome!
As someone who’s been down this rabbit hole, I can tell you it’s a fascinating journey. AtomPub is indeed the foundation, but Google’s implementation has some quirks. I spent weeks reverse-engineering their system for a personal project.
One thing to keep in mind is that Google’s security measures are no joke. They use OAuth 2.0 for authentication, and you’ll need to jump through some hoops to get that working correctly. Also, their error responses can be frustratingly vague sometimes.
If you’re planning to build a custom server, I’d suggest starting with a basic AtomPub implementation and then gradually adding Google-specific features. Pay close attention to how they handle things like image uploads and formatting preservation.
Don’t forget to thoroughly test different document types and edge cases. Google Docs can produce some complex structures that might break a naive implementation. Good luck with your project!
yo ethan, i’ve messed with this before. google uses the atom publishing protocol (atompub) for that feature. it’s an xml-based standard for blog apis. you can find the spec online, but warning: it’s pretty dense. might be easier to check out some existing atompub libraries to get started. good luck with ur project!
I’ve actually implemented something similar for a client recently. Google indeed uses AtomPub, but they’ve added some custom extensions to it. The core protocol is straightforward, but Google’s additions can be tricky to navigate.
If you’re serious about this, I’d recommend starting with the official AtomPub spec, then examining the requests/responses when publishing from Google Docs to a supported platform. Tools like Wireshark can be invaluable here.
One gotcha to watch out for: Google’s implementation is quite strict about authentication and security. You’ll need to ensure your server adheres to their expected standards, or the connection will fail.
Feel free to reach out if you hit any specific roadblocks. It’s an interesting project!