best guide to add-ons, themes and tips for Firefox
According to Mozilla Links, the new line of Firefox 3 themes all have their own names now: Tango!, Strata, and Firelight.
Personally, I think I might like the Tango one the best. The other day played with Strata some but still not a big fan of it. I am sure it will also be only a matter of time before people release “classic” versions to make the theme look more like Firefox 2.
Tired of these themes? Try a few of the best new ones out there!
Big congratulations to Tracie Andrews, the winner of the Firefox 3 t-shirt design contest! I have to say this wasn’t on my radar much (the contest that is) but this design is really awesome. I would wear it, that is for sure! If you want to see the other t-shirt designs – check them out at Flickr. You have to join the group (yes, that even confused me) but there were a lot of cool designs to choose from.
I love how the Mozilla peeps can come up with and idea for a contest, and it does really just seem cooler because they are doing it. The latest from Spread Firefox is a Firefox 3 T-Shirt Contest. You can show your creativity and help promote Firefox 3 all at the same time.
The winner of the contest will get:
4 runners up will receive:
Check out the official page for the rules for submission.
Looks like there will be two rounds of voting, one for weeding out the field by Mozilla and the second round will be decided by the public. Submission deadline is Sunday March 16th 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time (PST) so get to work!
Along with Firefox 3 , it looks like Mozilla will be giving a refresh to the Add-ons web site as well. Out of a one to ten score, I would give it myself a 8.5.
I like it – but the middle seems unorganized some. Not sure if I am in love with it 100%. The far right column I think needs some color too.
For the single review pages, I do like they added the comment and review box a little higher so it is more noticeable. I don’t know, still rubs me as a little “vanilla” though. Vanilla isn’t a bad thing though. What do you think, good change or bad? Get the preview here!
Love it or hate it, you can not argue with the fact that some people like the basic look and feel of Internet Explorer 7. To give it a little ‘bit of credit, it is different than it’s previous versions and does get the job done. Now if you like the IE7 interface, but your using Firefox – most would say your out of luck. Not me though!
What if you could turn your Firefox browser into Microsoft’s browsing behemoth?
The IE Look-a-like Contenders
There are a number of Vista/IE7 inspired themes for Firefox out there, as we have touched on that topic before. Vista-aero claims to be the most IE7-like theme with the Vista aero style. Then you have myFireFox who’s claim to fame is perfectly simulating Internet Explorer 7+ by far. It can work perfectly in Widnows Vista Ultimate.
Tweakable IE Themes?
Did you know though that using either of these two themes comes with an extra perk? If you are doing so I would also highly suggest picking up the myFireFox & Vista-aero Modifier extension. It will allow you to edit key parts of the theme not accessible to your usual drag and drop default personalization from Firefox itself. Here are some of the tweaks you can make:
Any Internet Explorer 6 Fans Out There? Now for those of you who might miss Internet Explorer 6 – there is one alternative for you too. Check out the Looks Familiar theme to reclaim that design for Firefox.
Who doesn’t like Facebook? I’ve got a profile there and I am sure you do too. While looking for ways to make my facebooking just a little ‘bit better I ran into these user styles created to work with the Stylish Firefox extension.
De-MySpacify – Tired of all the user applications on Facebook? Say goodbye to them with this user style. The name of this tweak does speak volumes to some.
Facebook Green – Yes, everything you can expect is delivered here. All the same Facebook goodness except everything has a green tint to it. Great for St Patrick’s Day.
Mini Facebook – This makes the font on the iPhone version of Facebook smaller so that it will work well in an iframe widget on iGoogle.
deviantART Skin for Facebook – deviantART has a pretty slick style – and now you can bring that same style to your Facebook page.
Facebook Always Expand Applications – Get rid of the toggle feature on the applications sidebar, allowing all apps to be visible at all times.
Now you should have no problems with saying you have the most stylish looking Facebook page around.
Finding yourself in a bind with your web site design? Maybe you just can’t get your CSS to level out with your HTML? If you find yourself in these shoes we talk about, you might need to pick up the Total Validator extension for Firefox.
Perform multiple validations and take screen shots in one go. This 5-in-1 validator works with external, internal, or local web pages using the Total Validator service or local copy of the Pro desktop tool… Provides true HTML validation (HTML 2.0 to XHTML 1.1) using the official DTDs, plus added attribute checking. So you no longer have to put up with the limitations of the W3C validator (no type checking) and tools like HTML Tidy which interpret the standards incorrectly (they don’t use the official DTDs).
For more information on and about the Total Validator make sure you check out and bookmark their web site TotalValidator.com.
Come check out FirefoxFacts.com! I have redesigned the layout (mainly due to visitors giving me comments about what they would like to see changed) and I hope I have made everybody happy. As the Web site has grown in popularity – I have added a few things here and there to help folks keep up to date with everything posted here.
Feel free to subscribe to the RSS feed or signup to get daily E-mail reports of everything posted here. Feel like I missed a favorite link, extension or article? Make sure you submit it to me ASAP! Leave a personal link and your name – and I’ll post them as well. (I love giving credit where credit is due)
Also, don’t forget about the Firefox Facts eBook! It is the best free resource on Firefox you can find anywhere on the Internet.
Ever wanted to peek into the head of your favorite Web site? Maybe your a Web designer that needs to check something on your own Web site. No mater what the reason, Professor X is a really neat tool to have on hand. The Professor X extension for Firefox let’s you see inside a page’s head without viewing the source code.
Do you have a creative streak in you? Do you have a talent for witty remarks or curiosity-inducing designs? Do you love Firefox? FoxyTee.com is looking for submissions to our WTF?! T-shirt contest. We’re looking for clever new Firefox T-shirt designs to be worn by Firefox fans and evangelists everywhere. The new designs should be eye-catching conversation starters that can be worn proudly by all those who wish to share their love of Firefox.
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Mitch Keeler is nothing more than your average Joe trying to leave his mark on the world though both his professional work and his online projects, articles, podcasts and more.
