Monday, December 12, 2005

Mandatory Firefox Extensions

A lot of clients and friends have asked me what web browser to use since they hear that Internet Explorer isn't safe. I usually suggest Opera or Firefox.

Firefox is a great product, but to really get the most out of it you have to download (and install) a lot of extensions in addition to the main browser.

On the other hand, I usually refer to Opera as "Firefox with all the best extensions built in". Opera also comes with a news reader and mail client, for those who are looking for a more complete, and integrated package.

When a client asked me this question today it got me thinking though. What would be my list of must-have Firefox extensions? Well, here's what I currently have installed:
  • Adblock - Filters ads from web-pages
  • CookieCuller - Extended cookie manager
  • Enhanced History Manager - Flexible history management
  • FLST - Sets focus to the last selected tab
  • Flashblock - Replaces Flash objects with a button you can click to view them
  • Forecastfox - Get international weather forecasts in any toolbar or status bar
  • hideBad - Hides bad things (Clears passwords, cookies, cache, etc.)
  • LastTab - Allows tab navigation in a most recently used manner
  • NoScript - Lets you control the execution of JavaScript
  • Open link in - Adds more tab/window opening options to the context menu for links and images
  • Paste and Go - Lets you paste a URL from the clipboard and directly load it (like Opera)
  • SessionSaver - Allows you to save and manage browsing sessions
  • Tab Mix Plus - Tabbed browsing with an added boost
  • Tab X - Adds a close button to each of the browser tabs
  • Unread Tabs - Marks unread tabs so you know that you haven't read them

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