Firefox extensions

[TonyE]

What extensions do you use and recommend? I asked this question in 2005, and thanks to Skitterbug I found out about an extension, launchy, that I still use today. Five years later I would like to see what people are using today.

The ones that I use on my main Firefox profile are:

• Account Manager 0.0.2 - Account Manager helps you register and sign in & out of online sites and services. This one is still in an early stage of development.
• Adblock Plus 1.1.3 - Block ads
• Bookmark Backup 0.4.10 - Creates a backup of your bookmarks and other profile data each day
• Card Games 3.0 - A collection of patience cards games
• CoLT 2.4.6 - Makes it easy to copy link text and locations
• Launchy 4.4.0 - Open links, mailto's, images etc with external applications like Internet Explorer, Opera, Outlook and Photoshop
• MR Tech Toolkit 6.0.4 - MR Tech Toolkit - enhanced add-ons manager and power tools
• NoScript 1.9.9.42 -JavaScript/Java/Flash blocker for a safer Firefox experience
• Tab Utilities 0.8.2 - Open Bookmarks/History/URL/Search in new tabs, and more utilities for tabbed browsing
• Weave Sync 1.0 - Synchronize your bookmarks, history, tabs and passwords wherever you go. Whether you use Firefox on your phone, laptop, or desktop, securely access all your data

[IanWilson]

What extensions do you use and recommend?

I don't use Firefox as my main browser, but I like

FireGestures so that I can use mouse gestures, like I do in Opera

All-in-one Sidebar - guess what, the developer of it says it was inspired by Opera (do you sense a theme developing here?)

New tab homepage Does what it says, new tabs open with the home page.

as well as Adblock Plus which you have already mentioned.

Ian

[Sundog]

I like, for general stuff:
Autofill Forms, fill out web forms automatically.
Colorful Tabs, colors every tab in a different color and transparency level, making the current tab easy to distinguish.
Table2Clipboard, copy to Clipboard selected rows/columns from an HTML table.
FireShot, take a screenshot of the entire page, edit, save, print, copy,...
IE VIew, right-click opens page in IE.
PhishTank SiteChecker, tests current website for known phishing.
PriceTrace Toolbar, price comparison among well-known stores, price history chart, price drop alert.
Yes popups, temporarily disable popup blocking, toggle on-off.

For Web development:
Web Developer, adds a menu and toolbar with over 100 development tools.
Firebug, advanced development tools for Firefox, modify style and layouts in real time, get info from Chief Firebug pyroentomologists.
CSS Validator, validates a page using the W3C CSS Validator.
HTML Validator, adds HTML validation to the View Page Source, via Tidy from W3C.
Page Validator, validates a page using W3C Markup Validation Service.
Dummy Lipsum, generates "Lorem Ipsum" dummy text.
Leet Key, transforms typed or static text to one of eleven different formats (including Morse Code!).
Link Evaluator, customizable pre-evaluation of web links and linked content.
LinkChecker, checks the validity of links.
MeasureIt, draw a ruler to get pixel height and width of any webpage element.
ColorZilla, advanced eyedropper, color picker, etc.
Palette Grabber, creates a color palette for graphic design applications based on current page.
Window Resizer, resize your browser to various standard resolution sizes.

[ChrisJakarta]

I guess it depends what we use Firefox for. But these are my 'sine qua non' extensions:

AutoCopy - Copies selected text to clipboard automatically (and adds URL)
Copy Plain Text - Copies text without formatting (and works with AutoCopy)
Coral IE Tab - An enhanced version of IE Tab which enables you to use the embedded IE engine
DownThemAll! - The mass downloader for Firefox
FireFTP - FTP Client for Firefox
FireSizer - Provides a menu and status bar to resize the window outer dimensions to a specific size
Flashblock - Replaces Flash objects with a button you can click to view them
It's All Text! - Edit test using your favorite editor
MeasureIt - Draw out a ruler to get the pixel width and height of any elements on the page
Print/Print Preview - Replace the default "Print" button with the Mozilla Suite style "Print/Print Preview" option
SmoothWheel - Scrolls the document smoothy when scrolling with the mouse wheel
Tab Mix Plus - Tab browsing with an added boost

Chris

[Argus]

NoScript.

