rhwp is a HWP/HWPX viewer and editor built with Rust and WebAssembly.
The project addresses the challenge of opening Korean word processor documents across different platforms and environments without proprietary software. It parses HWP and HWPX file formats and renders them through a WebAssembly-based engine, making the previously closed format accessible in browsers, VS Code, and browser extensions. The approach breaks down the binary format specification and implements an open-source renderer that works client-side.
Developers should consider rhwp if they need to display or edit Korean documents in web applications, browser extensions, or editor integrations without depending on commercial software. It suits projects requiring cross-platform document handling, particularly those targeting web environments or needing programmatic access to HWP content. The tool is available as an npm package for integration into JavaScript projects, a VS Code extension for direct editing, and browser extensions for Chrome, Edge, and Firefox.
The project operates with structured long-term planning documented in a public roadmap that distinguishes between features for the upstream core library and separate downstream product implementations. Development involves multiple collaborators beyond the primary maintainer, with over forty external contributors participating in the codebase. The project explicitly coordinates concurrent work across different version targets, including current stabilization of the layout engine and parallel development of collaboration features for a future major version.
