Monday, May 12, 2014

My New Techie Love

I'm sorry, Safari. I'm really sorry, Firefox. I'm kinda sorry Internet Explorer. I have a new love.  Chrome has stolen my heart.

Now, I don't pretend to be a Chrome expert - I honestly don't think there is anyone out there who knows it all since new features are added all the time.  But, I have recently learned about three extensions that I think everyone should have.

Note - as far as I know, you must use Google Chrome and be logged into your Google Account  in order to access Google Apps.  Please correct me in the comments if I am wrong.

In no particular order:
  • Screenleap for Gmail - this extension allows you to remotely share all or part of your computer screen with others. After downloading the extension (see Google's instructions for downloading extensions here), you launch the app by clicking on the Screenleap icon in the upper right hand corner of your Gmail screen.
    Instead of recreating the wheel, I did a Google Search for "how to use chrome app screenleap" and found this article from Screenleap.com with the directions and screenshots. No sense recreating the wheel...
  • AdBlock Plus - this extension will block all the ads on the different webpages you visit.  Take a look at the two images below. The top one was taken from msn.com using Internet Explorer without Ad Block Plus loaded. Notice the Geico ad on the right?  The bottom image is from msn.com using Chrome with AdBlock Plus installed.  Notice there the ad is gone, replaced by news videos.  I highly recommend this extension, especially if you visit a lot of website with your kids. You never know what kind of ad will appear.
AdBlock Plus not installed
AdBlock Plus installed
  • Sexy Undo Close Tab - I constantly have tons of tabs open and then will suddenly feel overwhelmed and start to frantically close them.  Alas, I closed that blog I just found this morning and still wanted to read.  With Sexy Undo Close Tab, I can retrieve that closed tab. Click on your extensions tab opener (the two arrows) and select Sexy Undo Close Tab.  The list of all your closed tabs will appear and you can choose the one you want to reopen. This has saved my life a couple of times now...
    Click the double arrow to open the list of your extensions  - these are some of those I am trying out.
    Select the link you want to open.  Feel free to open multiple tabs.
    I'd love to hear about your favorite Chrome extensions!