FireFox Plugins

[Tezcatlipoca]

A great many CAG members use the popular browser, FireFox (hereafter FF).

 

As some of those users may be aware, part of FF's strength is its support of Plugins. Plugins are small scripts that can be added to FF to enhance performance, change behaviour, or add features.

 

The main site for FF Plugins can be found HERE, but with thousands of Plugins available, it can sometimes be confusing to know which plugins to get, or which to stay away from.

Accordingly, I thought it might be handy to have a single thread for these, where people can post details of the Plugins they personally use and find helpful so that other surfers who either aren't as familiar with the capabilities of FF, or are lacking those plugins, can benefit.

 

To start the ball rolling, I'll happily list a few of the Plugins I personally use on a regular basis and find extremely handy:

 

Update Notifier - This plugin monitors every other plugin you've installed, and tells you if there has been an update to one. If there is, Update Notifier can install the update for you.

 

Adblock Plus - Extremely handy for getting rid of those irritating adverts that appear on a lot of sites, including CAG. Just right-click the ad, click AdBlock and they don't appear again. If you want them back, open AdBlock and simply unblock them.

 

Dictionary Search - I find this a very handy little plugin. Once installed, highlight any word anywhere on the internet (as though you were going to copy the text), and press the right-mouse. Hit 'Dictionary Search' and a second tab will open with the definition.

 

Download Statusbar - When FF downloads, this replaces the popup box with a neat little progress bar in the bottom left. It also has a host of extra features that become available.

 

New Tab Homepage - By default, a new tab in FF is blank, ready to go where you like. I personally have Google as my homepage, so want it ready when I open a new page. New Tab Homepage does just that; any newly opened tab will default to your homepage.

 

IE Tab - There are a few websites, most of the Micro$oft's, that refuse to recognise any browser other than Internet Explorer. This adds a timple tab for FireFox that allows you to view any webpage you like in IE mode. FF will perfectly replicate IE and the site will respond to FF as though it is genuinely IE.

 

NoScript - May be a little complicated for some, but allows you to selectively block any scripts you like on a website. You can permanently or temporarily allow certain scripts to sites you frequently visit and trust.

All actions can be undone, and this stops drive-by-downlaods, malware and spyware scripts in their tracks.

 

PDF Download - Not only handles all PDF file format downloads, but lets you grab a copy or open the PDF within a FF tab. In addition, this plugin lets you turn any webpage into a PDF file in seconds.

 

Finally, it is useful to know that nearly every plugin has its own set of options and settings. In almost all cases, these are accessed by going to Tools, selecting the Add Ons option, then highlighting the relevant plugin on the list. You should have an Options button on the left, whilst buttons of the right allow you to Disable or Uninstall the plugin.

 

Feel free to add your own.

Edited January 25, 2010 by Tezcatlipoca

[Tezcatlipoca]

Another one which I don't run on my own PC, but run on the client PCs in my network is:

 

Public Fox - Allows you to lock off the Add-Ons and Options sections of FF with a simple password. I run this on all my client machines at work, but parents could equally apply it to junior's FireFox to ensure safer surfing.

[Tezcatlipoca]

Thanks Rooster.

 

 

And if you've found this thread especially helpful, do feel free to tip my scales by clicking on the silver scales icon in the bottom left of any of my posts

 

[Tezcatlipoca]

Two more which will probably only be of interest/use to other web designers, but I have personally found them far and away the best plugins when building sites, or taking apart other sites (including CAG) to see how they've been programmed:

 

HTML Tidy - Massively expands the 'View Source Code' option by validating the current page, suggesting changes, and offering to rebuild the entire code in a compliant format for you.

 

Web Developer - Far too many options and functions to list, but needless to say it adds an extra toolbar to FireFox that has - literally - everything a web developer needs to check site builds.

 

These two work especially well in conjunction with each other.