Firefox 3 introduced a lot of updates and new features making online browsing better and a more productive experience for the end user. The entire interface went through many changes and the bookmark management was overhauled too. Beside some major changes in the code, bookmarking was made easier with the introduction of 'star' button (for one-click bookmarking) and tags (for better management).
However, it also means that you can now easily end up with a huge list of unsorted bookmarks and trying to find something in that huge list could be an exasperating task. Keeping that in mind, today I've decided to list nine tips and tools which would certainly make organizing and managing your Firefox bookmarks easier for you.
Manage Tags And Folders Efficiently
I talked about this in my previous article on Google Reader. It might be a little different here but the fact of the matter remains the same - wherever you have both tags and folders, just don't mix them. A folder should be like a broad category for that bookmark, while the tag should be a much more specific term describing it. That's it ! Simple, easy, and of course, manageable.
Get The TagSifter Add On
Once you know how to manage the folders and tag, and how to manage the tagging part efficiently, the next step should be making the navigation of tags easier. The TagSifter add on will do just that for you. It makes browsing your bookmarks by their tags a breeze.
Integrate With Delicious
If you frequently toggle between online and offline bookmarking, and assuming that Delicious is your online bookmarking tool of choice, I think the delicious bookmarks add on will do a great job integrating your Firefox bookmarks with what you have in delicious. It further makes the task of saving a link to delicious and tagging it a one click affair.
Add A Keyword
Did you know that you could add a keyword to that special bookmark which you visit everyday? For example, you've got dumblittleman.com in your Firefox bookmarks and you love visiting it everyday. Now you could add the letter 'd' as the keyword to this bookmark and the next time you want to visit the site, just type 'd' in the address bar and hit enter. It'll open up the site for you. Sounds cool and time-saving, isn't it ? And it's easy to do. Just right click a bookmark then click on properties to add the keyword.
Use Keyboard Shortcuts
The term keyword reminded me of keyboard shortcuts which are always time saving, no matter what the task. So when it comes to bookmarking in Firefox, there are three main keyboard shortcuts to remember: bookmark a page by Ctrl+Shift+L, bookmark all tabs by Ctrl+Shift+D and open the bookmarks organizer by Ctrl+Shift+B.
Synchronize With Foxmarks
In their own words, "Foxmarks is a free add-on for your Firefox browser that syncs and backs up your bookmarks and passwords across multiple computers and more." If you use Firefox on multiple computers, this is a must have tool.
Quicker Access To Unsorted Bookmarks
No matter how well you manage your bookmarks, chances are that there'd be a good number of unsorted bookmarks in your list. The Firefox Facts blog writes an excellent hack which gives you quicker access to your unsorted bookmarks. It's an awesome tip.
Quick Copy And Paste
Here's another cool tip to quickly copy and paste all your firefox bookmarks or just a particular folder within your bookmarks. In fact, if you are using the TagSifter add on, you could use the same trick to copy and paste any bookmark in a particular tag. This trick comes in quite handy when you want to share your bookmarks with someone.
Don't Forget To Backup
Although the Foxmarks add on does create a backup of your bookmarks, if you are using a single computer it might not make sense to install it. Instead, refer to my previous post on important backup strategies for your PC where I explain in detail how you can backup your browser preferences which includes your bookmarks too.
I hope you liked the tips. What other methods you use to manage your Firefox bookmarks ? Let me know in the comments.
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Cheers,
Abhijeet
9 Power Tips To Utilize Your Firefox Bookmarks
