If you've ever had to re-install Firefox, or you're installing Firefox for the first time on a new computer, you know it can be a pain to hunt down and install your favorite extensions. This week, I'm going to try to relieve some of that pain using previously-mentioned Firefox extension Mass Installer.
The Mass Installer extension reads a list of extension URLs from a text file and automatically installs them all in one fell swoop. Obviously that's pretty handy, but you still have to hunt down the URLs of your favorite extensions and paste them all into a text file, and who has time for that?
To be honest... I do. So, to make things really easy on you, I've packaged several of the best Firefox extensions for basic use (the must-haves for any user), blogging, web development, and performance enhancement in four separate packages that you can quickly and easily install with the Mass Installer extension.
First, install the Mass Installer extension. After that it's really easy to install the extension packs. Just go to the Mass Installer options (go to Tools -> Extensions, select Mass Installer and click Options) and enter the URL of the pack you'd like to install (see URLs below). Click OK and Mass Installer takes care of the rest. Once you restart your browser, every extension in the pack should be installed to Firefox. Mass Installer will check for updated versions of the extensions on restart, so even if the extensions get old, Mass Installer has got you covered. Simple, right?
Now lets get to the extension packs. As I said, I've put together four separate packages: Basic, Performance, Blogger, and Web Developer.
Basic extensions pack (the must-haves):
SessionSaver
THE must-have extension for anyone, SessionSaver saves your browsing session so that you can easily return to where you left off when browsing (even if you accidentally close your browser or it crashes). This is the absolute first extension I install.BugMeNot
No matter who you are, you've probably run into a registration roadblock. The BugMeNot extension integrates with BugMeNot.com so that the registration hurdle seems more like an imperceptible bump.LastTab
Makes Ctrl-Tab (Cmd-Tab for Macs) cycle to the most recently viewed tabs, mimicing the behavior or Alt-Tab.FoxMarks
Quickly restore your bookmarks to exactly how you like them.
If you read Lifehacker at all, you're well aware that there are loads of Firefox extensions out there to extend Firefox to terrific new heights; however, they're certainly not all necessary. Regardless of what I'm using Firefox for, the basic pack contains the extensions that I want to have running no matter what.
Basic user extensions text file for Mass Installer
Performance extensions pack:
Flashblock
Flashblock knocks out all Flash content on a web page, allowing you to choose what flash content is loaded.AdBlock
Filters ads from webpages.Image-Show-Hide
Clicking a button in the toolbar or pressing Shift-Z toggles all images on a web page on and off.FasterFox
Performance and network tweaks designed to make browsing faster.
The performance pack should come in handy for those of you who don't like all that messy multimedia screwing with the speed of your browsing. The extensions included in this pack are intended to make browsing with Firefox as snappy as possible, minimizing bandwidth use.
If you're working with a dial-up connection, check out Gina's excellent guide for surviving a slow internet connection for more tweaks after you've installed the performance package.
Performance extensions text file for Mass Installer
Blogger extensions pack:
Signature
If you're sick of typing the same HTML mark-up or the same signature at the end of every post, the right-click Signature extension is a life saver.Auto Copy
Every time you select the text you're heading straight to Ctrl+C anyway; Auto Copy lets you skip that step.How'd I Get Here
As a considerate blogger, I'm sure you include your via links. However, if you've forgotten from whence you came, How'd I Get Here will remind you.
This one's for all you bloggers and web writers out there. Most of these extensions came from Gina's excellent Turn Firefox into a web writer feature, with a couple added extensions that make my life writing on the web a lot easier. (Unfortunately a few of the extensions from Gina's web writer post, namely Scribe, Spellbound, and Resizeable TextArea, aren't compatible with Firefox 1.5.)
Blogger extensions text file for Mass Installer
Web Developer extensions pack:
Web Developer
Adds a toolbar and menu with an incredible slew of useful web dev tools.IE Tab
Lets you load a page in Internet Explorer embedded in Firefox - very useful for testing pages across browsers.ColorZilla
Eyedropper tool extraordinaire ColorZilla lets you grab a color from any page and more.MeasureIt
Handy ruler tool that lets you easily size up you page.Greasemonkey
Though useful in several other contexts as well, Greasemonkey can be a great way to try out scripts when you're developing.
There are several excellent extensions available for the web developer, but I've included just a few essentials that I like to have in my web dev toolbox.
Web Developer extensions text file for Mass Installer
In the end, these packs should help cut down on the time it takes you to get started with a new Firefox installation without having to hunt down all the necessary extensions every time. Since I use most of these extensions, I'd probably install all four packs, then remove any excess extensions. It's a lot easier to remove a couple of unwanted extensions from a list than it is to get every extension one-by-one. If you'd rather do the same, here's an extension pack containing every extension listed above:
Let us know what you'd add or remove from the extension packs, as well as what other packs you might put together. Obviously these packs may be incomplete for many of you (I tried to avoid making the packs too bloated, keeping them as universal as possible), so they're probably missing out on a couple of extensions you rely on every day to operate.
If you want to add your own extension pack to the comments, please send your text file to tips at lifehacker.com. We'll host it, send you the link, and you can let us know what you chose and why in the comments. If you haven't got a comment invite, we'll send one your way.
Adam Pash is an associate editor of Lifehacker. His special feature Hack Attack appears every Tuesday on Lifehacker. Subscribe to the Hack Attack RSS feed to get new installments in your newsreader.
