OK, my Chrome extensions have been a complete mess. (As have my Safari and Firefox ones but that’s another story). The main issue is that with Safari, there is no central repository of extensions, so you have to configure them on each device.
And, with Chrome I have lots of user identities because Google Workspace has to have a separate identity for each offline Google Docs which is pretty annoying.
So, here is what I have to do:
- Figure out what extensions to like which I do base on lists like this
- Then go to Firefox, Vivaldi, and load that extension. At least for these, I use only a single identity so I do this just once.
- Then for each Chrome identity, log in and add the extension.
- Then for each machine and phone, log in and add the Safari extension.
As you can see adding just one extension can take a lot of time so I find it easier to just take the pain up front and when I find an extension that I like, I just fire up three browsers and my main laptop and phone and go for it.
Recommended extensions
There are lists and lists of these things, but in no particular order, here are ones I recommend. Note that Chrome has the most extensions and Firefox and Safari has a different set, so I’ll note those:
Productivity
1Password. Yes, you can have a browser view of this in addition to the desktop application
Dark Reader. This is a really smart dark mode for browsers. Note that this does not work super well with Google Docs, but you can turn off per site. Use NeoNoir instead on Safari
Plus for Trello. It’s old but this is a simple to-do list and works well for me with burndowns and Kanban cards. Not on Firefox, so I use Trello Super Powers. Not available for Safari, I use the Trello application even though it lacks points and things or just use Chrome
Scribe. I have not tried this much before, but if you are trying to note how to do things and it’s web-oriented, this is the way, it stores the instructions on their site but seems very convenient. No Firefox but there is a Mac version
Startpage. Resets the default search engine to a private one giving you google queries. Safari doesn’t have this but you can set it to DuckDuckgo.
Protection
Ghostery. I also use NordVPN Threat Protection as well and this seems to get rid of most ads on site. I’ve tried lots of others but this seems like it works the best.
HTTPS Everywhere. I don’t think this is needed anymore, but it makes sure that you are using secure web access.
Sponsorblock. Those annoying sponsorships with YouTube. There a paid application on Safari.
Documents and Design
Application Launcher for Drive. Kind of mandatory if you use Google Workspace. This does not work with Vivaldi as no Google-specific APIs are in Vivaldi (so you should use that unless you really need Google docs)
Google Docs Offline. Only for Chrome, it is the magic that allows offline edition.
Video DownloadHelper. If you need an internet video. This seems to work pretty well, looks at a page and let’s you pick. No Safari.
AI Research
OK, kind of a specialized category, but these are really useful when reading papers
12Ft. You know if you need it đ Does not exist for Safari On Firefox it is called @xpr/12ft
AI/ML Papers with Code. From CatalyzeX, if you find a paper, you can find the code for it. Does not exist for Safari or Firefox.
Crossminds Papers with Video. So you can find videos because papers are always so opaque. Not in Safari.
LibkeyNomad. If you have subscriptions, then this will automatically find it for you. This only works with a small number of universities, however.
Pocket. I’m still looking for the perfect way to save papers, so this may go away. Zotero has a new application
Zotero. An alternative way to save papers. Not available on Mac or Firefox.
Shopping
Fakespot. OK, Amazon hates this site, but I find it useful to figure out where the fake reviews are. It cleverly rewrites the Amazon and Best Buy pages with their own ratings.
Honey. They have a rating program and also tell you about price drops.
Progressive Shopper. So you know who you are shopping from.
Rakuten. I only use this because American Express has a point redemption with them.
Smile Always. You go to smile.amazon.com and then they donate some micro cents to the charity of your choice. AlwaySmile on Firefox. No Safari so you have to remember.
The Camelizer. Tracks prices for you on Amazon. Some overlap with Honey with historical prices so I may drop. No Safari
Social Marketing, Web Development, and Web3
BuzzSumo. If you want to see how much a page is shared and linked. No Safari or Firefox. I have not used it much and I’m sure there are mis
ColorZilla. So you can get those colors out and put them into your web page or Google document.
FontsNinja. If you ever want to know what that incredible font was on a website.
Checkbot. Look at the SEO, Speed, and Security of any website. No Safari or Firefox.
Metamask for storing all your valuable ETH and BTC đ
Postman. This is no longer a browser application, but just to note, it’s a full application that you can brew to install.
RiteTag. Dynamically tells you how hashtags are performing when posting to Twitter or Facebook
Similarweb. Now that Alexa ranking is gone this seems popular for traffic ranking. Overlaps with Buzzsumo so may pick one or the other. No Safari
Vimium. Now you can use vi keys like j and h in a browser. Vimari in Safari with many fewer features
Windows Compatibility
iCloud Bookmarks. OK, this is a niche thing, but on Windows, this synchronizes Chrome or Firefox Windows to Apple bookmarks. Safari of course.
iCloud Passwords. You can use iCloud Passwords in Chrome for Windows. No Firefox.
Safari Only
There are some extensions that are useful just on Mac Safari including:
PiPifier. This pops out of a video window
Turn Off the Lights. Dims the screen when playing a video.
