You can find Web sites full of extensions and themes for Firefox to improve every aspect of its appearance and performance. Since the focus is usually on these add-ons, we think it’s time to spotlight some pretty nifty external Firefox tools to help you squeeze optimal performance from the ‘Fox.
Just like its name sounds, SpeedyFox optimizes Firefox for the best possible speed. It does this by cleaning up database fragmentation—the information Firefox stores in an sqlite database grows and fragments over time, slowing things down. Obviously you’ll see the biggest difference if you’re a long-time Firefox user, rather than on a new install (more junk built up for SpeedyFox to clear).
To run, simply close Firefox, then run SpeedyFox for the profile you want to speed up. Depending on how cluttered your database is and how much data SpeedyFox has to churn through, this could take a while.
Silence of the Foxes
This again aptly-named tool creates a silent Firefox installation package, which you configure with the original Firefox setup plus your own preferences and add-ons. It was originally created for an older version of Firefox, but works just fine on current ones.
After you download and start Silence of the Foxes, select the new project option and direct it to your downloaded Firefox Setup file. The program extracts the files, finds your profiles and then displays the files it will put into the silent installation package. The default settings include your preferences and bookmarks, but you can add your themes and extensions by downloading the .jar and .xpi files and selecting them to be included.
After Silence of the Foxes does its thing, the result is a file called sfirefox.exe, your brand-spanking-new customized silent installation package. We recommend poking through the readme file for advanced options.
You already know that Firefox remembers your logins and passwords, encrypts them, and stores them in its profile database. But what if, for example, you forget a login or password and need to enter it on a different computer? Just direct FirePasswordViewer to any Firefox profile and it will show you these details. No more stressing over that forgotten password!
However, FirePasswordViewer won’t work if you use a Master Password. Just in case anyone tries to use this tool to hack you, it would be a smart idea to set your own Firefox Master password by going to the Security tab under Tools > Options.
But don’t think you’re totally safe just by setting that Master password. What if you forget it? There’s got to be a way to recover a master password—and FireMaster is the answer. Remember, though, like any password recovery tool it has its limitations. The stronger the password the more time it will take FireMaster—through dictionary and brute force attacks—to recover it. Check out the FireMaster Web site for tips on using this tool.
Feel free to share your favorite external Firefox tool in the comments!
One Comment on "Beyond Add-ons: Cool Firefox Tools"
I have had difficulties opening this blogpost using my iphone browser, whats the reason?