The Ultimate Firefox Extension List For Junkies
Ξ June 30th, 2007 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Software, Tweaks |
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Aaron Toponce » The Ultimate Firefox Extension List For Junkies
The Ultimate Firefox Extension List For Junkies
December 5th, 2005 by Aaron
This is an ever-growing and ever-changing list. These extensions are by far the Ultimate of Ultimate Must-Have Extensions for Firefox. Every extension works with the latest version of Firefox, and is platform independent. I don’t provide links to the installs, but rather just the pages. The reason for this, is the versions change so frequently. Anyhow, here’s the list, in alphabetic order. If you see a star (
) next to the extension, it means that I think it should be built in to the browser by default, or I would like to see it in the next release. Enjoy.
Extensions:
- Adblock Plus- This extension is necessary for the Filterset.G Updater, and is crucial to blocking the ads on the pages. Not only are images blocked, but flash, iframes, javascript and plenty more. Of course, you can explicitly define what is blocked, or you can use wild cards to block whole directories or domains. Whenever I install Firefox for someone new, this is the first extension I download and install.
- All-in-one Sidebar- Now, rather than opening up a new window to manage your downloads, extensions and themes, you can open them in a sidebar similar to that of Opera. Really, one of the most handy extensions that I use.
- Calculator- Sweet! A solid calculator that will replace the default calculator on any operating system! It keeps a history of everything you type plus it has trig functions, constants, conversions and algebraic functions. It can run as a separate window, in a tab, or in the sidebar. Even though this isn’t fully fledged like many calculators out there, this is a very solid replacement for the OS built in. Personally, I still prefer to use my HP and TI emulators, but this extension is just solid and fast. Get it!
- ChatZilla- If you are using Linux, which you should be, then this app isn’t all that hot. However, if you aren’t, then this maybe just the IRC client you were looking for. It is still lacking in many features that most IRC clients give, however, it is free, and you don’t have to feel guilty searching for an mIRC crack. It still holds its own, and opens in a separate window. This is a great client when you are spending hours searching through Google looking for that technical answer.
- ColorZilla- One of those web dev apps that just makes sense. Here, I have the ability to pick any color within the Firefox program, and get the RGB, HTML and gamma values of the color. Not only can I pick a color from the page, but I have a color picker pallet that I can pick from as well. Options include panning, zooming and copying the results to the clipboard. The only issue with Linux is making sure Firefox was compiled using the same GCC version as the extension (the Ubuntu Firefox package was not). When it works, it works well.
- Download Manager Tweak- This extension is one of those must-haves. Personally, it is quite annoying to me for a separate window to pop up when downloading files from the web. And even though you can configure the behavior in the settings, sometimes the window just won’t close. With this extension, rather, I can have the download manager open in a new tab or a sidebar. Also I can configure if it loads in the background or foreground, which buttons I want visible and much more. A rock-solid extension!
- FireFTP- This should be included by default into the next major Firefox release. This is a fully-featured and completely customizable FTP client. This rivals all free FTP clients currently available. The only thing that it lacks is SSH/SCP implementation. Other than that, this extension just plain rocks, and is in every installation of Firefox that I currently oversee.
- Forecastfox- There are no doubt several weather applications available, and many of them heavily customizable. However, when my Firefox browser is open, most weather applications are covered by the window. Here, I can have the weather updates in the status bar showing 3 days ahead. Forecastfox connects to Accuweather.com for it’s updates and shows graphics of what the weather will be like. When your mouse hovers, you get temperature, wind speed and direction and a brief forecast for the day. Clicking on the image will take you to the Accuweather site for more detailed info.
- GMail Manger- While there are a number of options to view the status of your inbox, nothing beats pure simplicity. Sure, I can see my inbox through the personalized Google homepage, an email client or a number of other options. But I do not always have my email client up and I am not always looking at the Google homepage. While browsing, it is nice to know when I receive a new message. The Manger does just that, plus allows me to view drafts, labels, unread messages and more. I can also manage multiple GMail accounts.
- Google Browser Sync- Why is it that Google has the most useful software? In this case, I have the ability to sync browser sessions across multiple computers. It will sync bookmarks, history, cookies, tabs, windows and saved passwords. Of course, you don’t have to sync all of them. You can choose what you want as you please through the preferences. All of this through your Google Account. Naturally, you don’t want to install this extension on computers that is accessed by others. Pretty awesome, though! A definite must-have.
- Google Send to Phone- Here’s a useful extension that has its place. Send text messages to any cell phone with any cellular carrier in the United States. This is very helpful to remind your spouse to pick up certain grocery items, meet a friend at a location, or whatever. Very handy to use rather than typing the message in your own phone, not to mention saving you the $.10 if you don’t subscribe to text messaging in your plan
- HTML Validator- Being a web developer, this extension, along with the next one in the list, are quite handy to use. This extension will validate your page against the W3C. No more need to visit the page separately to see if your code validates. This handy little extension will sit in your status bar letting you know if the page validates, has warnings or if it has errors. It will show you with an icon that changes colors: green, yellow and red respectively. If that isn’t enough, it will also tell you precisely what those errors are and how to fix them when viewing the source of the page in Firefox. It was because of this extension that I was able to work out the warnings in Wordpress and make this site validate perfectly. Handy extension.
- Measureit- Being a web developer and wannabe graphics artist, I am constantly curious about the width of images and elements. This is another simple extension. It sits quietly in the lower-left of the status bar, and when clicked, creates cross-hairs of your mouse pointer. The only bug I have noticed, is when zooming in on pages, the pointer doesn’t take that into account. Other than that, it is a valuable tool for a web dev.
- PDF Download- Now I have the ability to either view the PDF in the window, a new tab, view it as HTML or download it directly. It just doesn’t get plainer than that.
