When one thinks of extensions, the immediate image is of women having clumps of hair glued, stapled and soldered to their skulls, with the intension of increasing the volume and length of their luscious locks. However, there is a new type of extension in town, and this one can be enjoyed by both sexes. What are these extensions I hear your cry...Browser extensions. Let me explain.
In the past few years the utility of mobile phones have increased exponentially, thanks in part to the explosion of applications that let users carry out a variety of actions without having to navigate away from their handset’s home screen. Mobile applications have changed the way that consumers use their phones, making people more efficient in carrying out tasks and helping them pass the time when bored. Many of the benefits that are afforded to users of mobile phones through these applications are transferable to the web browser too. Browser extensions offer the same functionality, but rather than the applications running on your handset, they run in your browser. Still a bit unsure... let's go back a bit.
Web browsers are effectively a window into the world of the internet, and without one you cannot see what is going on. Traditionally, Windows’ Internet Explorer was synonymous with web browsing, but as the internet developed new players entered the foray and began to hack away at Explorer’s market share. Interestingly, Explorer’s decline is not solely down to its poor performance, but also because in 2009 the EU ruled that Microsoft had to offer their customers a choice of which web browser they wanted to use. The ruling ended decades of Explorer being the default web browser on Windows machines, opening up the market to other players and informing customers that they actually had a choice of browsers to choose from. So which browsers have been eating away at this market share?
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| Although still the market leader, as of 2011, Internet Explorer has decreased to just over half of the overall market. |
Mozilla Firefox: Firefox began originally as an experiment in September 2002 and has now captured a significant chunk of the web browser market. It is prevalent both on computers and on mobile platforms and was the first to introduce engaging extensions (known as add-ons) to the market.
Safari: Safari is the default web browser that runs on Macs (computers produced by Apple). The browser has not really developed a fan base outside of Mac users and has not evolved at the rate of some of the other browsers.
Opera: Opera was founded in 1994 as a research project, but has since gone through many iterations to become a popular and acclaimed browser for both computers and mobile devices.
Chrome: Chrome is the new kid on the block and is Google’s attempt and enhancing the web browsing experience. Brought to market in 2008, its interface is the cleanest and simplest and offers the fastest browsing experience.
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| The graph illustrates how in Europe between 2009 and 2010 the market allocation of web browsers has dramatically changed. |
With regard to which web browser one should use, the answer rests with the preferences of the end user. If add-ons or extensions are a determining factor, then Firefox and Chrome have the most mature and extensive catalogues of applications. But what are extensions? Extensions are applications that run on your web browser, instantly adding functionality to your browsing experience. Many are free and simply enable you to carry out a variety actions from a single location, rather than having to navigate away from the page that you are on. For the duration of this post, extensions will be considered from the perspective of a Chrome user, however, the principles apply across platforms (If you are a Firefox user chick here to download add-ons).
If you are a Chrome user you can visit the Chrome Web Store and download extensions right from the market place and into the Chrome web browser. Once downloaded they will sit on the top right of the browser and can be accessed by simply clicking on them. At any time you can add, remove or modify your extensions by clicking on the spanner in the far right corner of the browser and then clicking on Tools and then Extensions. The beauty of these applications is that you can change them as much as you like and depending on what you are doing, different extensions will have different uses. At times, they can slow your browser down a bit, but ultimately they offer so much functionality that you will wonder how you ever managed to browse without them. Below are a few examples of the extensions that run on my browser, but there thousands to chose from that cater to almost any need that you have. If you’ve got a few minutes, take a look at these as they can help make you day-to-day browsing a lot smoother, and as always, links are provided (any text that is grey and turns the mouse arrow into a hand). From left to right:
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| This is a screen shot of the top right of my browser. |
Auto Pager: This automatically loads the next page of a site underneath the page that you are currently on. This means that the user just scrolls down an article or a Google search without ever having to press ‘next’ in order to gain access to the next page.
AVG: Offers online security whilst you browse the web.
To Do List: Enables you to quickly access or add tasks to your to do list. The information immediately syncs across all of your devices. To be effective you need to have a Google account set up.
Calendar: Enables you to quickly edit or add events to your Calendar. The information immediately syncs across all of your devices. To be effective you need to have a Google account set up.
Shareaholic: Allows the user to instantly share any web page with their friends in a variety of ways.
Wikipedia: Rather than having to open up a new tab to conduct a Wikipedia search, you can do it from any page that you are on, making it very useful for quick referencing.
History: Gives you immediate access to your browsing history so that you can either find a website that you accidently closed, or delete a website that you would rather no one else know you were looking at.
Chromey Calculator: An incredible tool that offers much more than basic calculator features. The application runs the Wolfram Alpha’s scientific algorithm which means you can ask questions like “how many centimetres in a foot” and get a genuine answer.
Downloaded: Shows you all of your downloads. Very useful if you have lost an email with an attachment that you have already downloaded but cannot find. Downloads are dated, easy to find and simple to re-download.
Amazon Wish List: Anytime you are browsing and find something that you want to buy, but don’t want to purchase it that moment, you can click on this and it will automatically be added it to your Amazon Wish List.
Session Manager: Often you may have loads of tabs open but need to leave in a hurry. What do you do? Rather than panic or try to write down all the websites so that you can carry on later, you simply click this button and the whole session is saved. You can name the session so that when you next sign on you just open it and all the tabs are returned as you left them.
Screen Capture: Allows users to capture the image a whole web page, or parts of it, make annotations and share it with anyone around the world.
Chrome Toolbox: This gives users add functionality when web browsing. It is extremely customisable and gives the user a lot more control on how they use the browser.
Gmail Checker: A must for any Gmail user, it constantly lets you know how many new messages you have. You can also preview all of these messages by clicking on the icon.
Last Pass: Last Pass is a safe for all of your online passwords. Rather than having to remember all of your passwords to all of your websites, you can tell the extension which ones to remember for you. This way you are not restricted if you forget a password to a site that you urgently need access to.
Dictionary: Click on any word on any web page and get a definition.
Chrome to Phone: This only works for Android users. If you are reading an article online but need to run out, press this button and the webpage that you are on is immediately sent to your phone so that you can carry on reading on the go.
Evernote: This is an extension of the Evernote application that is arguably the best note taking software on the market. It allows you to instantly clip articles or images online and save them to your notes which are synced across all of your devices.
Now, get some extensions!
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