And, for a very long time, NoScript only. (Following the principle "Less is more"; less things to go wrong, less things to keep updated, and I don't become completely handicapped if I have to work on a PC without "my tools").

But since more or less every person (with some few exceptions seen here) who has add-ons installed, have or mention Adblock, or nowadays, Adblock Plus, I decided to try it. From my experience, and with my use of the web, I could cope quite well with a combination of NoScript and blocking some images with Fx.

Adblock Plus works fine so far, after some week; as with NoScript it can be a very simple "on or off" or using some more advanced settings/rules.

When you have a lot of bookmarks, sorted in different folders, it can sometimes be difficult to find where a certain bookmark is stored. You, Tony, earlier mentioned the "Locate in Bookmark Folders" add-on, and I used up to Fx 2. However, it's not maintained any longer.

Then there was nothing, or no direct substitute for a small simple task like that, it seemed.

A temporary “workaround”, with Fx 3 and onward has been to look in the "Add Bookmark pop-up", after I have navigated to an address, but it doesn't show the path to the folder in the Library, and with that "workaround" I have to visit the site... and that is so stupid that it shouldn't even be mentioned as a "workaround".

I know that this has been discussed over at Bugzilla, see this lengthy discussion (from 2003-2009!) here: Search for bookmark should show parent folder.

As some said, the present solution is more like a filter.

There are some add-ons dealing with this (and working with the latest release):

• Show Parent Folder.
• And this one: Go Parent Folder.

The first one, Show Parent Folder, adds a column (or the possibility to add a column, "Parent Folder") in the Library. The second, Go Parent Folder, behave as "Locate in Bookmark Folders"; it can jump from a search result to the folder in the sidebar or the library. Quite nifty.

Without the above extensions the whole Library could be just one unsorted bookmarks folder.

[sobershea]

What extensions do you use and recommend?

I use

• Flashblock, NoScript, and McAfee SiteAdvisor for security

• Toolbar Buttons to add more choices/organization to the toolbar

• Xmarks to sync bookmarks with my other PCs - this works great!

• Tab Kit (unsupported in 3.6 - so I "forced" it until I find something that works as well) to organize open tabs

• CoolPreviews - just started using this after reading about it here - so far I like it but it doesn't accomplish what I was looking for with Preview Pane - I'll keep playing with it

• Session Manager because it seems to do a better job than the manager built into Firefox

Besides the security extensions, my favorite is (of course) the unsupported Tab Kit. I keep a lot of tabs open and this extension really works for me.


PS. I would have linked the extensions but I still have to figure out how to do that.

[HansV]

See BBCode - linking to another site.

[Hey Jude]

I have a ? about Tab Mix Plus which I've used successfully on XP/Vista but seem to have issues with setting it up correctly on 7. When I'm replying to an email in Yahoo or just writing one in general, and happen to Google something, I am taken to the new link, but I lose what I've already typed. I know Yahoo has the draft saving feature and if I would remember to click that it would be ok, but frankly, I don't want to have to remember to do that. I also don't want to remember to open a new tab as that's how TMP always worked in the past and works on my XP desktop. I have gone into options and if I choose Force to open in a new tab All Links then it's ok but all of a sudden my tabs start multiplying. Does anyone else use this?

Update: I just found the Enable single window mode and it seems to help

[StuartR]

I'm surprised none of my UK colleagues has mentioned the British English dictionary yet. I couldn't manage without this one. The only other add on I use is NoScript.

[TonyE]

I'm surprised none of my UK colleagues has mentioned the British English dictionary yet.

