Whether you want to speed access to the Web sites you regularly visit, keep better tabs on your tabs, or protect your system from potentially dangerous active content, there’s a Firefox extension ready to help you out. Jack Wallen shares his list of favorite time-saving, browser-enhancing add-ons.

One of the nicest aspects of Firefox is the ability to add extensions. And there are plenty to choose from. Some do little more than alter the aesthetics. But you’ll find others out there that you can’t browse without. No matter what your purpose in browsing, there is a killer-app extension just waiting for you. Let’s take a look at my top 10 extensions.

Note: This information is also available as a PDF download.

#1: Morning Coffee

This extension allows you to set a group of Web sites that will open (each in its own tab) with the click of a button. This will save you from having to roam through your bookmarks (while drinking that first cup of wake-me-up in the morning) to view your favorite sites. And you don’t have to limit yourself to personal browsing, either. I also use this extension to open up all the Web-based admin tools for sites I administer. You can even set sites up to open only on certain days (or every day). So news junkies or overworked administrators rejoice: This extension will make your browsing life a little easier.

#2: NoScript

This is one of the best tools for making sure your browsing experience is secure. With NoScript, you can disable active content from any site you don’t trust. Unless you configure it to allow JaveaScript, Java, and other executable scripting to run from a site, NoScript will completely block the script, keeping you browser safe from known and unknown exploits. And don’t think because you are using FireFox in Linux that you’re perfectly safe! Use this extension regardless of platform.

#3: ColorfulTabs

If you’re like me, you generally have a LOT of tabs open in Firefox. Sometimes this isn’t a problem. But there are times when the tabs can get a bit overwhelming and need a bit of organization. To help with this, ColorfulTabs gives each open tab a different color, making it easier to distinguish between them. With this simple extension, generic cialis forum you can color-code tabs either randomly or according to URL. You can also set tabs to fade. Another fun feature is that you can set a background image for tabs.

#4: BBCode

This helpful extension adds BBCode, HTML, and XHTML symbols and formatting to the context menu. BBCode also allows you to add up to 10 custom tags to your menu. This extension shows itself when you’re in a forum and you right-click a text area where you can select the tag you want to add from the menu. This extension will make your forum work quite a bit easier, as well as faster.

#5: Buggybar

This extension is invaluable to Bugzilla power users. With this extension, you will have a Bugzilla Chrome sidebar available which will readily show all bugs that relate to a bug list you have created. As of version 0.2, Buggybar works with all instances of Bugzilla.

#6: Clear Cache Button

I don’t know about you, but I always set up my browsers to clear their cache at exit. But what about those times you want to clear the cache but not exit the browser? Instead of navigating through the menu structure, you can add this simple extension. It provides a button that gives you complete cache clearing with a single click.

#7: TimeTracker

Okay, this is not really a tool that will aid or better your browsing experience. In fact, this little extension will remind you how much time you spend browsing. I have found this little gem useful in a number of circumstances. Whether you are in need of a quick five-minute break from number crunching or you just need to know how much time you spend on a specific Web site, TimeTracker will keep track of how long you browse. What is nice about this is that the tool times across sessions. So when you close the browser, the timer stops, and when you open the browser back up, the timer starts again. You can reset the timer by right-clicking the status bar timer and selecting Reset.

#8: iMacros

This extension automates pretty much anything you do in Firefox. From opening up sites to filling out forms and even administration work — you can automate it with iMacros. The iMacros extension has a sidebar that shows favorite macros. It also has a record feature that allows you to create macros by simply clicking Record, going through the motions of the macro to be created, and clicking Save. These macros can be as complex as you need them to be. When you want to run them, you simply navigate to the macro in the iMacros sidebar and click the Play button. The only downfall I have found with this tool is that you can’t assign key combinations to run macros. Other than that, this extension is a must-have for power browsers.

#9: Fasterfox

This extension does one thing: It makes Firefox load pages faster. Speed of page loading can be increased by allowing simultaneous connections and prefetching. This extension is currently in the experimental stage because of the release of Firefox 3. To install it, you have to log into a Firefox account to download. The extension is worth the hassle. The speed increase is noticeable.

