Pimp your Chrome – with Extensions

After a long love affair with Firefox, I recently decided it was time to give Google Chrome a try. Two weeks later, I realized that I hadn’t opened Firefox at all; Chrome has everything I need and it’s super-duper fast (as opposed to Firefox, which is just super-fast). One of the reasons I wanted to try Chrome was because I was so attached to my Firefox extensions. As it turned out, all the extensions I used – or a similar tool – are available for Chrome as well. So here’s what I use to pimp my Chrome.

Feedly

While Feedly isn’t exactly an extension, it is a nifty little button that I use several times a day. I use Google Reader synchronized with Feed Demon to subscribe and read most of my feeds. However, Feedly provides an easily customizable magazine-type format that allows me to organize my most important feeds so I can view them at a glance. Basically, Feedly creates my very own blog for me by assembling feeds from all the blogs to which I subscribe.

Along with “featured” feeds, I can also use the Explore section to read feeds by keyword. This is a whole new way of reading feeds for me and a method I never would have thought to try if Feedly hadn’t offered it automatically in the sidebar. Sometimes all the feeds on my reader can be overwhelming and by using Feedly to organize them, I find it easier to tackle them on days when I otherwise might just say “screw it.” By giving me a “pretty” page and several navigation options, I find myself much more willing ot read feds and, subsequently, getting more from them.

Cool Iris

Cool Iris is one of my very favorite search tools – especially when I’m looking for something new to draw. With the extension installed, you will see a little link like this –>IMAGE<-- when you hover over any picture on a search page. If you click on the image, a new window opens, showing all the images returned by the search in a 3-D gallery view. It's then super-easy to see all the pictures and scroll through them. I find that Cool Iris allows me to choose pictures - and reject others - at a glance; much faster than looking at a regular search results page. I'm not sure why this is, but it really makes a difference.

Roboform

I have extolled the virtues of Roboform many times on this blog and it would have been a deal-breaker if Chrome didn’t have an extension. As it is, this extension is not perfect as it doesn’t have as much functionality as those for Firefox or IE, but it works – for now. You can use the Roboform extension to fill in and save passwords – which is really what I most use it for – but it doesn’t fill in identity information. This is a bit annoying when it comes to credit cards and stuff, but I can live with it until they make it fully functional.

Fastest Chrome

Originally a Firefox-only extension, the folks at FastestFox decided to tweak their tool to work with Chrome. Unlike its name suggests, it doesn’t actually speed up Chrome, itself. What it does is expand search results to include help information like definitions, similar pages, etc. I wasn’t sure I’d even notice it at first, let alone use it, but it turns out that it is so expertly integrated that I use it automatically and effortlessly all the time.

Evernote

I’m a recent convert to Evernote as a way of life and I can’t get enough of it. The Evernote extension syncs directly with your online or desktop client, allowing you to search all your notes and clip web pages. Once you sync, all your clips and notes are on your desktop client. It’s like magic! Of course, all good technology is.

Google: Similar Pages

Although it’s still in beta, the Google – Similar Pages extension is extremely cool and has the potential to be even cooler. Once installed, a little icon in the navigation bar is clicked to reveal screenshots of related pages. Though there are often “no results found,” I imagine this will become less and less as the extension moves out of beta.

Right Click Opens Link in New Foreground Tab

It might not have a snappy name, but this little extension does exactly what its name says it does. I open a lot of new tabs and this tool effectively cuts my click-time in half. It’s simple, but I love it.

All of these extension – and more! – can be found on the Chrome Extension repository at Google. I haven’t found any (yet) that slowed Chrome down and I’ve tried quite a few. What are your favorites? Do you like Chrome as much as Firefox?