Fireday - Firefox extensions for September 15, 2006

Friday, September 15, 2006 4:00 AM

Posted by Jonathan Danylko | Tag: Fireday | Comments: 0 | View blog reactions

This week: Platypus, ErrorZilla, and FareWatcher (FareCompare)

Platypus

Rating: 4/5

Platypus works in conjunction with Greasemonkey to let you edit web pages and then save your changes as a Greasemonkey script so the next time you visit the site, it will show the site as you designed it last time.

Platypus requires Greasemonkey 0.3.3 or higher to work, but that doesn't seem to be a problem with most extensions.

After working with the extension for a while, I've found an additional use for the Platypus. This extension may be used in editing an existing web page that a client likes, but wants certains visual components eliminated from the screen ("What do you like about the page?", "Which features do you want to remove?", "Could you move that component above the heading?")

One key feature in Platypus is the color-coded display for "view source." However, if you have Jennifer Madden's View Rendered Source, Platypus will easily detect the extension and use that instead of the view source that platypus supplies.

I haven't run into any problems with the extension and its a utility I use once in a while. If you are modifying existing web pages visually in front of a client or doodling to find the best layout with your current site, Platypus provides a top-notch layout extension for designers and developers alike.

 

ErrorZilla

Rating: 5/5

ErrorZilla is a unique way to replace the error page in Firefox when it can't connect to a web site.

Instead of viewing the old gray screen, ErrorZilla replaces it with a newer and fresher approach. Why not try to determine where the problem lies.

The page is displayed with a Firefox logo and 5 push buttons:

  • Try Again - we all know what this does.
  • Google Cache - It retrieves the page from Google's cache.
  • WayBack - Use the wayback machine and look at an older copy (Need some clarification on this)
  • Ping - Pings the current site to see if its down.
  • Trace - trace route utility to find out where its clogged.
  • Whois - Who owns the site domain and site details.

ErrorZilla shows a better way to handle errors with a little bit of style. Granted, you may not be able to get to your page, but there are utilities to help you determine what the problem is.

Simple and does what it should. Awesome extension.

Farewatcher

Rating: 3/5

The best way to describe FareWatcher is to compare it to Southwest airlines Ding! program which sits in your Windows system tray (bottom right) and alerts you when an airfare becomes available at a price you specify.

I really didn't need another program running in my system tray, which is why I really like this extension. I'm heading down to Orlando, Florida in February next year and I'm looking for some good prices on some flights.

However, one problem that came up was that the extension will only work with Firefox 1.0-1.5. It would not install with the latest Firefox version (1.5.0.6). If the extension is updated to Firefox 2.0, then FareWatcher can provide the best airfare prices to you at a moments notice from multiple airlines as opposed to just one ("Ding!").

One feature that make the extension stand out is the notification method. Its similar to ForecastFox Enhanced. It scrolls up when it wants to tell you something and slowly scrolls back down. Click on it and you get the latest airfares for what you were looking for. This feature is only available in Windows, though.

Overall, I think this is a great idea and extension, but it needs updated for complete compatibility and possibly for Firefox 2.0.

 

Everyone have a great weekend and Go Bucks! Any comments? Contact me directly.

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