Are you frustrated with webpage text areas that are limited in size and display/use small text? Now you can make entering text much more pleasant (and easier on your eyes) with the It’s All Text! extension for Firefox.

Editor Note: At the time of this post, It’s All Text! hasn’t yet been updated for Firefox 3.6

Before

For our example we chose to use the comment text area for a How-To Geek article. At the moment whatever could be typed is limited (in size, etc.) to the text area itself.

After

As soon as you have installed the extension you will need to go into the options first where you can browse for and select your favorite text editor. Then it is a matter of making any small changes or modifications that you desire such as preferred “Character Set”, “Edit Button” location, or creating a “Hotkey Combination”.

After selecting Editra for our example, we did change the “Edit Button” location and the “Duration of button fade” options.

Now back to the original comment text area. As you can see an “Edit Button” is now visible with a drop-down menu (access with a right click). Clicking directly on the “Edit Button” will open up the text editor that you chose in the options.

You may also use/access the “Right-Click Menu” in the text area itself. Notice that the “Edit Button” is still visible at the moment even though the “Right-Click Menu” is still being accessed. In our test we preferred the “Edit Button” for ease of use…

Once your favorite text editor has been opened and you have finished typing, how do you get the text into the comment area? Simply click on the appropriate “Save Button” for your text editor to transfer the text.

The text will appear in the comment area with a temporary yellow background color (fades very quickly) to signal a successful transfer.

Afterwards you can close your text editor and click the appropriate “Submit Button” to finish up.

Conclusion

If you have felt frustrated with the limited area and smaller text size of comment areas at different websites, then the It’s All Text! extension will be a pleasant change and make commenting and entering text much easier on your eyes.

Links

Download the It’s All Text! extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the It’s All Text! extension (Extension Homepage)

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Tired of having to copy, paste, and then format links for use in your blogs, e-mails, or documents? Then see how easy it is to choose a click-and-go format that will save you a lot of time and effort with the CoLT extension for Firefox.

Before

Usually when you copy a link in a webpage you do not have much in the way of options to work with in the “Context Menu”. What if you could choose from multiple formats when you copy that link?

After

Once you have installed the extension you can immediately start enjoying the ability to choose the “copy format” that best suits your needs. This is certainly much better than the “single” choice from before…

For the first of our examples we chose to copy and paste only the text for the link itself…

Then we copied and pasted the link using the “HTML Link” format. Looking good…

Next we tried the “Plain Text” format. All the information that we needed without any of the “link pre-formatting”.

For our final example we decided to try the “BB Code” format. Once again very nice…

Options

The only time that you should need to go into the options is if you need to make any changes for the “Context Menu Listings”, modify a pre-existing format, or would like to add a new format.

If you would like to personalize one of the pre-existing formats…simply click on and select the format that you would like to modify and then click on “Edit” to open an “Editing Window”.

Once you have clicked on “Edit” you will see the following window. Here you can choose to rename your “Menu Labels” and/or change the style/layout for each “Format”. Notice the list of variables in the lower part of the window…you can use these as a guide to modify the pre-existing formats or in the creation of new personalized formats.

Note: Clicking on “Add…” will bring up the same small window where you will need to fill in the details for “Menu Label & Format”.

Conclusion

If you have been looking for an easier way to transfer links to your blogs, e-mails, and documents then this “little time saving” extension will be your new best friend.

Links

Download the CoLT extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the CoLT extension (Extension Homepage)

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Do you use URL shortening services every day and need a quick way to access them? Now you can have access to over 100 different services with the Shorten URL extension for Firefox.

What Services Are Available?

Here is a list of the URL Shortening services that can be accessed with the extension. You will definitely have plenty to choose from…

Options

As soon as you have installed the extension you should go into the options first to choose your favorite URL Shortening service from the drop-down list. Notice that you may choose one of the three services that are specifically focused on mp3s.

You can choose to have icons display in the “Context Menus”, automatically copy newly created “Shortened URLs” to the clipboard, and/or post them to a micro-blogging service.

Note: You will only be able to have one “non-mp3” service active at a time.

Shorten URL in Action

There is a “Toolbar Button” available to use but for our example we chose to use the “Context Menus”. Right click anywhere within a webpage to create a “Shortened URL” for that particular page…

Note: You may also create “Shortened URLs” for frames/iframes.

Right click on links within webpages to create a “Shortened URL” for them…

You can even create “Shortened URLs” for images within webpages.

Have a bookmark that you need a “Shortened URL” for? Not a problem…simply right click on the appropriate bookmark and create your new “Shortened URL”.

Prefer to create a “Shortened URL” from a tab? Also very easy to do…

When you have created your new “Shortened URL” it will automatically display in the “Address Bar” (and be copied to your clipboard if you selected that option). Easy to use and very convenient…

Conclusion

If you use URL Shortening services often each day then the Shorten URL extension will save you time and let you get back to your browsing.

