extension

Find the right Firefox add-ons

If you're a Firefox user, chances are you've been using add-ons to extend its functionality. But if you haven't, or if you're looking for new add-ons, I've found 20 for you to try. But since installing all 20 will probably slow your browser to a crawl, I've broken them into four categories. I have grouped the add-ons into "packs" for business professionals, shoppers, social-network fanatics, and students.

The business professional

Xmarks (download): If you're running a business and want everyone in the office to have the same resources available to them, Xmarks is the way to do it. Simply download it into your browser, create an account, and install it on all the browsers in the office. Once configured, every Xmarks instance connected to that account will be automatically updated whenever a user adds a bookmark. In other words, if one employee adds Webware to their bookmarks, every other person in the office who's running Xmarks will have it installed, as well.

Jigsaw Contact and Company Search: Most business professionals need to have easy access to a company's contact information. If you're one of those people, consider using the Jigsaw Contact and Company Search. Jigsaw, a global online business directory, features millions of contacts and company profiles that can be searched by title, geography, and business.

Stock Pilot (download): Sometimes going to Google Finance is too time consuming to get quick public company info. Try using Stock Pilot instead. The add-on allows you to switch between financial sites to research a particular stock. It also boasts RSS alerts to update you when news breaks about a company you're tracking. Ready access to SEC filings makes it a handy tool for anyone who wants to see a company's quarterly or annual financial data.

TripSync: Once you install the TripSync travel manager add-on, you'll be blown away by its functionality. You can book and hold reservations to places across the world, receive travel alerts, and place your itineraries on Outlook and Google Calendar. TripSync is designed specifically for the business professional, so it's a bit more useful than using a site like Expedia.

WOT (download): WOT, short for Web of Trust, is designed to ensure security and privacy are maintained while you're browsing. Once installed, the add-on warns you about risky Web sites. It also alerts you to sites that deliver malware or send spam. The add-on shows you safety ratings on over 21 million sites.

The shopper

1 Stop travel and retail shopping engine: If you want to find the best deals across the U.S., Europe, or Canada, the 1 Stop travel and retail shopping engine add-on is a good place to start. While you're browsing, it allows you to search for flights on more than 40 airlines. It also lets you search for deals on more than 20 sites, including Amazon, eBay, and Wal-Mart. Once you start searching in the add-on, it finds the desired page and automatically opens it in a separate tab.

Buy it online (download): If you've ever been on a Web site and found a product you'd like to buy, but were forced to go to Amazon.com to search for it, you'll be happy to know that there's an add-on designed specifically for you. Dubbed "Buy it online," the add-on adds another option when you right-click on a product title on any Web page. If you click the "Buy it online!" button, you'll be shown a listing of all the stores on the Web that are currently selling the product. All the retailers listed are well-known and trustworthy.

eBayBuddy (download): If you're obsessed with eBay, there's a great add-on you might want to consider. Dubbed eBayBuddy, the tool is available in the right-click menu in Firefox and allows you to have full access to eBay's site map, search, and more. It's a great way to quickly and easily find products on eBay without being forced to deal with the site itself.

KeepCash Coupon Notifier (download): As someone who frequents coupon sites and goes to a retailer's page with the discount ready to be used, I found KeepCash Coupon Notifier to be an extremely useful add-on. Whenever you go to a retail site, it automatically searches its database to find any coupons currently available for the site you're on. If there are, it will list them for you to be used while you're shopping.

PriceAdvance (download): When you run PriceAdvance and surf to a retail site to research a product, the add-on will tell you its price on a handful of other prominent sites across the Web. For instance, if you're on Amazon looking to buy an Xbox 360, the site will automatically search for other retailers selling the console and display their pricing, so you can be sure that you're getting the best price.… Read more

Unintuitive design

This program is supposed to organize various files into separate folders based on their extensions. But thanks to vague directions and lack of help, we weren't impressed with what this program had to offer.

SmistaFiles has a bland and unintuitive user interface. All of the commands take place in one window, but with such vague directions, we weren't sure what was supposed to go where. The program doesn't include a Help file, so we had to learn through trial and error. We selected the destination folder that contained the files we wanted to organize. From there, we … Read more

15 tools for the Gmail addict

Gmail is becoming more popular by the day, but it's far from perfect. Let's take a look at some tools that will extend its functionality and makes it an even more worthwhile service.

For the desktop

gBooks: If your browser's bookmarks folder doesn't do enough for you, this clever tool turns your Gmail account into a bookmarks server. It makes your bookmarks available to you any time you log in to your Gmail account from anywhere.

gCount: If you don't feel like firing up a browser to check your Gmail account, use gCount. Running on Mac OS X, the lightweight app sits in your Dock and gives you real-time updates on how many e-mails you have in your in-box.

Gmail Drive: Gmail Drive (for Windows) creates a virtual file system on top of your Gmail in-box. It lets you upload documents, photos, or practically any other file to Gmail Drive. Those files are available for download anywhere you can access Gmail.

