The Firefox extensions I will be using in 2011
{% include urls I have been intending to write this post for some time now. I do not necessarily like “top Firefox extensions”-like posts, but I sometimes stumble upon a gem which I could not live without after trying it. Here is a list of Mozilla Firefox extensions I install on every computer I use regularly.
Vimperator
Vimperator adds vim-like key bindings to Firefox. My Firefox (always running in full-screen mode) does not have any more toolbar consuming precious screen space. Quickmarks let me bookmark my favorite sites and go there with three key presses, either in the current tab or in a new one. Also, I seldomly need to use the mouse, as I can highlight hyperlinks and jump there immediately. Of course, Vimperator is scriptable, comes with its own plugins written in Javascript and let you search the web very easily.
For example, :open rfc1149 (or o rfc1149) will search for rfc1149 on Google while :open wikipedia rfc1149 will do the same thing in Wikipedia. :tab addons will open the Firefox extensions page in a new tab. gt will go to the next tab. b mail will jump to the first tab with mail in its title.
I hope that 2011 will bring us an even better Vimperator 3.
Password Hasher
Password hasher lets you remember a single master password and still use a different password on every site you have to register with. Considering that even the most reputable sites sometimes leak password databases, it keeps you safe by not reusing the same password on different sites.
Certificate Patrol
Certificate Patrol warns you when the certificate of a trusted web site change, and tells you if you should look twice before using the site. For example, the use of a new certificate authority may reveal that you are currently the target of a man-in-the-middle attack. Most of the time, such changes are innocuous, but if one day you notice that the allegedly new Google HTTPS certificate is signed by a company in a totalitarian country you’ll be happy to have Certificate Patrol warn you.
Dafizilla ViewSourceWith
Stéphane Bortzmeyer recommended this extension to me almost four years ago (I was previously using the “It’s All Text!” extension) and I will never go back. Launching GNU Emacs on any text field where I have to edit long text is much more comfortable than using Firefox limited editing capabilities.
Shareaholic
Shareaholic lets you share any web page to multiple places (Google Reader, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) and does so by directly using the native third-party sites capabilities. It means that you do not to create a new account on a new web site to use this service.
Lazarus: Form Recovery
Did you ever need to fill a lengthy form and have the web site clear it completely because one field was wrong or missing? Did you ever close Firefox by mistake while in the middle of submitting a multiple-pages form? If this is the case, you should install Lazarus, which brings your text back. Lazarus saves your form content securely using Firefox security manager (you did define a master password, didn’t you?).
FoxToPhone
If you happen to have a phone running Android 2.2 or newer, this extension based on ChromeToPhone lets you send links, maps, images or text directly from your browser to your phone. The phone must have the Google Chrome to Phone application installed.