Top 10 Firefox Extensions
Posted by David Harris Wed, 20 Sep 2006 19:59:00 GMT
At some point, every Firefox-loving blogger has to put his top ten extensions out. I figure, while I’m not really getting much programming done at nights, I’ll write up the more simple ones like this one. So, to get down to it…
1. Web Developer
This one has become priceless to me. As somone frequently involved in creating and designing website and web applications, I mess up sometimes. This toolbar has everything I need to make things ok again. I mean, everything. Not to mention that it’s also good for removing stylesheets from awful myspace or geocities (if that’s still around) pages, clearing cookies for certain domains, stopping image animations (for those sites where newbies use horrible animated gifs as avatars), hiding all images, resizing your browser window (for those sites that make it impossible to do so normally), and the magical “View Generated Source” option that allows you to view html source exactly as currently rendered, even counting the stuff Javascript does. Basically, professional developer or not, this tool-bar is a must have for the web-savvy.
2. Greasemonkey
Almost as important as seeing the internals of the sites you visit is being able to customize them on the fly. Greasemonkey enables users to submit javascript files that provide customization for many websites out there. I have several set up to give me advanced features on some browser games I play. You can either use scripts other people put into the userscripts.org repository (when it’s actually working), or create your own.
3. Flashblock
I don’t mind ads. You’ll never see me promote Adblock, nor do I use it. I recognize sites need income to keep things going. What I do hate is intrusive ads, like those created in Flash. In fact, more than Flash ads, I hate everything made in Flash. I think Flash should have been assassinated back in 1999. I think Flash is the Britney Spears-Federline of the internet—charming and beautiful when she first came out, but now with age her time is up and yet she still pokes her backwoods face in the public sphere. In fact, sites that use flash inappropriately (read: for the whole site) will never get my visit. So, for flash-hating fascists like me, Flashblock is the perfect FF extension! It simply blocks every flash out there from showing! Such simplicity brings such beauty to the web browsing experience. However, for those youtube fanatics, you can turn flash back on either piecemeal (for just the flash blocks you wish to see), or turn them on for an entire site. And it simply stays out of your way, silently protecting you from the evils of terrible design.
4. IE Tab
Unfortunately, we still live in a Microsoft dominated world. Not for long, my brothers! Viva la resistance! And, many designers still make their site compatible with Internet Explorer. Now, just a year ago, I still sung the praises of IE, would have joined it in jihad against the evils of open source browsing. Then, I tried using standard CSS to make a site look and feel good. By the end of the project, I had Firefox installed, IE blocked from ever using again, and vowed to buy a Mac, not even using MS Office (their one decent product) again. However, not everybody enjoys writing in standards, and thus we need IE tab to still allow us the beauty of Firefox without keeping us to enjoy helpful sites like MSN.com. How does it work? It simply allows you to click an icon on the status bar that will render the page using an embedded IE window. All the “benefit” of IE, using the much better interface of Firefox.
5. Blueorganizer
This one is a newbie to my list, but is quickly climbing the charts. Really, I don’t even know how to describe what it does. You simply have to install and see for yourself. To put it basically, it functions as a linkdump for goods you see online, only it keeps semantical track of what things are, and allows you to operate on those bookmarks based on what they are. You simply have to check it out to see. You’ll either love it or hate it.
6. Fasterfox
Claims to make Firefox faster. Does it? Who knows. It certainly seems a bit speedier. It can’t hurt to try. I recommend the “Optimized” setting. Don’t use Turbo, let’s please keep inside of RFC specifications and not overload servers who are gracious enough to host data for us to enjoy.
7. ImageZoom, ColorZilla, ShowIP
I group these three because they each do something extremely specific, hardly enough to warrant a whole category, but yet they sit there and do their job silently but perfectly, making my web browsing just a little better. Image Zoom simply zooms images. Is that a girl picking her nose? Zoom right in and see! Colorzilla sits in the left corner of your status bar. Is there a color you think is UBER on somebody’s site and you want to copy it? Colorzilla can tell you quickly what exact color that is. Perfect for emulating other people’s sites! ShowIP simply shows the IP associated with the site being browsed, and allows you to run a quick Whois or other search on it. These three don’t add a ton of functionality, but they’re good to have there when you need them.
8. ForecastFox (Enhanced)
Are you obsessed with the weather? Did you just smell rain? Oh, you so just smelled rain! Before you make bets with your co-workers, install ForecastFox Enhanced! This tells you brief info on the weather in your status bar, so you can be alerted to every fahrenheit degree of change going on outside. The Enhanced version simply has a larger radar map you can view. Perfect for the weather-obsessed or those of you lucky to not be quarantined due to allergies.
9. Adsense Notifier
This little baby simply displays how much money you made from displaying Google Ads on your site(s) that day. This way, you don’t have to actually log in to see that, yes, you made no money that day. Look for that hundred dollar check a whole decade from now.
10. QuickProxy
Some of us use proxies. Simply put, it allows us to see a site, after passing through another server. I use a proxy at work not because I’m hiding anything, but because I can keep all my traffic in one place, and log it so that if I’m at home I can easily figure out “oh, what was that site I was shown the other day?” without too much work. QuickProxy allows you to turn on and off your proxy with a single click, instead of going through Firefox’s twenty thousand dialog boxes to perform the same action.
So, there it is, disappointing as it may seem. I’m not one to install extensions that replace the functionality of a whole different program (I don’t need an extension to post blog entries, I can do that from a separate, better utility). My extensions simply enhance a browsing session that’s already happening. Most of them sit so far out of my way that I only notice them when I need them. Exactly how a good interface should be! If you have ones you think are more important than these, comment them. I’m always looking for the next cool toy. Keep in mind I’m not one to use stuff like “Finance Manager for Firefox – manage all your finances from this nifty sidebar!”.
Enjoy, and again, viva la resistance!
