Archive | January, 2008

2nd Look at Better GReader

Jan/30 in Add-ons Reviews, Usability

Better GReader = A+ ExtentionI have gotten a few e-mails lately wanting me to give Better GReader a second look. Maybe I didn’t give off enough of an ecstatic glow with my last look, but this time I promise to do better!

For those of you who are not familiar with the idea, Gina at Lifehacker is a master at rolling up a lot of great Greasemonkey hacks into one big extension for Firefox adding form, functionality and style to various Google services.

Here are some of the Greasemonkey Google Reader scripts that got rolled up into Better GReader:

I always look forward to seeing what they do with their “Better” Firefox series of extensions at Lifehacker and this one is no different. Pick it up for yourself and let me know what you like or don’t like about it.

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Mouseless Browsing with Firefox

Jan/29 in Add-ons Reviews, Usability

Mouseless Web SurfingWho needs a mouse? The real hardcore Firefox users can get it all done with just a few clicks on the keyboard – yo. Oh you didn’t know? Using a mouse with Firefox is so old school now. With the help of the Mouseless Browsing extention for Firefox all you need is a keyboard, a browser and some fingers that are ready for game time!

The major goal of this tool is to make it where you can browse through the Web using the number pad to navigate through links. You would hit “1″ to go to the first link, “2″ to go to the second, and so on and so forth. Here is a little more on the process from the extension developer.

You can configure to use the numpad exclusively for Mouseless Browsing. In that mode you can trigger actions even the focus is on a textfield or selectbox. The output is suppressed. If you not use the exclusive mode then triggering actions by typing ids don’t work if the focus is on a textfield or a selectbox. Entering the id while holding the CTRL-Key triggers the action in any case. You can toggle between the two modes by pressing the num-key twice within 1 sec.

It might take a little ‘bit of time to configure the extension to your liking but once you do I could see anybody using this as an alternative way to browse around any web page. Also be sure to check out the official site for Mouseless Browsing to get some more configuration help and advice.

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Add 110+ Searches with termBlaster

Jan/28 in Add-ons Reviews, Usability

termBlasterIf just a handful of searching up in your search bar doesn’t cut it for you or if you want to remove your search bar to reclaim space, termBlaster is the super searching extention that will have you looking for things you never knew you could look.

Here is a little more about the Firefox extension from the developers:

termBlaster adds the ability to perform searches from your right-click (or context) menu using one of 110+ websites that range from search engines to encyclopedias to translators. Website lists are in XML format and can be modified in Places.

One would think that speed could come into play when trying to navigate through the search menus but you can do so quickly with little or no effort at all. All you do is highlight and right click the word you want to search and then select the search engine you want to use. They have shopping searches, review searches, torrent searches, map searches, too many to name.

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gDocsBar – Perfect Sidebar for Google Docs

Jan/27 in Add-ons Reviews, Usability

Google Docs BarYou can’t get a neater and more functional companion to Google Docs than the gDocsBar extension for Firefox. Other than giving you a cool sidebar to work with your Google documents in – it also supports both search and filter from the sidebar interface.

With how well this blends right into the Google Docs interface, you would expect it was released by Google themselves. Also I could see this being a reason for some people to give Google Docs a second shot – due to the fact that it makes it even easier to view your documents you have stored there.

To get a preview of the interface before installing – you can check out their official site for the extension at gdocsbar.com.

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Mobile Firefox – First Look

Jan/26 in Firefox News

Firefox MobileNice to see that the development of the mobile Firefox browser is really starting to gain some steam.  From the look of things, they are branching this project into two directions – one for touch screens and one for what I guess you would call “not” touch screens.

It shares some of the look and feel of Firefox 3 so you have to believe that with that being said that the gui-feeling they are delivering with the new browser will be used maybe for a few more versions down the road.

As long as they can keep it simple – and functional Mozilla will have yet another winner on their hands.  I am curious to see though what will be that one feature that really draws mobile surfers in.  The one thing that nobody else does right that Mozilla does do.

