Best Firefox extensions

Tip 2: Additional extras

Whether you want to download Flash videos from YouTube, see today's weather forecast in the Firefox menubar or surf more safely, Firefox has various extensions that can help you out.

VideoDownloader
With one click on a small button in the bottom-right corner, you can download Flash videos from sites like YouTube and Google Video. Be sure to rename your file with a FLV extension to watch it. This extension also allows you to download other embedded media from Web pages.

FoxyTunes
If you spend a lot of time browsing the Web while listening to music, switching to your media player to pause for a phone call can be inconvenient. With FoxyTunes you get basic controls for playing, fast-forwarding and rewinding, right at the bottom of your browser.

Sage
Instead of searching for stories, do you want the news delivered to you? Sage turns Firefox into an RSS feed aggregator that makes getting the latest news easy. Using the left sidebar, Sage displays your available feeds, lists your feed history and then shows stories with summaries and images in the main window.

All-In-One Sidebar
Taking a page from the excellent browser Opera, this extension makes your bookmarks, extensions, themes, downloads and Web history all available from one handy sidebar. You even can view HTML source, a second Web page or a built-in newsreader like Sage.

ForecastFox
Are you a weather nut? Even if you're not, this add-on comes in handy, letting you see the weekly forecast in Firefox's menu bar. If the sunny, cloudy and rainy icons aren't enough, simply mouse over them for a more complete forecast.

Gmail Space
Google's email service Gmail upped the ante for Webmail with more than 2GB of storage for most users. Use your Gmail account to easily store files with this useful extension. An FTP-style interface lets you transfer local files directly to your Gmail account.

Grocery List Generator
More a standalone application that lives inside Firefox, this full-featured extension lets you add recipes and ingredients to a customisable database, then create shopping lists based on what's next for dinner. Save lists as Web pages, or print them out for your next shopping trip.

SiteAdvisor
With the threat of spam, spyware and pop-ups lurking around the Web these days, it's tough to know which sites have them and which don't. SiteAdvisor runs tests regularly so you can see which sites to avoid before you go to them. You can even get a full security analysis of particular sites with a click of your mouse.

FootieFox
As the perfect Firefox accessory for the football season, this extension updates scores in real-time to help you follow your favourite teams. You can track European professional leagues in 18 countries and counting.

All-in-One Gestures
Clicking buttons is overrated. This excellent hybrid of the old Mouse Gestures extension and a collection of tools for alternative navigation methods lets you perform almost every action in Firefox with a quick swipe.

FireFTP
For those of us who previously used a separate client to transfer files to and from FTP sites, this simple but brilliant extension is a godsend. In a way similar to Gmail Space, FireFTP transfers files directly from a new Firefox tab or window.

MR Tech Local Install
For Firefox users who want to delve into the nitty-gritty of managing extensions, this add-on hacks the default extension and theme tools in Firefox to give you much more control. It also adds the invaluable 'Restart Firefox' functionality.

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