- Performancing- Post to your blog directly from this 3rd party blogging tool. All of the major blogs are supported including Blogger, Wordpress, Movable Type, Typepad and others. A small icon sits in your task bar for launching the application, and when launched, a WYSIWYG editor shows with all of the categories, posts and history of your blog. This is one solid extension. The only feature I would have for it is the ability to edit pages not included in the feed of your blog. Then again, that would be a blog setting and not something this extension could handle.
- SmoothWheel- I’m going to be frank. This is my least favorite of extensions that I have installed. I do like it however, it is just, well, okay. Nothing about it really stands out. I downloaded it to see how it affected scrolling pages, and I was impressed at first, but since, have toned it down a bit, as it has become somewhat of an annoyance. There are a number of options for scrolling the page faster or slower and a couple other useful tidbits. Overall, I like it, but it’s just okay. I don’t know what else to say. I do find that when I uninstall it, I miss it.
- Tab Mix Plus- Tab Mix Plus is one solid extension. It takes tabbed browsing to a whole new level. Tabs can be opened in the foreground, background, open your homepage, show the page load status and much more. Definitely a must for any installation. This is probably the first, if not second extension I install on any Firefox install.
- Tab Preview- A friend brought this extension to my attention, and I have since been converted. Normally, when I am browsing the web, I have a ton of tabs open. Ten or more at least. With that many open, it makes it difficult to see what tabs hold what web page. With Tab Preview, I can hover my mouse over the background tap, and get an image preview of what it contains. The image can be customized to show immediately or delayed, and how large it should be. This extension should be implemented into the next major Firefox release, as it has just become too crucial of an extension IMHO to leave out.
- User Agent Switcher- For some reason, this is one of the extensions that I didn’t think about until after installing most of the ones on this list. You now have the ability to spoof your user agent string to your liking. You can even create your own customized string, if you desire. What are the benefits you ask? Spoofing. Telling a web page that your browser is something other than it is. I don’t know. It’s just fun.
- Viamatic foXpose- If you have a Mac, then you are most likely familiar with Expose, a feature with Mac OS X that allows you to view all over your open windows with the press of the key on the keyboard. Well, with Viamatic foXpose, you can view all of your open tabs in a single window just by pressing a little button in the bottom left of the status bar. Select the tab you want, and you’re taken there. There aren’t any preferences to configure, so you just install it and use it. If you have a number of extensions installed also, it seems to run a tad slow. But this extension is killer, and it only works with version 1.5 and later.
Themes:
These 4 themes are all part of the Tango Desktop Project. The project exists to create a consistent look and feel to the Linux desktop and Open Source Software. While the project is still immature, these themes for Firefox show how well it works. At any event, if your are a Gnome user, these themes will integrate with 90% of Gnome themes fairly well. You really won’t need any other themes installed.
All 4 themes work with Firefox 2 and above. I have not tested them with earlier releases. If you are running an earlier release, I strongly recommend that you upgrade. There are a number of security and bug fixes. If you’re a KDE user, I don’t know of any themes from that project as of yet, but I’m sure they are in the works.
These themes are on the Mozilla update system, so Firefox will appropriately ask you to update when new versions are released.
- Tango- The theme is tight, and makes Firefox integrate tightly with Gnome. It is the core standard from which the rest of the 3 themes are based on.
- Tangerine- This theme is a child of the Tango theme above, except rather, it works well with the Ubuntu Human theme. Firefox now actually looks like it belongs with the Ubuntu operating system.
- Gnome- Another child of the Tango theme above, this theme however, works well with the Clearlooks and Industrial Tango themes for Gnome. Styled to give a modern edge, it is really cool, and again, tightly integrated.
- Industrial- The last of the 4 built from the Tango icon set, this theme really only works well if you are using the Industrial look from Novell. This theme is the least favorite of the 4 for me because of the ‘older’ feel that it has. However, the design is just as good and tight as the previous three.
Search Engines:
The search engines listed below are the only search engines that I have installed. Using the SearchPluginHacks extension listed above, I deleted all the rest that came bundled with Firefox.
- Amazon- I spend a great deal of time looking for deals on line when shopping. Amazon just works for me, they have speedy delivery and a great inventory.
- Bittorrent- At first thought, you may think bittorrents are used for nothing but piracy, but later you realize that piracy isn’t really all that great, and there is a great deal of open source software and tools that are torrents.
- Flickr Tags- It’s always fun to browse different photo albums, view screen shots and more. Flickr is just cool.
- Google- Built into the browser by default, this search engine is the creme of the crop, and appears first on the list, regardless of how many you have installed.
- IMDB- Being a movie buff, I spend more time here than I should. Get info on actors, movies, directors and much more.
- Technorati- If you syndicate a feed, any feed, then Technorati is your friend. Get stats on blogs, search results, feeds and anything else related to blogging.
- Weather.com- Even though I have Forecastfox installed, I still use Weather.com for my detailed weather reports rather than Accuweather.
- WebMD- An absolute must if you have kids. Search anything medical related including symptoms, allergies, bacteria, viruses, medicine and much more.
- Webster- I use Webster when I don’t know the definition of a word or need a thesaurus. Who uses printed dictionaries these days?
- Wikipedia (EN)- Even with all the flack that Wikipedia has been through lately, it still is a credible resource for a large majority of information. Besides, it’s just too cool having the ability to edit any page.
That’s it for my list of The Ultimate Firefox Extension List for Junkies. Like I said, I have found these extensions, themes and search engines to be the most useful for me. Yes, I have every one of them installed. If I uninstall the extension, then I take it down from this list. They may not do much for you, so try them out, and see what you think. I personally believe that many of these could be implemented by default into the browser itself. Of course, I am always on the lookout for more extensions. If you have one that you just can’t live without, feel free to post them in the comments below.