Around this time of year, its hard to avoid lists of the best electronic gadgets to buy. Some lists truly amaze, as if there wasn’t a recession going on! Well, you can get some pretty fine and useful gadgets for free to use right where you probably spend a lot of time—your Firefox browser.
These days I work inside the browser a lot. I’m using one or another of the web-hosted services we rely on, including everything on my iGoogle page. How much one can customize your browser base of operations offers yet another sign that computing is moving into the Internet “cloud” and to software-as-a-service.
Modern browsers today allow for add-ons and extensions. Firefox, as the leading Open Source browser, no doubt has the most. And I would definitely say, if you haven’t yet upgraded to Firefox 3, please do, in general and before spending time on adding gadgets. (To check what you have, with the browser open, go to Help, then About).
I won’t say that my list here is best or only. I will say these items make a big difference in my work. And I won’t say my line-up doesn’t change. It does. The point is, you can easily customize your own experience, or help set a base line for your team or organization.
Browser Add-ons do install something local to your computer. What they install, however, is tiny and isolated compared to installing a whole new piece of software. And you can do it relatively safely from within the official software add-ins page and if you pay attention to trying things that are already popular.
Here’s my top ten this morning.
- Delicious Bookmarks – My life on the web depends greatly on keeping track of what I need or am working on as delicious bookmarks. The delicious extension makes it as easy as bookmarks or favorites from Firefox or IE itself. If you use other web-based bookmarking systems, like digg, they have browser add-ins as well.
- GTDInbox – another big one for me. If you use Gmail, this add-on puts much of that Dave Allen “Getting Things Done” workflow management (religion?) in your Gmail account.
- Map This – small and easy. Lets you highlight an address on a web page and open google or Yahoo map. Better than relying on many sites’ own directions.
- Fastdial – Another small thing, but makes a big difference. Fastdial gives you a visual home page f your most-used sites. (Like Opera’s Speed Dial)
- ColorfulTabs – just that, if you are a manic tab opener, this extension distinguishes them by color. Makes it a bit easier to go back and forth and not feel quite so messy with so much going on.
- Abduction! – screen capture, all or part of a page as you see it, for documentation, personal reference, troubleshooting. I use snag-it almost every day, and it has a firefox add-in. For free, while on the web, documentation tool, install Abduction!
- Better GCal – add some polish and customization to my Google Calendar. There are others…
- Firebug. Great tools for web and software design, to see what is really going on on your page, or to answer, “how do that do that?”
- GSpace – Use your Gmail account as a quick and easy personal FTP site. Open it up to see local and remote folders, and copy things back and forth. If you want to transfer files from home to work, for example, GSpace makes it quite easy. Better than an USB drive.
- AI roboform – integrates Roboform passwords and on line identities into Firefox (and IE). This is the only one that breaks my guideline to myself for this list of only choosing standalone items not related to for-sale products. Yet Roboform is so much a part of my web browsing security, I have to include this one.
I have to admit that, right now, I have 30 Firefox add-ons total. To make this top 10 list, I focused on those I use all the time; work well and reliably; make life simpler in either a small or big way. And except for Roboform, I passed over items I use that integrate commercial products. (So, “Abduction” is here and not the snag-it add-on).
OK, I can’t resist. My next ten might include adblock plus, Grease Monkey, Better GCal, Better Gmail, Cooliris (try this for fun!), Fire.fm, FireFTP, Forecastfox, Meebo (IM in the browser from anywhere), PDF Download, Web Developer (companion to Firebug), Google Reader Notifier (reminder to keep up).
How do you find these things? In Firefox, click on Tools, then Add-ons, then the Extensions tab. Chances are, you will already have some. If you click “Get Add-ons,” you will see a few recommended ones, and then you can click the link to “Browse All Add-ons.” To read more about or try any of these, search by name for them.
Maybe you know all this stuff already and don't need my list. Instead, here's my gift suggestion for that special Executive Director, co-worker, or family member. Why not give them the gift of an hour of your time improving their Firefox working life? There are the big strategic software assessments we work on, and then there's making life on the web a tiny bit easier here and now.
And at the risk of a total tech toy shoot out, I have to ask, what are your favorites?
