Favorite Firefox Extensions

What this is: A list of Mozilla Firefox plugin / Addon "Extensions" (specifically, what Firefox calls extensions) that we use, find useful, or once found useful.

What this is not: This isn't a comprehensive list of extensions. Extensions to avoid are not listed here. Other types of Addons such as plugins and themes are not listed here.

Favorite Extensions

Flashblock

Never be annoyed by a Flash animation again! Blocks Flash so it won't get in your way, but if you want to see it, just click ...

Due to the security vulnerabilities constantly being discovered in Adobe Flash Player, it is best to have Flash disabled by default with the user having the option to execute a Flash plugin as needed. Adobe Flash is notoriously insecure, with next to no configuration options, and annoying. Take back control of your browser by controlling what Flash programs execute when you visit a web site.

• Usefulness: MUST HAVE (for security)
• Category: Security
• Side Effects: unknown
• Conflicts: If running QuickJava be sure to enable Flash via the F button on the bottom right of the browser.
• Similar Extensions: Stop Autoplay
• Read: Adobe GetPlus DLM Vulnerability before you install Adobe Flash Player - has instructions for installing Adobe Flash Player without Adobe DLM.

Flash Game Maximizer

Click a button or hit the hot-key to maximize (almost) any Flash content to the entire browser window. You can then enjoy your favorite games in any size you like, simply by resizing the browser window. Now with less bugs and more features...

Particularly useful when watching streamed television events from sites that do not allow flash to full screen, or sites that present the flash window with annoying advertisement overlays.

• Category: User Control
• Side Effects: unknown

Java Console

Java Console Extension.

The Java Console extension is not supposed to impact the functionality of Java in Firefox. It just lets you monitor and debug running applets. Unless you're developing a Java applet, you probably have little use for it.

• Category: Developer
• Side Effects: The Java Console extension is no longer supported as of JRE 1.6.0.10, this update cleans and removes the Java Console from Firefox 3.6.

NoSquint

NoSquint improves your browsing experience by giving you the tools you need to combat small fonts and unreadable colors on the web.

• Category: Aesthetics / Accessibility
• Firefox Configure: about:nosquint
• Side Effects: unknown

QuickJava

Allows quick enable and disable of Java, Javascript, Flash, Silverlight and Images from the Statusbar and/or Toolbar without having to open any dialogs!

• Usefulness: SHOULD HAVE (for security)
• Category: Security
• Side Effects: unknown
• Conflicts: If running Flashblock keep in mind Flash must be enabled via this extension's control also. There is no technical conflict with that extension.

RightToClick

Stops javascript annoyances such as forbidden right click, forbidden text selection or cascading dialog boxes.

Particularly useful for web sites where the webmaster thinks a javascript will prevent you from using the right click - save image as, to copy images from the web site.

• Category: User Control
• Side Effects: unknown

Screengrab

It will capture what you can see in the window, the entire page, just a selection, a particular frame... basically it saves webpages as images - either to a file, or to the clipboard. It captures Flash too!

• Category: Functionality
• Side Effects: unknown

Secure Login

Secure Login is a login extension for Mozilla Firefox integrated password manager. Its main feature is similar to Opera's (the browser) Wand login.

Opera's Wand handles saved passwords in a more logical and useful fashion than Firefox. This plugin gives Firefox that Opera behavior when it comes to saving your passwords. NEVER save passwords for online banking, credit card, or other financial web sites. This saves your passwords in a file on your harddrive, and even if encrypted, is still a risk to your security. As for other web sites, such as online forums and web based email, this extension makes logging in more convenient.

• Category: Convenience
• Side Effects: possible security considerations in regards to saved passwords

Toolbar Buttons

This extension adds buttons to the Customize Toolbar Window. To move them from there to the Toolbar you must right click the toolbar and press customize, select what buttons you want to use and drag them to the toolbar.

• Category: Aesthetics / Accessibility
• Side Effects: unknown

 

Take Back Control!

The concept behind hyper text and the world wide web was to empower people, giving them access to information linked in ways and available in levels never before imagined. In the late 1990's the tide started to shift alarmingly towards limiting information, restricting access to culture and media, and replacing useful information with useless commercial advertising. Those working against the open nature of the Internet wish to restrict your ability to control what you can and can't see while browsing online. Then, taking it further, forcing you to see content that is undesired, or forcing their way into your computers and your lives. Thanks to the Mozilla Firefox plugins and extensions development community, users now have some useful tools to take back control over their web browsing experience.

The Adobe Flash Player Plugin is one of the most dominating and insecure control-ware apps that's infiltrated web development and web browsing since the popularization of the modern world wide web. It is a sad reality that so many developers have adopted its use that it has become a necessary evil for the web user. Even some online banking web sites now require Flash. It defies commonsense. Flash allows foreign code to be executed on your computer, without your permission. Flash is the security hole which can allow a virus to infect your system or a backdoor's installation allowing a stranger full access to your private computer data. But we must have Flash installed, as the end user, in order to utilize the modern web, so we need to take all reasonable precautions to reduce the threat posed by the obnoxious browser plugin.

Some of the extensions mentioned here allow you to control when the Adobe Flash Player is allowed to run. However, even updating Flash has become a security nightmare. Adobe now forces spyware onto your system during a simple Flash upgrade, known as the Adobe GetPlus DLM Vulnerability. The Mozilla Firefox web site doesn't help matters by constantly prompting you to update Flash after a browser update, which leads to the installation of Adobe's latest piece of spyware known as GetPlus.