#10: BlogRovR

We all read blogs. From my TechRepublic Linux and Open Source blog to the countless other blogs available, we all read them daily. And this takes time. Instead of wasting time going to the blogs, let this handy extension fetch them for you. You do have to sign up for an account using this extension (they promise they won’t spam you.) and you will be asked to install another sidebar (Stickies), which is not necessary. Once you have this installed, you just enter the blog URL, and BlogRovR will begin fetching the information for you. Warning: If you have NoScript installed, you have to allow the BlogRovR page to run scripts or it won’t be able to fetch pages for you.

Borders aren’t just for tables and text — they can add polish and prominence to the pictures in your documents as well. Here’s a look at this simple design trick.

Using Word’s Borders And Shading Dialog box, you can quickly add a border and/or shading to any image in your document. For example, say you want to add a border to the clip art shown in Figure A.

Figure A

Follow these steps:

Figure B

1. Select 4-1/2 pt from the Width drop-down list and click OK.

The specified border and shadow will appear around the clip art as shown in Figure C.

Figure C

To insert a special character, you probably choose Symbol from the Insert menu to launch the Symbol dialog box. In the scheme of things, access to these special characters is well organized and quick. However, you may want even quicker access, if you find yourself launching the Symbol dialog a lot. In any Office application, you can launch the Symbol dialog box from a toolbar by adding the Symbol command to generic cialis buy a toolbar as follows:

The next time you want to insert a symbol, just click the Omega button instead of using the Insert menu. Admittedly, you’re only saving a click, but that’s not really the point. If you frequently insert symbols, you’ll find the easy access beneficial.

If you insert the same symbol a lot, assign a shortcut key to insert it:

1. From Insert, choose Symbol.
2. In the Symbol dialog box, select the symbol and then click the Shortcut Key button.
3. Enter the keys you want to assign as this symbol’s shortcut. For instance, you might use [Alt]+C to insert a checkmark symbol.

1. Click Assign, click Close, and then click Cancel (or Insert).

To insert the symbol, simply press the shortcut you assigned. In this case, you’d press [Alt]+C to insert the selected checkmark symbol.

You can set up your slide shows to include a little preview presentation that will help prime your audience for the main event. Susan Harkins shows this simple but highly effective technique.

Displaying an introductory or welcome slide while your audience arrives for a presentation is common. You might display general information or a friendly hello. Usually, you display just one slide and the presentation doesn’t progress until you begin the presentation manually. This setup is okay, but to generate a bit more interest, you might want to display more than one introductory slide — call it a mini presentation if you like. That way, you’ll have the attention and interest of your audience before you even begin.

Note: This information is also available as a PDF download, along with a sample presentation that demonstrates the technique.

Two presentations in one

While the audience enters the room and finds a seat, they may chat with one another, help themselves to refreshments, or sit quietly and wait for the show. Regardless, most will be thinking about other things, and not your presentation. The one-slide introduction that says welcome and displays pretty flowers is quaint, but it won’t grab anyone’s attention as they enter the room, and it certainly won’t keep anyone’s interest while they wait.

You can get their attention from the moment they walk through the door with an introductory presentation that introduces you and/or your presentation’s purpose. Now, you might think that you need two separate presentations, but you don’t. You can save the introductory presentation as a part of the main presentation. The key is to hide the slides in the main presentation. That way, your audience sees only the introductory slides. Later, when you’re ready to begin the presentation, you click a button that links to the first slide in the main presentation. Even though you hid the slide, PowerPoint will still display it, and then continue to display the remaining hidden slides in the main presentation.

Setting it up

It doesn’t matter where you place the introductory slides within the main presentation. At the beginning makes sense, but it isn’t necessary. Use as many introductory slides as needed, but keep it to a minimum. Two to five slides is usually adequate. The point is to present material that will interest the audience and enhance your program. (The example presentation is simple on purpose so as not to distract from the technique.)

Add the introductory slides to your presentation file and then save it. In Slide Sorter view, complete the following steps to distinguish between the two sets of slides:

Figure A

PowerPoint generic cialis buy online will automatically advance slides during the introduction.

