Inspired by last week's post about the settings and browser extension that help me continue to enjoy Facebook, I'm back with more tech tips! The focus of this post is the extensions I use to improve my internet experience in various ways. I use Google Chrome as my primary browser, though a lot, if not all, of these extensions are probably available on Firefox or other browsers. Also, these are all free. I've never paid for a browser extension.
To install these, go to the Chrome Web Store (or your browser's equivalent). Some of the links I've included are for Chrome and I'm honestly not sure what will happen if you click them from a different browser.
Fluff Busting Purity - not a Chrome-specific link
This is the one I mentioned in last week's post that helps me customize Facebook. Since I already wrote about it once, I think that's all I need to say here.
AdBlock / uBlock Origin
There are a few good similar extensions out there, but these two are probably the most popular ones. They allow users to browse the internet without seeing ads all over the place, which is fantastic. Ads are so intrusive and obnoxious sometimes! Blech.
Some websites will get annoyed, try to guilt you into whitelisting them, or completely block you from viewing their pages when you visit with an adblocker. When that happens to me, I have to decide whether or not the article I'm trying to read is worth the trouble or if I should find a different source. There are also some sites that display a notice about how they only allow non-obnoxious ads on their site, and in those cases, I will sometimes whitelist them because I appreciate their consideration and don't mind non-intrusive, non-flashy, non-audible ads.
Recipe Filter
If you've ever looked for a recipe online, chances are you've ended up on a blog where the author includes about twelve paragraphs about their children, pets, and favorite scented candle before finally getting around to listing their ingredients. There are also usually at least eight huge pictures of the food you're trying to learn about from various angles and with different props or family members.
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| Gina Linetti gets it. |
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| This recipe is on my "I should really try that someday" list. |
This handy thing helps you manage your passwords. It keeps track of your login information and lets you sign in super easily to those sites that insist on signing you out after ten minutes of inactivity. It can generate secure passwords for you to use when making a new account or changing your password. There's also an Android app available so you can sign in to things on your phone without having to painstakingly type out twelve characters of gibberish. You do have to remember one really good password so you can log in to LastPass, but that's better than trying to remember a whole bunch of good passwords, making up a bunch of passwords and storing them in a hymn book in your house (not naming names, but someone I know does that), or just using one password for everything.
Ebates - not a Chrome-specific link
If you shop online, this is a great thing to have installed. You can activate it on a lot of popular sites and earn cash back when you make purchases. I've been using it occasionally for a little less than two years and I've gotten $66 back! (That number would've been a lot bigger if we'd been able to order our fridge, washer, and dryer online... *grumble*) As an added bonus, the link I included is a referral link, so you'll get $10 for signing up and I'll get $25 for inviting you! It sounds sketchy, but I promise it's legitimate. (And nobody is paying me to say any of this. My blog is definitely not big enough to be getting sponsorship deals.)
F.lux - not a Chrome-specific link
Okay, this isn't actually a browser extension, but it's a free program that I find to be pretty nifty and I'm including it anyway. Scientists say that it's better for our eyes and sleep if we don't stare at bright blue light at night. Computer and phone screens are really harsh to look at when you're in a dark room, and f.lux gradually warms the colors of your display in order to be kinder to your eyes. (It's the same idea as the blue light filter that has become fairly standard on new smartphones.) Using it means that white looks kind of peachy beige, so I do disable it sometimes when I want to see true colors or I have my laptop hooked up to the TV for Jackbox games.
I hope at least one of these sounds like something that would improve your browsing! If these seem interesting but you aren't sure how to add them to your browser, I'd be happy to try to help you out and talk you through the process. And if you know of other nifty extensions, like one that turns all pictures of bugs into pictures of kittens, please share those with me! :)
Love,
Lizzie
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