Three Google Chrome extensions to get you started

I’ve recently started using the Google Chrome web browser and have made it the default over Firefox on several of my machines. Though Firefox has thousands of addons, or extensions, I only really use about half a dozen. That means when I move to a different browser I might be missing some functionality, but not a lot.

Here are the first three Google Chrome extensions I’ve started using, the first two of which are direct replacements for their Firefox counterparts.

• The Diigo bookmark extension. Diigo is a “Web Highlighter and Sticky Notes, Online Bookmarking and Annotation, Personal Learning Network.” I use it to produce the Daily Links that are published on this blog. I’ve run hot and cold on Diigo over the last few years, but I’m back to using it as the best thing around to save and share things that I’ve read on the web.
• XMarks Bookmark Synch tool. XMarks can save both bookmarks and passwords across multiple machines and multiple browsers, though I only use it for bookmarks. When I fire up a new machine and install a new Linux image, I know I can have all my bookmarks ready to go in a few minutes. Google Chrome also has synchronization capability, but it is limited to that browser, though on multiple operating systems. XMarks works in Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Internet Explorer.
• TooManyTabs. As you open more and more tabbed windows, the tabs get narrower and narrower, so much so that you can’t read the labels. By clicking the TooManyTabs but, a new window opens up that clearly shows all your windows and what’s in them. Thanks to Kelvin Lawrence for his recommendation of this extension.