Links

Download the Shorten URL extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the Shorten URL extension (Extension Homepage)

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Whether you are new to using the Greasemonkey extension for Firefox or a long-time fan, Greasefire provides a quick and easy way to find User Scripts for your favorite websites without having to search userscripts.org.

Note: Greasemonkey extension required (link at bottom of article).

Using Greasefire

Here is what the “Right Click Menu” looks like with just Greasemonkey installed…

Once you have installed Greasefire you will be able to easily see if there are any scripts available or not for your favorite websites. Here you can see the results for a website that had no scripts available.

Now for a website that does have scripts available…you will be able to see an immediate difference in the “Status Bar Icon”.

Here is a close-up of “Status Bar Icon”…right clicking shows that there are 310 scripts available. To see the scripts that are available simply click on the “# scripts available” listing.

Clicking on the “# scripts available” listing will open a new window where you can scroll through the list of scripts available and view the “Details & Source” for each script. Notice that there is also a “Ranking” available for each script. For our example we chose to install the “ice blue google skin” using the “Install Button Bar” in the lower right corner…

Once you click on the “Install Button Bar” you will be presented with a window like this. At this point you can confirm the installation, view the script source, or cancel the installation.

A quick check of our “Right Click Menu” shows that our new script successfully installed and is active.

Refreshing our search page shows a “shifting” in the color scheme for the links…a nice change from the default blue color.

Options

The options for Greasefire are very simple…choose the number of days between updates for the user scripts index/data base or you can choose to update manually ahead of schedule.

Conclusion

Greasefire simplifies discovering new user scripts for all of your favorite websites and definitely makes a nice addition to any Firefox browser with Greasemonkey installed.

Links

Download the Greasefire extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the Greasefire extension (Extension Homepage)

Download the Greasemonkey extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the Greasemonkey extension (Extension Homepage)

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Tired of copying & pasting text-only URLs from websites or forums that do not allow people to post regular links? Say goodbye to that hassle with the Url2Link extension for Firefox.

Before

On occasion we all run across a webpage or forum with URLs that are displayed as text only. It would certainly be nice if you did not have to copy and paste the URLs just to visit those webpages… But there is a quick and easy way to fix that.

After

All that you need to do is install the extension…nothing else. As you can see the text-only URL has now become a nice clickable link and your browsing just got easier.

Conclusion

If you are tired of dealing with text-only URLs in webpages and forums, then the Url2Link extension will be a pleasant addition to your browser.

Links

Download the Url2Link extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

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Would you like to have a built-in notepad for your Firefox Browser? See just how useful QuickNote can be for your everyday browsing.

Accessing QuickNote

After installing the extension QuickNote can be accessed through the “View Menu” for the “Sidebar Version” or…

Through the “Tools Menu”. Using the “QuickNote Sub-menu” will let you access the “Floating Window, Sidebar, & Tab Versions”. If you prefer the keyboard ninja method, you may access the “Floating Window Version” using “Ctrl + F7”.

QuickNote in Action

For our example we decided to open all three versions at the same time. You can see that we changed the background colors to help differentiate between the three notes.

For the first note we copied text from an article into “Note 1” by selecting the area we wanted and the using the “Context Menu” to send it to the note.

Text that you copy will have all formatting removed and “embedded links” are also removed as seen here. QuickNote will however add the link address for the webpage where the text was copied from.

Perhaps there was an “embedded link” in the text that you also needed to save to the same note… Right click on the link and you will be able to send it to your note too.

As with the text at the top of the note the originating webpage link address will be added after the link that you want to save.

Note: Images can not be copied into QuickNote.

Multiple Instances

Chances are you will not use “multiple instances” of QuickNote but for those who are curious here is what you should expect. Changes made to the first instance and saved do not automatically show up in the other instance. But this is nothing to worry about. The changes will appear in all instances the next time your browser is opened. Just remember to save all of your changes…

Here you can see our example browser after restarting. Both have the same text and now we have added something to the second instance and saved it.

Restarting once again shows everything perfectly matched up.

Just a quick example of three unique notes displayed across “multiple instances”.

Settings

Select the “Default Note” to send text to, the “Number of Notes” that you want to have active, which versions of QuickNote you want to open with the hotkey combination/toolbar function, and if you would like to have the “Save & Save As Buttons” displayed.

Choose a different “Save Location” for your notes if desired. This also lets you know exactly where your notes have been saved to if you do not make any changes.

Select the “Font Size, Font Color, Font Type, Background Color, & Customized CSS Styles” that you want for your notes.

Note: Each particular note can be set up with different styles.

Decide the “File Encoding” that you prefer to use and the “Autosave Option” that best suits your needs.

Some changes in the settings will recommend restarting QuickNote or the XUL application…a good browser restart will do nicely and have you ready to go.

Conclusion

If you have snippets of information and/or links that you collect during the day while browsing, then QuickNote makes an excellent place to store them.

Links

Download the QuickNote extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the QuickNote extension (Extension Homepage)

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Frustrated with never feeling quite certain where a shortened URL is pointing? Now you can see just where those links are directing you with the Verify Redirect extension for Firefox.

