This article walks you through installing the Akuru browser extension, pinning it so it's always to hand, and setting up the two tabs it needs to work. It takes a couple of minutes and is a one-time job.

You'll need Google Chrome on a desktop or laptop. The extension runs in Chrome (or another Chromium browser) on a desktop computer. It does not work in Microsoft Edge, Safari, on iPad or on iPhone, and Edge support is not planned. If you don't have Chrome, install it first.

Before you install

A desktop or laptop computer (Windows or Mac).
Google Chrome (or a Chromium-based browser).
Your Akuru i-scribe login, and your i-consult login if you use it.
The install link for the Akuru Browser Extension. The listing is unlisted on the Chrome Web Store, so you won't find it by searching. Install it from the link below (or the one Akuru gives you).

Install it from the Chrome Web Store: Akuru Browser Extension. The listing is unlisted, so use this link rather than searching the store.

Install the extension

Open Google Chrome on your computer.

Open the Akuru Browser Extension listing on the Chrome Web Store. (The listing is unlisted, so you won't find it by searching the store; use this link.)

On the listing, click Add to Chrome.

When Chrome asks you to confirm, review the permissions (see below) and click Add extension.

Wait for Chrome to confirm the extension has been added. That's the install done.

Why Chrome asks for permissions. On install, Chrome lists the access the extension needs. The extension asks only for what it must have to do its job:

Read and change data on i-scribe and your EMR pages, so it can read the patient and move outputs across. It is scoped to those sites only; it has no access to your email, banking or other sites.
Read your clipboard, so it can pick up an output the moment you copy it in i-scribe (it asks for this at install so copy-paste never silently fails).
Access your tabs, so it can find your i-scribe and EMR tabs and route information between them.

None of this sends patient data to Akuru's servers. For the full breakdown, see Is my patient data safe? (security & privacy).

Pin the extension so it's always visible

By default Chrome tucks new extensions away behind a puzzle-piece icon. Pin Akuru so its icon is always on your toolbar.

Click the puzzle-piece (Extensions) icon at the top-right of Chrome.

Find Akuru in the list of extensions.

Click the pin icon next to it. The Akuru icon now stays on your Chrome toolbar.

Set up your two tabs

The extension works by talking between two browser tabs: i-scribe in one tab and your EMR in another. Getting these set up correctly is the difference between the extension working smoothly and appearing to do nothing.

i-scribe and your EMR must be open in the same Chrome window, side by side, not in two separate windows. If they're in different windows, the extension can't connect them and inserting an output will silently do nothing. This is the single most common reason the extension "doesn't work". Keep both tabs in one window.

In Chrome, open your EMR in one tab and log in.

In the same Chrome window, open i-scribe in another tab and log in.

Open the patient's record in your EMR so their details are on screen.

Look at the top of your EMR page. You should see the thin Akuru bar across the top. When everything's connected it's green.

Use one Xestro tab, not several. Having multiple Xestro tabs open at once can cause uploads to fail or the page to freeze. Keep a single active Xestro tab.

Check it's working

You'll know the extension is set up correctly when:

The Akuru icon is pinned on your Chrome toolbar.
The thin Akuru bar appears across the top of your EMR page.
The bar is green when a patient is loaded and everything's connected.

A green bar means i-scribe is connected and you're ready to go. If the bar says "Reconnecting…" or the buttons look disabled, check that i-scribe is open in the same window and give it a few seconds. For the full meaning of each colour, see A tour of the extension.

Why desktop only?

EMRs are desktop web applications. They're built for a full-size screen and a keyboard, and that's where clinicians use them. The extension lives inside the EMR's page in Chrome, so it goes where the EMR goes: the desktop. There is no iPad or phone version, and none is planned.

I can't find the extension when I search the Chrome Web Store.

That's expected. The listing is unlisted, so it won't appear in store search. Open it directly from this link instead: Akuru Browser Extension, then click Add to Chrome. If you don't have the link, contact support.

Can I install it in Microsoft Edge?

No. The extension supports Chrome and Chromium browsers only. Edge is not supported and is not on the roadmap; the guidance is to use Chrome. (Some clinicians prefer Edge for Xestro's larger scrollbars, but the extension still needs Chrome.)

Do I have to install anything in my EMR or i-scribe?

No. The extension installs once into Chrome. There's nothing to install inside Xestro or i-scribe themselves; just open them as tabs in the same Chrome window.

The bar doesn't appear / the extension seems to do nothing.

The most common cause is i-scribe and your EMR being in separate windows. Put them in the same Chrome window as two tabs. If it still doesn't appear, see The extension can't see my i-scribe or EMR tab.

Next: with the extension installed, set up your i-consult connection in First run & connecting to i-consult, then get oriented with A tour of the extension.