Extensions view: extension cards are displayed inconsistently for approved extensions

[jwunderl]

Describe the bug

Extension cards show up differently when displayed as part of a group (e.g. preferred extensions or tagged extensions) than they do when the same extensions show up through extension search.

for preferred extensions, they use the name from pxt.json but have no description

when the result comes from search, the displayed name appears to be the repo slug with pxt- at the beginning cut off additionally, it shows the description from the 'about' section.

Ideally, I'd say both views should be the same, with name taken from pxt.json (for approved extensions) and description coming from either about or a 'description' field in pxt.json

To Reproduce Steps to reproduce the behavior:

1. Go to arcade extensions page
2. look at the card for github.com/jwunderl/pxt-color
3. search for color
4. see card looks different

[abchatra]

Still repros.

[github-actions[bot]]

Recommendation for Triage

Issue Type: bug

Status: info-complete

Label(s): extension (already applied)

Duplicate Issue(s): No duplicate issue found

Likely Related: #6953 (Improve extension gallery search - addresses similar extension discoverability concerns)

Suggested Priority: p2 (already applied - appropriate for UI consistency issue)

Complexity: medium

Copilot Agent Ready: ⚠️ Needs clarification

Recommendations for Assignee

Analysis

This is a UI consistency bug where extension cards display different information depending on the context (preferred/tagged extensions vs search results). In preferred extensions view, cards show the name from pxt.json but lack descriptions, while search results show the repo slug (with pxt- stripped) and include the GitHub repository's "about" description. The issue impacts user experience by creating confusion about extension identity and making it harder to understand what extensions do. This belongs in the microsoft/pxt repository since extension browser functionality is core framework code (webapp/src/extensionsBrowser.tsx), not Arcade-specific.

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Duplicate & Related Issues

Duplicates:

• No duplicates found via search

Related Issues:

• #6953 (Improve extension gallery search) - Addresses broader extension discoverability problems including search and naming, which overlaps with the display consistency concerns in this issue

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Location Hints

Based on code search in the microsoft/pxt repository (not pxt-arcade):

• webapp/src/extensionsBrowser.tsx - Main extension browser component that handles both preferred/tagged extension display and search result rendering
• This issue affects cross-target functionality and should be fixed in the pxt-core repository

Note: While this issue was filed in pxt-arcade, the actual fix needs to be implemented in microsoft/pxt since the extension gallery is shared infrastructure used by all MakeCode targets.

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Next Steps

Can assign to Copilot Coding Agent: ⚠️ Yes, after clarification

Reasoning: The issue is well-documented with clear repro steps and desired behavior. However, since the fix needs to be in the microsoft/pxt repository rather than pxt-arcade, the issue should either be transferred to microsoft/pxt or a corresponding issue should be created there. Once repositioned correctly, this would be a good candidate for automated assistance with medium complexity.

🏴‍☠️ Ahoy! This treasure was crafted by pxt-arcade Issue Triage Assistant fer issue #5147 🗺️