LostInTechnology

Top 5 Google Chrome Extensions

Posted on 20. Jan, 2010 by UzEE in Browsers, Internet Tools

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About 16 months ago, Google took the world by surprise, when it announced its intention of launching a web browser of its own. Touting it as the web browser for the next generation, Google made several innovations and modifications to the architecture and style of the existing web browsers.

Google Chrome is based on the Webkit layout engine, which is known for its excellent rendering speeds. Besides that, Google introduced a number of other features and enhancements such as the JavaScript processing engine V8, and insanely fast loading speeds along with other improvements such as sandboxing and private browsing mode for improved security. Even though Chrome had all the ingredients for a perfect browser, it still lacks when it comes to add-ons or extensions.

While Google Chrome is still no where near Mozilla Firefox when it comes to extension support, there are still some pretty good add-ons out there which can greatly enhance your browsing experience. Here’s my list of the top 5 extensions that are a must have if you are a Google Chrome user.

IE Tabs

IE Tabs is neat extension that can open Internet Explorer tabs right inside Google Chrome using the native Trident engine built into Windows. Now most of you may be wondering, “why would I need to have anything IE when I got Chrome?”. Well the answer is pretty simple.

IE is still one of the most dominant web browsers in the world, and therefore, a lot of new and legacy web applications are designed specifically for Internet Explorer, like the new Microsoft Office Web Apps. These apps simply don’t run in Google Chrome, so if you don’t have IE Tabs installed, you’d have to launch Internet Explorer separately to use them.

Plus there is an added bonus for developers as well – you can test how your layout looks and works under Webkit and Trident from the same browser. It goes without saying that this extension is Windows exclusive.

Google Wave/Mail Notifier

These two extensions, as the name suggest, show notifications if you have a new email or wave on your Google Account. Pretty basic functionality but very useful so you don’t have to keep mail and wave open in separate tabs all the time. You can also configure them to use with Google Apps for Domains.

AdThwart

Tired of those annoying ads plastered all over the internet? Well then, AdThwart is for you. It’s a very effective ad blocker extension that can detect and hide advertisements from a number of sources including Google Adsense, Facebook, and most types of Flash advertisement.

Xmarks Bookmark Sync

Previously known as Foxmarks, when this was a Firefox exclusive extension, Xmarks brings cloud based bookmark sync to your browser. As the name suggests, Xmarks is cross-platform and cross-browser meaning that all your favorite bookmarks stay in sync on all the browsers you have on all the operating systems and computers you use.

Facebook for Google Chrome

If you don’t use Facebook, then you probably live in a cave. Second thought, even cavemen probably have Facebook profiles now. Anyways, Facebook for Google Chrome is a handy extension that pulls your Facebook live feed, wall, notifications and do some regular stuff like updating your status.

Of course, the above list is based mostly on my personal selection (besides AdThwart because bloggers never use ad-blockers) and your opinions and taste may vary. Just be sure to share your picks with us too in the comments below.

Article By Uzair Sajid (UzEE), a technologist and a freelance blogger who also authors The Technopath.

Image by ansik

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