1. Deselect the On Mouse Click option.
2. Choose Set Up Show from the Slide Show menu. In PowerPoint 2007, click the Slide Show tab and click Set Up Slide Show.
3. Select the Loop Continuously Until Esc option (Figure B). Make sure the Using Timings, If Present option is also selected, then click OK.

Figure B

Tell PowerPoint to loop continuously.

Now you’re ready to add the button that links the introductory presentation to the main presentation. You’ll click this button to stop the introductory message and begin the main show. To add a linking button to the introductory presentation, do the following:

1. With the last slide in the introductory presentation current in Normal view, choose AutoShapes from the Drawing toolbar. Then, choose Action Buttons. In PowerPoint 2007, you’ll find the Shapes group on the Insert tab.
2. Choose Action Button from the Shapes drop-down list.
3. Add an AutoShape to the slide.
4. With the button selected, choose Action Settings from the Slide Show menu. In PowerPoint 2007, choose Action on the Insert tab.
5. In the Action Settings dialog box, display the Hyperlink To option’s drop-down list and select Slide. (Thumb down to find the right option and do not accidentally choose Next Slide; doing so will take you to the next slide in the mini presentation.)
6. In the Hyperlink To Slide dialog box, select the first slide in the main presentation, as shown in Figure C.

Figure C

Select the first slide in the main presentation.

1. Click OK twice.

Most likely, you’ll want to make the linking button invisible, although doing so isn’t necessary. It’s up to you. To make the button invisible, do the following:

1. Double-click the button. In PowerPoint 2007, click the Format tab and then click the dialog box button in the Shape Styles group.
2. In the Format AutoShape dialog box, drag the Transparency Slider on the Color and Lines tab to 100% (Figure D). In PowerPoint 2007, use the Color pane.

Figure D

By changing the button’s Transparency property, you render it invisible.

If you want the flexibility of starting the main presentation from any slide in the introductory presentation, copy the button to the Clipboard and then paste it onto each slide in the intro presentation. The button will retain the same hyperlink and formats. Just be sure to paste the button to the same general area of each slide so you can remember where it is (if it’s invisible).

The presentation still isn’t ready for the split slideshow. To get the desired effect, you must hide the slides in the main presentation. Just select all the slides in the main presentation in Slide Sorter view and choose Hide Slide from the Slide Show menu. In PowerPoint 2007, click Hide Slide on the Slide Show tab.

Running the presentation

Run the presentation as you would any other. Press [F5] and PowerPoint will display the first slide in the introductory presentation, and then the next. When PowerPoint reaches the last slide in the introductory presentation, it will encounter the first hidden slide in the main presentation. It will then display the first slide in the introductory presentation again.

When you’re ready to begin the main presentation, click the Action button and PowerPoint will immediately display the first slide in the main presentation. At the end of the main presentation, PowerPoint will display the first slide in the introductory presentation. You’ll probably want to add a final slide that let’s you know you’re at the end. That way, you won’t inadvertently click that last slide and start the intro all over again.

Show’s on!

You can keep your audience mildly entertained or grab their interest early on with a short introductory presentation. Just let the slides automatically loop until you’re ready to begin the main presentation.

Here are the basics steps involved in setting up an invoice using a Word template — along with a sample template you can download and customize.

When it comes to performing calculations in a Word document, we tend to think of embedding or linking an Excel worksheet — but this can be overkill. Sometimes, a better approach is simply to insert a table in a document and perform the calculations in it. Word tables have a number of applications: staffing rotas, timetables, pricing charts, quotations, and the one I use most, invoices.

It’s easy to create an invoice that includes your business details, contact information, and logo, along with a table that itemizes the costs, parts, and labor; automatically calculates the totals and taxes; and presents a total amount payable. You can even include Fill-in fields to automatically prompt for customer information. Once you set up this invoice framework, save the blank form as a template, and you’re in business.

To generate an invoice, you just create a new document using the template, fill in the customer information, and enter the invoice amounts in the table. You can then update the fields that calculate tax and totals and print the invoice. To help you get started, I’ve created a sample invoice template that you can customize to fit your needs. Let’s look first at some template-building basics; then, I’ll explain how to modify and use my sample template.

