Ruby vs. Java vs. TypeScript: my experience on building a Cowork DOCX plugin

24-May-2026 180
We've built a Claude Cowork DOCX plugin in Ruby, Java, and TypeScript. Java is the winner for supporting zip files and XML in its runtime with no issues. However, TypeScript is chosen due to the possibility of MCPB support.Recently, we've implemented the same Cowork DOCX plugin 3 times. The first prototype was in Ruby. We reimplemented it in Java in order to make it a desktop app. Then, We reimplemented it in Typescripts (Node) in order to make it compatible with MCPB. Eventually, We've switched to Bun because Cowork plugin apparently doesn't support MCPB. Since now I have direct experience in implementing the same app in 3 different languages within a span of a month, I've decided to write about it. For context, a DOCX file is actually a zip file with a bunch of XMLs and other files in it. Therefore, our code must process zip files and XMLs.
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