Browser Trick 2013
Let’s face it, we take our web browsers for granted. We open them up and begin browsing without giving much thought to how they’ve improved over the years through tabbed browsing, built-in search and countless other enhancements. I’d like to put the browser back in the spotlight with these five browser tips that will make you more efficient in your day-to-day business tasks.
1. See what your colleagues are linking to on Twitter and LinkedInfrom your browser sidebar. This feature is available in Safari when you open a new browser window and see your Top Sites. So what exactly is it? Well, you know how you follow a bunch of people on those two social networks, but for every 10 posts they will share one or two links? This filters out all those other posts and presents just the ones with the links. To access this feature, click View > Show Shared Links Sidebar.
2. Cloud sync all of your browsing. This might be my favorite advancement of browsing next to the introduction of tabs. Whether you’re on the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari or Internet Explorer you can sync some or all of the following: bookmarks, open tabs and history on your other devices. Here’s a typical scenario: You’re researching a topic at your desk, but not quite done before you head out to lunch. You sit down at your lunch table and pull out your smartphone and like magic, the webpage you were just reading at your desk is waiting for you on your device. This is the ultimate tool for staying efficient and productive.
3. Create your own custom search engine using Smart Keywords. It’s become common to use Google as a verb. Well now you can use just about any specific search engine as a verb. You can “imdb” an actor, “amazon” a book, or “insert your keyword here” to search your own website. This Firefox feature lets you assign your own keyword to trigger a search of a specific engine. Here’s how it works. Go to any website that has a search box on it. Control + click on the search box then select “Add a Keyword for this Search.” This brings up the box to assign your own keyword. Once you’ve done this, in the address bar you can type in your custom keyword followed by the search term and Firefox will take you to the search results page of that custom search. This is a great trick for quickly searching your own website without navigating to it first.
4. Add Extensions to enhance your capabilities. The existence of Extensions aren’t particularly new, but they just keep getting better. While all the major browsers support these add-ons, Firefox and Chrome, in particular, have a fantastic library of extensions. So what do they do? Well, it depends. One extension can keep your password visible instead of seeing those black dots, another will let you edit your page while viewing it in print preview mode, and another will provide colored indicators next to search results letting you know if the page on the other side of that link is safe to visit. The links above go straight to the extension pages of those specific browsers. Be sure to visit and find a new tool or two that can help you out. Extensions can also be accessed through your browser toolbar.
5. Share what you see with the click of a button. Who hasn’t read a great article, copied the link and then pasted it in an e-mail to share? While just about all the new browsers continue to make it easier to share the web page you’re reading, Safari has the best built-in sharing feature, which lets you e-mail; text (using iMessage); AirDrop; or post to Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn with the click of a button. Even more impressive than that, when you choose to e-mail the page, you are given the option of e-mailing it as an HTML page, PDF or just the link. On the top of the browser just look for the square with the arrow swooshing to the right next to the address bar.
Have any tips of your own to share? Please leave them in the comments section below.
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