More info on the Mobile Firefox Previews:

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The Week in Hidden Firefox Links

Jan/25 in Resources

Been a while since I traveled outside of the Firefox Facts village to go seek out goodies from around the Mozilla world. There are more than a few this week, so enjoy – and if you have anymore you can pass them back to me in the comments.

The Best Stuff You Didn’t See Here This Week:

Firefox Media of the Week:

A New FireFox Security Problem

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Best Screen Grabs Come From FireShot

Jan/24 in Add-ons Reviews, Settings

I’m back to using FireShot. This extension that allows you to take screenshots of what is inside your browser window enticed me to no end when it first came out – but with it’s lack of features I had to let it go. Here is a little more about the extension just in case you missed it the first time around…

What is FireShot and Why Do I Need It?

FireShot is a Firefox extension that creates screenshots of web pages. Unlike other extensions, this plugin provides a set of editing and annotation tools, which let users quickly modify captures and insert text and graphical annotations. Such functionality will be especially useful for web designers, testers and content reviewers.

FireShot in Action

Some of these newest features include:

  • Screenshot can be uploaded to server for resizing, commenting and blogging.
  • Added Undo/Redo feature
  • Added “Resume editing” option
  • Line width can be specified
  • Improved page extents detection mechanism (now supports GMail, E-Bay and other frame-based sites)
  • Improved memory management routines and error handling messages.
  • Added MS Outlook support
  • Working folder can be set up and periodically erased.

As you can see there is even more to love here. More now than ever before! Give the FireShot extension another shot. It is the perfect compainion for anybody who works with screen grabs a lot.

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Kid Friendly Scribblies

Jan/23 in Best Themes

Scribbles - Plain ThemeWhen looking for kid friendly themes, there are not that many to choose from out there. The best of the best, better than all the rest is the Scribblies set of themes for Firefox. For more kid friendly themes check out Percy’s suggestions over at Mozilla Links.

Try out Scribblies Plain for a dull background but fun icons!

Need something more colorful? Try Scribbles Brite!

Also can’t forget about Scribblies Kids for an alternative look and feel!

I really love the entire line of Scribblies themes for Firefox. Which one is your favorite?  Maybe you’ll have an easier time picking a favorite than me.

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StatusBars Cures Your S.O.L.-ness

Jan/22 in Add-ons Reviews, Usability

Multiple Status Bars for FirefoxToo many icons down there in your statusbar?

Let me just tell you – your not alone. Firefox fans usually call this deadly addition S.O.L. otherwise known as statusbar over load. There is a cure. The solution to your problem, is to install one more Firefox extension named StatusBars.

I promise you, there will be no side effects and you will be able to continue to use Firefox without the shame of your peers. This extension gives you the ability to switch between multiple status bars with different content. You can then customize your statusbars icon, name and arrange the icons the way you want.

You can set up your statusbars so you have one for the site you are on (greasemonkey, adblock, rip, etc), one for general information (forcastfox, gmail notifier, stock ticker, etc) and one for webdesign (tidy, web developer, firebug, etc).

You too can once again have a status bar in Firefox that is neat, tidy and organized.  Don’t kick the habit – feed the need!

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Quicker Downloads in Firefox

Jan/21 in Usability

Firefox Downloads TipHere is an easy trick to speed up your Firefox downloading. First thing you must do is add the “Downloads” icon to your Firefox toolbar somewhere. From there you can do this to download quicker.

Drag and Drop onto the Downloads Toolbar Icon

Instead of right-clicking on a download link, choosing “save to target” and pressing enter, just drag the download link to the “downloads icon” in the toolbar. The download will start automatically.

Very nice quick trick to get around the “Save as..” box when downloading.

tip courtesy of makeuseof.com

Have any other tips you’ve written about or found via the Web? Share them with me and I’ll be sure to give them their day in the sun.

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