The reason I do not have the dictionary add-on is because I copy the 2 dictionary files (en-GB.aff and en-GB.dic) into the dictionaries folder of the application (default location C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\dictionaries), that way the British English dictionary is available for all Firefox profiles. For me it is useful as I use multiple Firefox profiles and want the British English dictionary to always be available, even in a new profile with no add-ons installed.

[Goshute]

What extensions do you use and recommend?

FEBE - not exactly an extension, but it has saved my bacon a couple of times.

[Ailios]

What extensions do you use and recommend?

I put FF on all the workstations here, though, it doesn't work for all the websites they need for their research. On all of them and any other computers/laptops I work on I always put these:

Adblock Plus - Even though you install this add-on I believe it doesn't do much for you until you subscribe to various filters. I always use these: ABP Tracking FIlter; EasyElement & EasyLIst; and Myspace Junk FIlters.

Flashblock - Replaces Flash objects with a button you can click to view them. I love this because it helps websites load a heck of a lot faster. For sites I/we like to frequent it's easy to click and add a website to the exception list.

WOT (Web of Trust) - Tough call which of these three I love most. This one puts a symbol next to links in search results to warn you of a website that's untrusted and unsafe. Very helpful in protecting my noob friends and family who don't know better.

I also use these personally:

FaviconizeTab - I use this to reduce the size of my tabs to just the icon for that website. I save multiple websites as my home page at work. This helps me find them and jump to them faster than if the tabs were lengthy.

FireFTP - As my FTP client. This replaces WSFTP for me.

Xmarks - For syncing my bookmarks between work, home computer and laptop.

[sobershea]

I have a ? about Tab Mix Plus which I've used successfully on XP/Vista but seem to have issues with setting it up correctly on 7. When I'm replying to an email in Yahoo or just writing one in general, and happen to Google something, I am taken to the new link, but I lose what I've already typed.

Hey, Hey Jude, you can make Google search always open in a new tab. In about:config type browser.search.openintab and double-click to set the value to true. Now when you Google from your current tab a new tab opens leaving your current tab intact.

[Hey Jude]

Just did that so thank you very much! I also ditched Tab Mix Plus in favour of trying out Tab Utilities which TonyE posted above. I'm just not happy with how TMP works on FF 3.6 and Win 7. Changing that value makes it more like TMP in XP. Nice tip :-)

[ChrisJakarta]

I also ditched Tab Mix Plus in favour of trying out Tab Utilities which TonyE posted above. I'm just not happy with how TMP works on FF 3.6 and Win 7.

I've just tried Tab Utilities (I still use XP), but its Tab Context Menu seems to be missing 'Copy Tab URL' which I find very useful. Perhaps a later version of Tab Utilities will add this functionality...

Chris

[TonyE]

I've just tried Tab Utilities (I still use XP), but its Tab Context Menu seems to be missing 'Copy Tab URL' which I find very useful. Perhaps a later version of Tab Utilities will add this functionality...

You can ask the author of the extension, he responds to questions and requests in the Tab Utilities support thread at mozillaZine Forums.

[sobershea]

What extensions do you use and recommend?

I use

• Flashblock, NoScript, and McAfee SiteAdvisor for security

• Toolbar Buttons to add more choices/organization to the toolbar

• Xmarks to sync bookmarks with my other PCs - this works great!

• Tab Kit (unsupported in 3.6 - so I "forced" it until I find something that works as well) to organize open tabs

• CoolPreviews - just started using this after reading about it here - so far I like it but it doesn't accomplish what I was looking for with Preview Pane - I'll keep playing with it

• Session Manager because it seems to do a better job than the manager built into Firefox

Besides the security extensions, my favorite is (of course) the unsupported Tab Kit. I keep a lot of tabs open and this extension really works for me.
:

I have to add to my own post - I just found a really neat extension if you keep lots of tabs open. I often have 20+ tabs open and Firefox takes forever to open and load all the tabs. With BarTab, tabs are loaded in the background and the actual content is loaded live when you actually select the tab. Firefox loads much faster.

[westerneagle]

I guess it is like account manager. . .but I have been using Lastpass both in Firefox and Chrome.