Tag Archives | search

Add Live (Suggesting) Search to Firefox

Feb/02 in Add-ons Reviews

Ever wanted to add Microsoft’s Live Search to your Firefox browser?

No, me neither – but they have released and add-on to help you do just that. 

Live Search in Firefox

The Live Search add-on is a little late to the dance, however I am not going to totally shoot them down.  At least they are making the effort, right?  What does it do?  It gives you the “suggestion” feature for search terms when you search using Live search via the Firefox search box. 

Definitely, if you are a fan of Live search, give this a shot.  All three of you should be extremely happy.

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Searching Inline with Select-n-Go

Jan/30 in Add-ons Reviews

Want to be able to browser for information from a page without leaving that page to go to a new tab?  If you want to save space or have easy access to a slew of search tools – you may want to look into adding Select-n-Go by Cleeki to your own Firefox installation.

To use it, all you have to do is highlight some text on the screen.  Then you get this cool window in a window effect. The main purpose here is to:

  • Minimum annoyance: no change of web page appearance, no unwanted tab switching, no unpleasant popups, etc.
  • Maximum efficiency: minimum operations, seamless connection, easy activation/hiding, etc.

You can do Google, YouTube, eBay, and Amazon.  If that is not enough for you – you can extend it even further by adding your own channels to it.

Select-n-Go Preview

In a nutshell, the add-on launches a browser window inside of your browser window. 

Now I promise though, that is not as annoying as it might sound.  True, it might not be the most visually appealing thing, however it does reduce your tab switching (back and forth) when searching for information Online.  You can pick up Select-n-Go by Cleeki on the Firefox Add-ons web site.

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Add More Tools to the Awesome Bar

Jan/22 in Add-ons Reviews

Wish to extend your already awesome bar (otherwise known as the address or location bar) with some really neat tools?  By default you can check out an RSS feed from there, and bookmark a web page.  For those looking for a few more perks, you need to try UrlbarExt.

This add-on for Firefox extends your awesome bar with more commands, such as:UrlbarExt in Action

  • Make Tiny URL
  • Copy URL
  • Search Site
  • Go Up a Level
  • Easier Page Tagging
  • Navigate Sequential URL’s
  • View Cached Version of  the Web Page
  • Surf Anonymously Proxy Servers

That is definitely a lot to do in such a little space.  You also have the option to show or hide any icon you don’t need using the settings dialog.  The only negative I could find, is that the options for the add-on do look a little cluttered – so much in there to configure in such a small amount of space.

You can pick UrlbarExt up on the Firefox Add-ons site.

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Xoopit for Gmail

Jan/19 in Add-ons Reviews

Need a personal assistant for your Gmail account?  It might not make you coffee, but Xoopit is the next best thing.  Xoopit for Gmail gives you the ability to get a lot more out of your e-mail inbox.  For example, you can quickly browse photos, files and videos. 

Xoopit for Gmail

That is the only places where Xoopit for Gmail shines.  It also lets you:

  • Search your stuff, not your messages. Xoopit upgrades Gmail search to show you the photos, videos and files that match what you are looking for.
  • Browse photos and videos from YouTube, Flickr, Shutterfly, Kodak and Picasa. Links sent to your Gmail account are automatically collected, saving you the hassle of going to these sites.
  • Easily find and access your files in Gmail. Never misplace an attachment again.
  • Quick share to friends, Facebook or your blog.
  • Do a web search while composing a mail in Gmail and add results directly to your message.
  • Get information, contact details and more about the people in Gmail’s conversation view.

All this from your Gmail inbox.  In the long haul, this add-on will not only make your inbox more social, but will also make it more useful as well.  You can learn more about the service at xoopit.com or pick up the add-on directly on Firefox’s Add-on web site.

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WebMynd for Google

Jan/15 in Add-ons Reviews

WebMynd What is WebMynd?  It is all about personalizing your search – with colors.  Ok, now before you think this is some new age hippy thing, hear me out.  This add-on for Firefox will help find and keep track of information from a number of different sources.

What sources does it support?  We have:  YouTube, Wikipedia, Flickr, Twitter, Amazon, Economist, CNN, LinkedIn, TechCrunch, Hacker News, Digg, Reddit, Google Books, Fluther, Delicious, Yahoo! Shopping, Scribd, Backtype, and Youlicit.

The easiest way to explain WebMynd is that it makes Google better by personalizing it with information and resources that you value.

Here is a little more about how it works from the developers:

After installing the WebMynd plug-in just search and browse the web as you would regularly.

When you search on Google, WebMynd will add results from your own browsing history and the top sites that you visit. And you can configure it to search many of your favourite sources such as Twitter, Wikipedia and Flickr amongst many others. If you use Twitter, you can ask your Twitter network for help while searching, right from Google.

When you are using WebMynd to record your history, a copy of the sites you visit is kept on your computer’s hard drive and the text is sent to our servers so we can index the information to make it easier for you to retrieve later. You can turn WebMynd on and off with a single click and you can set it to never record particular sites, you have 100% control.

Here it is in action:

WebMynd currently supports Firefox 3 on Windows, Mac and Linux.  You can pick up the Firefox extension via the Firefox Add-ons site or WebMynd.com.

