Posts tagged firefox

Optimizing Your Computer Use #1: Firefox Search Keywords

Apr 28th

Posted by Marcus in Guides

4 comments

I’m a huge fan of optimizing the way I use my computer, if I stumble upon a task I know I will be doing in the future (e.g. looking up opening hours for the local grocery store) I usually try to make this task easier. So I’ll write a couple of articles about what techniques I use to do these things, the first being Firefox search keywords, which I’ve talked about before.

Firefox has a built in function that lets you add keywords for search fields on websites by right-clicking them and pressing “Add a Keyword for this Search”. This makes it possible to make a search on a site by typing “<keyword> <search term>” in the address bar (e.g. “i die hard” searches IMDb for “die hard”). This obviously has a lot of possibilities, and it’s probably the one thing that saves me the most time on a day to day basis. I use the following keywords:

  • Google
    A standard Google search. Type “g <search keyword>”.
  • Keepvid
    Download video from sites like YouTube, Metacafe, etc. Type “d <video URL>”.
  • Port Check
    Checks if a certain port is open. Type “p <port number>”.
  • Google Maps
    Searches Google Maps. Type “gm <location>”.
  • Google Maps – Directions From Home
    Search for a direction from your home. Change “blegdamsvej 78A, københavn ø, denmark” to your own address. Type “gmd <destination>”.
  • Google Translate
    Type “gt <text or url>” to translate something from English.
  • YouTube
    Search on YouTube. Type “y <search term>”.
  • WikiPedia
    Search on WikiPedia. Type “w <search term>”.
  • IMDb
    Search on IMDb. Type “i <search term>”.
  • Kino
    Search on Kino.dk Type “k <search term>”.
  • RottenTomatoes
    Search on Rotten Tomatoes. Type “rt <search term>”.
  • Play.com
    Search on Play.com Type “p <search term>”.
  • UrbanDictionary
    Search Urban Dictionary. Type “u <search term>”.
  • Ordbogen
    Search on Ordbogen.com. Type “o <search term>”.
  • Google Currency Converter
    Convert money to Danish Kroner. Type “dkk <amount and currency>” (e.g. “dkk 50 usd”).
  • Google Currency Converter (USD)
    Convert from US Dollars to Danish Kroner. Type “usd <amount in US Dollars>”.
  • Google Currency Converter (EURO)
    Convert from Euro to Danish Kroner. Type “euro <amount in Euro>”.
  • Google Currency Converter (POUNDS)
    Convert from Pounds to Danish Kroner. Type “pounds <amount in Pounds>”.
  • Dansk Wiki
    Search on the Danish WikiPedia. Type “dw <search term>”.
  • Wiktionary
    Search on Wiktionary. Type “wi <search term>”.
  • Amazon.co.uk
    Search on Amazon.co.uk. Type “a <search term>”.
  • Filestube
  • Search for files on Rapidshare. Type “f <search term>”.

You can follow these steps to import my keywords:

  1. Right-click on my Search Keywords bookmarks file and choose “Save Link As…” Place the file somewhere on your computer.
  2. In Firefox, from the Bookmarks menu, choose “Manage Bookmarks”.
  3. From the Bookmarks Manager File menu, choose Import. Choose “Import Bookmarks from File.” Browse to and open the file you just saved.

The next article will be about Greasemonkey scripts.

My Firefox Search Keywords

Mar 2nd

Posted by Marcus in Software

1 comment

The Search Keywords feature in Firefox makes it possible to use search engines by starting a search string with a certain letter, in the address bar. For example “i die hard” searches for “die hard” on IMDb, in my browser. Search Keywords are organized as bookmarks, and can be added by right-clicking a search field, and pressing “Add a Keyword for this Search”. I use this feature for all searches, and I’m bored, so here’s my list of Search Keywords.

You install it like this:

  1. Right-click on my Search Keywords bookmarks file and choose “Save Link As…” Place the file somewhere on your computer.
  2. In Firefox, from the Bookmarks menu, choose “Manage Bookmarks”.
  3. From the Bookmarks Manager File menu, choose Import. Choose “Import Bookmarks from File.” Browse to and open the file you just saved.

You can see an explanation of all the keywords by left-clicking the link.

Replacing Firefox

Oct 29th

Posted by Marcus in Software

10 comments

I stumbled upon a browser called Flock and wanted to give it a try. It’s build on the core of Mozilla Firefox, and the beta version 1.0 has just been released, for Mac and Windows. The biggest difference from Firefox is the extensive integration with popular sites, such as YouTube, uploading pictures to Facebook and flickr, adding bookmarks to del.icio.us and posting blogs with WordPress. It’s amazing how easy it is to set up, everything just works and it looks great. So far I’m also very satisfied with the built-in RSS Reader, I use Sage in Firefox, and Flock’s own seem to be easier to navigate.

So far I’m very happy with the browser, since I can access advanced features of my favorite sites in seconds.

You should check out the ‘Getting Started’ page on their own site.

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