Extend Your Browsing Experience

Unless a software company comes up with holographic heads-up displays of web browsers in stunning clarity, I will probably never leave Firefox as my internet browser of choice. Whenever I am setting up a new computer, I open Internet Explorer and download Firefox. Upon install completion, I choose Firefox as the default browser. There are several, legitimate reasons for this, including safety and speed, but the reason you are reading this article is because I want to share how to enhance your browsing and make Firefox work for you.

One of the main differences in switching from IE to FF is the fact that FF is “open source”, meaning there are developers from all over the world working on tools to make browsing better and more interactive. These tools, called extensions or “add-ons”, are free and have various uses. You can upload images to your fave website, chat using instant messengers, write code, check your email and more.

Here is a list of almost all of the extensions I use. 

1. Better Flickr- a compilation of user scripts utilizing the Greasemonkey extension (see below)
2. Better Gmail-  a compilation of user scripts utilizing the Greasemonkey extension (see below)
3. Clipmarks- Instead of linking to entire web pages, Clipmarks lets you clip exactly what you want and save for later
4. Colorzilla
5. Customize Google- no advertisements when you visit any Google website like Gmail, search, etc
6. Delicious Bookmarks
7. Drag & Drop.io- drop and send files that might be too big for email
8. FEBE- backup your FF profile, extensions, bookmarks, etc….just in case
9. Fire Uploader- fast file uploading to websites
10. FireFTP- I transfer a lot of files to my server for blog hosting, etc. This is way better than using the ftp network
11. Firestatus
12. ForecastFox- who needs weather.com when this is on your toolbar?
13. FoxTab 3D tabbed browsing is pretty
14. GCal Popup
15. Geode- for those who don’t care about “the man” knowing where you are
16. Gmail Manager- I have more than one Gmail account, this helps switch easily.
17. Gmail Notifier
18. Gmail Space- Since Gmail has up to 7GB (and counting) of space, why not use it for file storage too?
19. Google Gears
20. GPhoto Space
21.  
22. Greasemonkey- an extension that allows you to customize the way web pages look and function. Hundreds of scripts are already available for free. You want this, trust me!
23. GUtil- an extension that includes a drop down menu for every Google utility. Time saver!
24. Inquisitor- new search feature from Yahoo
25. Juice- drag, drop, research
26. Ma.gnolia Bookmarks
27. Remember The Milk- Gmail to do list
28. Share-a-holic
29. Skype- make calls using phone numbers found on website you are on
30. Wisestamp
32. What are you using and how? I’m always on the look out for a better tool for easier productivity. Add them into the comments!
34. Related articles

• Czar’s Top Firefox-3.0 Add-ons
• The Browser Is The New Operating System