Laying out the heading

The first step in building an invoice template is to design the heading you want to use for it. Once you’ve created a heading, save it so you can use it for other marketing material, such as flyers, price lists, and announcements.

AutoText tip

One convenient way to preserve an element such as a heading is to save it as AutoText. Just select the items that make up your heading and press [Alt][F3]. When Word presents the Create AutoText dialog box, enter a name and click OK. Then, whenever you need to insert the heading in a document, just position the insertion point marker where you want the heading to appear and type the AutoText name. By default, Word will offer to auto-complete the name, and you can press [Enter] to insert the heading. If this feature is turned off, just type the AutoText name and press [F3].

Creating the body of the document

Think about the wording you’re going to use in your invoice. Be careful not to fall into grammatical errors that can make you and your business look unprofessional. In my template, I used an automatic Date field so that each invoice I create from the template will be correctly dated.

Planning and inserting the table

When you’re ready to add the table to your template, display the Tables And Borders toolbar. As with the other toolbars available in Word, you can switch on this one from View | Toolbars. Most of the table options can be reached from this toolbar.

Decide how many rows and columns you need in your table. You can always insert extra rows, but it is nice to start out with something you don’t need to alter too much. Once you have planned the layout, click on the Insert generic cialis 10mg Table button. You will see a dialog box where you can select the number of columns and rows in your new table.

Entering the calculations

Look at the Tables And Borders toolbar. There’s a funny symbol at the bottom-right. This is the AutoSum button. By clicking in an empty cell below a column that will contain values, you can use this button to perform simple addition. When you click AutoSum, Word will insert the function { =SUM(ABOVE) }.

Should you wish to add a calculation for sales tax or VAT (UK), insert a formula field. First, click in the next cell down and choose Field from the Insert menu. Then, click the Formula button and enter a multiplication expression. For instance, to apply a 4 percent sales tax, enter the formula =B6*1.04 , as shown in Figure A.

Figure A

The formula multiplies the total, which, in this example, is in cell B6, by 1.04. You can alter this formula for use in your locality by changing the figure after the * symbol. For example, to apply the UK rate of sales tax (VAT, or Value Added Tax) of 15 percent, your formula would be =B6*1.15.

The cells in a Word table work in the same way as those of an Excel worksheet. The drawback is that the table does not display column and row labels. Remember that the columns are represented by letters, from left to right: A,B,C, etc. The rows are numbered from the top down. Figure B shows a table with those labels superimposed, to help you visualize this layout.

Figure B

Saving the template

When you save your invoice document, remember to save it as a Word template, with a .dot file extension. (Go to File | Save As and choose Document Template (*.dot) from the Save As Type drop-down list.) This will make it available from the File | New command.

Modifying the sample template

To put my sample invoice template to work, first open it and replace the heading and company information with your own. (To open the template for editing instead of creating a new document, you’ll need to right-click on it and choose Open.)

You might find it useful to work with field codes displayed so that you don’t accidentally delete any fields. You can toggle the display on and off for the entire document by pressing [Alt][F9]. Figure C shows the sample template with field codes displayed. Notice the Fill-in fields that prompt for an invoice number and customer information. Nice to have, but not essential when you create your own template.

Figure C

You may need to alter the calculation to reflect your own rate of tax, as discussed earlier. You may also want to modify the Fill-in field prompts to ask for different customer data. For instance, you might prompt for town, county, and post code rather than city, state, and zip code. With field codes displayed, simply edit the text that appears in quote marks within the Fill-in fields.

After you’ve modified the template, save it in the desired folder. If you want it to be listed with other templates when you create a new document, be sure to place it in your default location for templates.

Putting the sample template to work

When you want to raise an invoice for your personal services, open a new document using this template, fill in the customer information at the prompts, and enter the appropriate invoice charges. Select the table and press [F9] to update your calculations. Then, save and print the document and send it to your client. You can also copy the data into reminder letters, should your client fail to settle an account promptly.