I broke my laptop (again!) recently so I've spent the last couple of days trying to get my sh*t together.
Fortunately, Google has made this task a little more fun with the release of Google Chrome 9, an apparently faster version of the world's fastest web browser.
Despite occasional bugs and niggles, Chrome continues to grow in popularity, passing the 10% market share barrier for the first time last week.
It has also introduced the Chrome Web Store, where you can get your hands on web apps (video tutorial here).
So, here's a bunch of extensions and apps I've set up that you might find handy too.
50 useful Google Chrome Extensions and Web Apps
1. Stats Checker
Google Analytics fiends will love this! Once you've installed this extension, you can access your analytics with the click of one button in your toolbar...and better still, your daily visits are on display in a mini-box on the toolbar. Drool!
Tags: Analytics, traffic, stats
2. Alexa Traffic Rank
Alexa.com provides traffic rank and site information for almost any site in the world and this extension brings Alexa's data to Google search results and to your toolbar, telling you how popular a site is.
Tags: Analytics, traffic, stats
3. Diigo Web Highlighter
Diigo.com is one of the most robust bookmarking sites out there and this extension allows you to save pages at the click of one button located within your toolbar.
Tags: Bookmarking. productivity
4. Word and Character Count
Highlight the text you're interested in and click on the 'W' button in your toolbar. You'll then get your character and word counts. Handy.
Tags: Content, productivity
5. Explain and Send Screenshots
An easy way of selecting the part of a web page you're interested in and adding shapes / texts to illustrate your point.
Quick Markup is a similar tool that is worth considering too (although neither is perfect).
Tags: Utilities, tools
6. After the Deadline
This is a live spell checker that automatically activates when you create content online.
Tags: Content, utilities
7. Hover Zoom (see right)
This is pretty awesome. Let's say you are checking out someone else's Twitter profile and can't make out that person's face because the pic is so tiny. Hover Zoom will magnify the photo when you hover over it, giving you that person in all of their glory.
Tags: Images, utilities
8. Google Backwards Links
Back links are an important measure of a site's popularity and this extension gives you a list of all the links related to the page you're interested in.
Tags: Analytics, SEO
9. TwitterWatch
Need to do a quick Twitter keyword search from the page you're navigating? This is the extension for you then.
Tags: Twitter, utilities
10. Quora Notifications
Quora isn't big enough to be integrated into TweetDeck (yet...perhaps), but having quick access to it via your Chrome toolbar is pretty useful.
Tags: Platforms, networks
Other extensions worth checking out:
11 - 19
11. Google Dictionary, 12. StumbleUpon, 13. DropBox, 14. TweetBeat Firsthand, 15. Google Docs, 16. Postponer Adder, 17. EasyReader, 18. Chrome Scrapbook and 19. SearchPreview for Google.
20. Google images: Straight to full-size
This is probably my favourite of the lot. When you are searching on Google images and find an image you want / like, this automatically takes you to the full-size version of the image. See, very cool!
Tags: Images, productivity
Web apps:
Web apps are a new concept from Google, and look set to become a major focus over the next couple of years.
Some good ones include:
21. Quick Note - a virtual notebook.
22. Online charts - helpful in the production of infographics.
23. Anonymous Email - you never know when you might need to use this!
24. TechCrunch slides - a nifty way of consuming the latest news from Tech Crunch.
25. Simple ToDo - a basic online 'to do' list.
Disappointingly, many of the other extensions / apps in the web store are quite 'buggy' or are a little pointless.
But, considering Chrome is still in its infancy, there's enough to suggest some more good stuff will be on the way soon.
Also check out this recent SlideShare presentation on social media resourcing
Have you got any favourites?
Adam
COMMScorner.com is the blog from Adam Vincenzini which focuses on social media and PR. Connect with Adam on Twitter or subscribe to his blog.