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Ditch the Next Link with AutoPager

Jan/14 in Add-ons Reviews

autopager2Tired of hitting, “Next” to see the next part of any page?  No matter if you are looking through search results on Google or reading through a series of articles, the “next link” has become such an annoyance, somebody has developed an add-on for Firefox to get around it.

AutoPager is an extension that will automatically load the next page in a series of links so you have a continuous and infinite scrolling web page.  By default AutoPager works with a ton of sites, including Lifehacker, the New York Times, Digg, and, of course, Google.

What if you want to use this add-on on a web site it was not configured to work with yet?  Check out this tutorial on how to create new rules for the AutoPager extension:

So if you are tired of hitting “Next” then get yourself to the Firefox Add-ons site to pick up this recommended add-on.  If you want to learn more about AutoPager, you can also visit it’s official section over at teesoft.info.

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Quicker Web Searches with Searchy

Dec/18 in Add-ons Reviews

Need a quicker way to search the Web?

Searchy add-on for Firefox

Searchy, a new experimental add-on for Firefox will allow you to do that in a very stylish and unique way.  Once you get it installed, just hit Ctrl+Shift+K to bring up the Searchy search box, then type in what you are looking for.  You will get the results in real time as you type.

Also, another neat tip is that you can use “@” before your search to just search the web site you are on at the time.  If your not in love with the keyboard combo you must use to get it to search – that can easily be changed in the options.

It might not re-invent searching, however Searchy does give a pretty (and unique) new face to something we all do every single day.  To learn more about the development of the extension, be sure to check out the Searchy’s official web site.

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How to Clear Private Data in Firefox

Dec/12 in Firefox Support, Security

Clear Private DataWorried somebody is going to snoop around on what you are doing from within Firefox?  Have no fear!  Although private browsing hasn’t made its way to Firefox yet, you can still clear your private data in Firefox very easily.

What is Firefox Saving About Me?

Now the first question you may have is what type of content is saved by Firefox?

  • Browsing History: contains a log web locations you have previously visited.
  • Download History: keeps a list of files you’ve downloaded.
  • Saved Form and Search History: contains a list of phrases you have entered in text fields, such as web searches, and name and address fields.
  • Cache: stores temporary files, such as web pages and other online media, that you have downloaded from the Internet.
  • Cookies: stores files created by web sites, that store information on your computer, such as your preferences when visiting that site. (When a web site has a “remember this” check box, they are using a cookie.)
  • Offline Website Data: information web sites have stored on your computer for use without an internet connection.
  • Saved Passwords: contains a list of user names and passwords you have opted to have Firefox remember.
  • Authenticated Sessions: keeps you logged into secure web sites, you have already used the password manager to log in to.

Firefox makes it very simple to clear a few or all of these settings.  From the top of Firefox, in the menu bar – select Tools > Clear Private Data.  (You can also pull this up by using the keyboard combination Ctrl + Shift + Del )  Check mark the data you want to clear, then click on Clear Private Data Now, to clear the data; or click on Cancel, to close the Clear Private Data window, without clearing any private data.

How to Automate the Private Data Cleaning

I have my Firefox set to clear certain private data when I close Firefox.  To do this, go to Tools > Options and then click on the Privacy Tab.  From there, look at the settings listed under Private Data.  you have the option to:

  • Always clear my private data when I close Firefox
  • Ask me before clearing private data

Clicking on the “Settings” will allow you to choose what is cleared when you exit Firefox.

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Find Greasemonkey Scripts for Your URL

Dec/09 in Greasemonkey

greasefire-for-firefox We all love using Greasemonkey to help customize the Web or Firefox itself to our liking.  There is a problem though when it comes to finding scripts based around a certain URL.  It is not an easy thing to do.  That is where Greasefire, an add-on for Firefox, comes into play.

As a companion extension to Greasemonkey, Greasefire automatically find Greasemonkey scripts on Userscripts.org for the URL you are looking for.  When you are browsing a web site that does have user scripts available, Greasefire will light up the Greasemonkey icon in the status bar.  Then, right-click the Greasemonkey icon and choose the “X scripts available” item to see and install the scripts available for the current page.

So, if this is always looking for user scripts, isn’t that going to slow down your browsing?  Not exactly.  Greasefire works with a local level index to search for scripts that apply to the page you are on.  The local index updates periodically, so you shouldn’t be too out of the loop when doing lookups either.

You can pick up Greasefire on the Firefox Add-ons site.

Greasemonkey Help User Script Trouble? Be sure to check out the Beginner’s Guide to Greasemonkey!

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GoogAzon – Product and Web Search Combined!

Nov/20 in Add-ons Reviews

I love shopping with Amazon.  Now before you say how close-minded I am, let me remind you they allow a person to purchase a  JL421 Badonkadonk Land Cruiser Tank when they so desire.   If you too feel the love for Amazon and the goods they provide, try out GoogAzon. 

This is an experimental add-on for Firefox that will give you the top ten results in Amazon for every Google search you do.  See something you like?  Click the Amazon link it gives you.

GoogAzon in Action!

Check out the screencast of it in action here.  Use another search engine?  Don’t worry!  GoogAzon works with Yahoo or MSN Live searches too.  The last feature worth mentioning is the “share” link which allows you to e-mail to your friends (or yourself) with the results displayed.

Download, install and learn more about GoogAzon on it’s official web site or the Firefox Add-ons site.

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