Before

Since Twitter and other social websites contain a lot of shortened URLs you might feel slightly nervous at times if presented with a link from some unknown person. It becomes a matter of deciding if you feel safe enough to click on those links or not…

For our example we are visiting the How-To Geek Twitter page. Holding the mouse over one of the shortened links provides no clue where the link will lead you. OK…now what do you do?

Note: The URL Tooltip extension is also shown in these screenshots for easy viewing of URLs.

Some Examples of Verify Redirect in Action

Now here is the same link shown above after installing the extension. Not only do you see the shortened URL but you can also see the domain name for the destination website (gizmodo.com). That is definitely a huge improvement.

Note: There are no options to worry with for the extension.

Trying out a bit.ly link…

And a tinyurl link. You can certainly have more peace of mind now with regard to shortened URLs…

Special Note

You will also notice pop-up messages like this one each time that a regular website is redirecting elsewhere. This extension is very good at catching this kind of behavior.

Conclusion

If clicking on shortened URLs has you nervous, then the Verify Redirect extension will help give you peace of mind and quite possibly save you from visiting a “less than reputable” website.

Links

Download the Verify Redirect extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the Verify Redirect extension (Extension Homepage)

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Do you want an easy way to see where shortened URLs really lead to in your favorite browser? Then you will want to take a look at the Long URL Please Bookmarklet.

A few days ago we looked at some different URL shortening services and Extensions. But sometimes you need to know where the links are actually pointing to, as some can lead you to unsafe sites.

Note: There is a Firefox extension available for those who would prefer to use it in place of the bookmarklet.

Get the Bookmarklet

Here is a list of the “URL Shortening Services” that the bookmarklet will work for.

All that you need to do is drag the bookmarklet to your browser’s “Bookmarks Toolbar” and you are ready to reveal the real addresses behind those shortened URLs.

Before & After

For our example we visited the How-To Geek Twitter page. As you can see there are at least three different “URL Shortening Services” represented in this particular group of tweets…

You do not need to select/highlight any of the links…just one click on the bookmarklet and all of the shortened URLs in our group have been “converted back”. Now you can easily see the real addresses behind each shortened URL.

Conclusion

If you have been looking for an easy way to see the real addresses behind shortened URLs, then the Long URL Please Bookmarklet will certainly make a nice addition to your favorite browser. Also check out our previous post where we take a look at URL shortening services and extensions.

Get the Long URL Please Bookmarklet

Long URL Please Firefox Add-on

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Have you been looking for a quick and easy way to take partial or full screenshots of a webpage in Firefox? Now you can have either type with just a couple of clicks using the Abduction! extension for Firefox.

Before

Usually if you want a screenshot of a webpage you can only capture the visible area within the browser window…

Getting the entire webpage as pieces or editing all those pieces into one larger pic is enough to frustrate anyone. But there is a much easier and quicker way to do it.

After

Once you have installed the extension you are ready to go…right click anywhere within the webpage and select “Save Page As Image…”.

You will notice that the entire webpage will be “shaded over” and there will be a “yellow area” where you right clicked. The “yellow area” is a starting point for whatever type of screenshot you wish to take. You will also see a temporary “toolbar” at the top of the webpage with a “Save Button”.

You can easily resize the “yellow area” just like you would with a regular app window that is not maximized…

The “yellow area” can also be moved or repositioned very easily…

Perhaps you just need the whole page at once…double left click in the webpage area and the entire webpage is selected for the screenshot. All that you will need to do once you have the desired area selected is click on the “Save Button”.

The images will be saved in a .png format…

Here is the screenshot that we took of the webpage open in Paint.NET at 66%…that is a nice sized screenshot at almost 6,800 pixels in length.

Conclusion

If you have been needing a quick and easy way to get screenshots of webpages, then it just does not get any easier than this. The Abduction! extension is definitely a recommended add-on for Firefox.

Links

Download the Abduction! extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the Abduction! extension (Extension Homepage)

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Do you prefer to have clean and gentle looking webpages to look at when browsing the internet? Now you can easily change how websites look in Firefox with the No Color extension.

Before

For an example we decided to visit the Mozilla Add-ons website. Here is the pre-extension look…lots of blue color and definitely some background images in use.

After

And here is the same page after installing the extension…there is a very noticeable difference. One click and it looks like a whole new website… Notice that the links are still easily visible though…

Just for fun we tried it out on the website here too. The No Color extension really stripped the navigation and sidebar areas down.

Options

The options are extremely simple to sort out and focus on the method of access that best suits your personal needs.

Choose Your Access Method

Here is the “Status Bar Icon” & the “Toolbar Button” for the No Color extension.

All three access methods shown at the same time…this extension is very easy to integrate into your personal browser UI setup.

Conclusion

If you like having clean gentle looking webpages to browse through, then the No Color extension will definitely make a huge difference in how all of your favorite websites look.

Links

Download the No Color extension (Mozilla Add-ons)

Download the No Color extension (Extension Homepage)

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