Gmail Loader: Gmail now makes it easy to import e-mails to your account, but one solution for Windows or Linux PCs works just as well. This software reads the e-mails in your current e-mail program (most of the well-known services are supported) and automatically forwards them to your Gmail account. E-mails can be sent to either the in-box folder or sent items folder.

gMail Notifr: Gmail Notifr is an open-source tool for Mac OS X that allows you to check your Gmail in-box at specified intervals. It includes Growl and sound notifications. You can check multiple accounts simultaneously.

gotMailG: gotMailG is a dashboard widget that just tells you how many unread messages are waiting for you--useful if you don't want your primary workspace cluttered with Gmail icons or alerts.

GPeek: If you don't want to read through every message but want to see what just came in, use GPeek. The service lets you see the subject of an e-mail, the sender, the time it was received, and the first few lines of the message. It supports multiple accounts, so you can check all your e-mails in one sitting.

Jiffy Gmail Email Creator: The Jiffy Gmail Email Creator makes configuring and maintaining your Gmail account easy. It allows you to create an auto-responder without going online. You can also forward messages automatically, use random names, enable POP3, and use multiple exporting options from your desktop. It's for Windows only.

Send to Gmail: Send to Gmail (for Windows) makes it easy to upload any file on your hard drive to Gmail in just two clicks. Simply find the file you want to upload, right-click on it, and you'll be given the option to "Send to Gmail." Once you click that option, the file is sent directly to your Gmail account.… Read more

New browser look

Heaven Cube is a futuristic skin that will change the appearance of the Firefox browser. Its sleek design might be perfect for some users, but cripple others.

This free download turns the top navigation area into a futuristic dark place. Most of the boxes are black and the familiar buttons are replaced by box-like symbols. This is all very unique, although it may prove easier on eyes if viewing the screen in a dark room. Users also might get confused if they don't have their navigation commands memorized. For example, the Go Back One Page command looks like a … Read more

Simple, subtle look

Users seeking to subtly change the appearance of Firefox may find Naver to be the perfect add-on skin.

This unlimited-use free download has a gray-and-green theme that is easy on the eyes. Its green jumps out without being blinding, adding a sleek, organic feel to the navigation options. The function buttons retain their traditional symbols, so it will not be confusing, which is a relief compared with many other themes.

Naver is a neutral option for customizing your Firefox without turning the browser into a foreign land that's hard to navigate. Recommended for any Firefox user seeking a new … Read more

FindList gives Firefox's search a history

I use Firefox's on-page search tool all the time. One thing that's always bugged me about it, however, is that it can only remember one word or phrase at a time. If you're working on a research paper, or switching between the same few words every time you use it, I recommend downloading FindList. This new, experimental extension gives your search box its own drop down history list.

With it installed you can have up to 15 of your latest searches saved for later use and quick selection. Every time you do an on-page search it simply … Read more

Chrome begins RSS support, solidifies extensions

Google has begun work on one much-requested feature of its Chrome browser, the ability to detect when a Web page offers a subscription service through RSS or Atom technology.

Google programmer Finnur Thorarinsson formally marked the RSS support issue as "started" on Wednesday, though the feature is disabled for now.

"The first part of this has been implemented and checked in," Thorarinsson said, referring to the part that discovers when RSS feeds are available on a Web site. The feature is disabled for now, though, because the second part, which will produce a page that lets … Read more

Apple extends iPhone developer program

Apple developers have been having a tough time renewing their iPhone development licenses, according to reports. For them, the company had some good news Friday: the licensing for all developers has been extended to July 11--one year after the opening of the iTunes App Store.

Additionally, Apple announced that licensing renewals will begin in May, a full 60 days prior to the developer program expiration date. Developers got the news in an e-mail.

The message sent to developers is shown below:

Recently, according to CNET News' Tom Krazit, there has been astounding growth in the iTunes App Store, and the … Read more

Preload Firefox for speed

It hasn't been updated since February 2005, but Firefox Preloader continues to help users who want faster boot times while maintaining a heavy load of tabs and extensions. Weighing in with an installer at 840Kb and using about 30MB of RAM, the program dramatically improved start-up times on Firefox when loaded with tabs and extensions.

How dramatic were the improvements? Without using the Preloader, it took 32.1 seconds for Firefox to open, and 2 minutes, 34.2 seconds to finish loading all the tabs. With the Preloader running, Firefox opened in 7.8 seconds, with another 1 minute, … Read more

Firefox Preloader still works, mostly

It hasn't been updated since February 2005, but the free Firefox Preloader continues to help users who want faster boot times while maintaining a heavy load of tabs and extensions. Weighing in with an installer at 840kb and using around 30MB of RAM, the program gave me dramatically improved start-up times on a fully loaded Firefox 3.0.7.

Somebody running a clean, unencumbered version of Firefox probably wouldn't find Firefox Preloader all that useful, so I tested it against Firefox with 22 extensions and about 40 open tabs. The extensions ranged from the bulky Cooliris to the … Read more