Some might think my love for Firefox only goes back to 2006, when I started up Firefox Facts.  However, I had been using and loving Firefox even before that time and date.  Here are some of the best features or feelings Firefox brings to the web browsing table:

• The community of developers and users is great. When you use Firefox, and dive into the community aspect, you really feel like you are making a better browser for everybody to use.  Mozilla listens to user feedback more so than any other company I know of, and it shows.
• Firefox, hands down, has the best execution of special features out there too.  Even if they are not the first one out of the gate with a feature, once they get it – they will prove to you it was well worth the wait.
• You can theme, add on to, or hack your way around Firefox to make it best suit your needs.  Will Chrome or Internet Explorer provide you a toolset as powerful as about:config to tweak with the guts of the browser?  No.
• My last big argument for using Firefox is slowly starting to go away over time.  People love to cheer for the underdog. Day after day though, as Firefox picks up more steam and more users, the “underdog” label is slowly going away.

So there you have it.  Those are the big reasons I love the Firefox web browser.  What about you?  What you do you find most attractive or most off putting about Mozilla’s browser?

Ninite makes installing a plethora of new applications really simple. With Windows 7 coming out, or those who feeling the urge to clean out Vista or Windows XP, we are all looking at simpler ways to install a lot of great programs out there.  That is what Ninite is all about. 

All you have to do is visit their web site, click the check marks for the programs you want to bundle together, start the customized installer, and presto – you are done.  They only install the programs you want (no hidden toolbars or spyware).  Heck, they don’t even install their own program – they only install the programs you want and need. 

Ninite definitely offers a cool way to grab your own bundle of software solutions to install.  For more assistance on how to get up and running with your own customized install, check out these articles from Simple Help and the How-to Geek. (also big thanks to Todd for showing my this great free service!)

You might need to resize your browser window for a number of different reasons. 

Maybe you need to check to see what your web site looks like at a smaller resolution?  Maybe you want to take a quick screenshot?  Now, of course you can resize the browser by dragging the edges around till you get the perfect fit, but that is often tedious and if you are a perfectionist like myself, you have a hard time getting the browser back to the perfect shape and size it was before, until now.

How to Create the Resizing Bookmarklet

Thanks to a little JavaScript, and a very simple bookmarklet, you too can be saving multiple screen resolution sizes to change to at a moment’s notice, without the need of any extra Firefox extension. 

Right-click on the bookmark toolbar in Firefox, and select “New Bookmark…”

Here is how you will need to fill out the variables on the New Bookmark dialog box:

• Name: Could be anything, I would put Resize – 1024 x 768
• Location: Here, you want to put javascript:window.resizeTo(1024,768)
• Tags: Nothing, keep this blank
• Keyword: Type in r1 (when you type r1 into the Firefox address bar, your browser will be resized)
• Description: Nothing, keep this blank too

Now, hit the button labeled, “Add” and you are all done.  When you click that bookmark, your browser will be resized to 1024 pixels across 768 pixels up and down.  You can now repeat the steps above to create multiple bookmarks for other sizes you might want to keep handy when working on your web site’s design.  Just replace the 1024,768 in the Location text box on the New Bookmark dialog box with another size (for example, how about 800,600 ?).

Last thing for you to do would be to click the bookmarklet you created and make sure it works.

Example – Paying homage to the cooking show old TV cooking shows, I have created the same bookmarklet we created above right here.  Feel free to drag and drop this link (Resize – 1024 x 768) to your Firefox bookmarks bar.  Only thing that won’t work with this one is the keyword we used above.

Hope that helps as a very basic introduction to JavaScript and in quickly creating a bookmark to give Firefox a little more quick resize-ability. 

Better PDF Editing Abilities

Need an easy way to edit PDF files without the expensive PDF editor?  In the past, I have told you about creating PDFs via Open Office.   However, what if you could convert those PDFs to Word doc files to edit instead?  Pickup the Free PDF to Word Converter for Windows to get the job done.

Better PDF Browser Support

How about better PDF support for the browser?  PDF files are notorious for crashing your modern web browser.  So with that said, what tool can you use to make the experience better?  A browser add-on named PDF Download.  It’s features include:

• Convert Web pages to PDF. (NEW) Convert any Web pages to great looking PDF files, and then save, share, print or archive them.
• View PDF as HTML. View the contents of PDF files faster and eliminate browser problems by instantly converting any Web-based PDF to a browser-friendly HTML Web page.
• Control PDF files in Firefox. Stop crashes and get the upper hand on Web-based PDF files by automating and controlling how your Firefox or Flock browsers deal with them.

PDF Download works with Firefox 2 & 3, Flock 1, and Internet Explorer 7 & 8 (beta) web browsers.

Better Printing Abilities to the PDF Format

Now this one isn’t really PDF’s problem, however I do have a solution.  If you are wanting to cut down on the paper you use, printing to the PDF format can save you some cash in the long run as well as conserve that printing paper.  All you need to do is grab PrimoPDF for Windows.  It will add the ability for you choose “Print as PDF” from any print screen.  All you have to do is select it as the printer of your choice.

So what other things bug you about PDF files, or have you found any other solutions to your PDF powered problems?  It might not be the best standard in the world, however it can come in handy from time to time.

Well, that was the case till I figured I would give it a shot.  Drag and drop think link on to your bookmarks toolbar:

Add to MySpace!

To cover all my bases, here is what you do – depending on the browser you use:

Firefox – Drag and drop the above link to your bookmarks toolbar or right-click the link and select "bookmark this link".

Internet Explorer – Right click on the link above, and select "add to favorites".

Safari – Drag and drop the link to your bookmarks toolbar.

I hope this helps out anybody else looking to quickly share interesting articles and sites with your friends and stalkers on MySpace.  If anybody wishes to be my bud – you can find my MySpace profile and add me there!

So now I am looking at some of the competition and I have to say only one has impressed me thus far.

Netvibes is becoming king of the start pages, if you like customization, speed and cool tools to use. Now I don’t need a lot to get going – but it is nice to see they have tons of tools to add.

What does Netvibes Have that iGoogle Does Not?

• More Customization Options for the Web Page
• Quicker Loading Times Overall

Only reason I can see for using iGoogle is to use their specialty gadgets for Gmail and Google Reader. So am I making the right choice? Is there one that even blows Netvibes out of the water?

Meet the Best Firefox RSS Reader Extensions Out There Today!

Beatnik

This first choice on our list is a very simple and easy one to use. It might not have all the bells and whistles you have come to know and love – but it does get the job done.

Wizz RSS News Reader

As far as features go – Wizz gives you a step up from Beatnik. With features such as domain search, watching lists, and optional server storage of feeds for easy access from any PC.

NewsFox

Not to be confused with Fox News, NewsFox gives you your news in a familiar format. It is very similar to usual three pane e-mail clients. You have the feeds on the left, the posts on the top and the preview on bottom.

Sage

Sage is one of the oldest of the Firefox RSS reader extensions. Still useful and reliable – many of the others have followed it in features and style. The newspaper feed rendering is also customizable via style sheets.

Want to Expand Your Live Bookmarks?

Feed Sidebar

Now for something a little different, the Feed Sidebar extension for Firefox gives the already grand Firefox Live Bookmarks feature a little ‘bit of a makeover. It displays the new items from your Live Bookmarks in the sidebar. Another that gives a little more function to Live Bookmarks is LiveClick.

RSS Ticker

While we are looking at extensions for Firefox that expand the functionality of the Live Bookmarks you can’t forget about the RSS Ticker. RSS Ticker loads your Live Bookmarks and scrolls their entries across your screen while you surf. You can also place it on the top or bottom of the Firefox browser so you can make sure your always informed about the latest goings on.

Reader Choices Out There for Everybody!

As you can see there is a tool for just about every kind of RSS feed reader. If you like to do a little light browsing, there are ones that are a little lighter on the features. For the hardcore RSS loving folks – you too have a few good picks on this list. Is there one I missed? Which one is your favorite?

+ See More of the Review at Read/Write Web!

Well first things first, it didn’t stay running long. After going to about two or three Web sites, it just died on me. That isn’t so cool. The inteface needs some work, but I am sure a polished look will come in time. One more thing that really gets me is there is no right-click menu! This might be some sort of Apple thing, but if you are going to have a program on Windows, I need my right-click menu.

Overall, I think in the future it might be great – but this release shouldn’t be people’s first impressions of it. They should have held off a little while longer till they got it at least fully usable. Download it for yourself, and let me know what you think!