There are now thousands of apps and extensions for Google Chrome. I've selected ten of the most interesting and useful to get you started. As you'll see, browser customization is no longer a Firefox-only affair, and Chrome makes installing apps and extensions incredibly easy, so try them out!

Evernote Web Clipper

Much easier than searching your history, and much more flexible, Evernote is an excellent way of keeping pages, links and articles you like. Evernote is like a well-organized web scrapbook, and can quickly become something you rely on. Download here.

M86 Security Secure Browsing

Have you or any of your friends ever been caught out by clicking a scam link on Facebook or elsewhere? This extension checks links on a page and tells you what is genuine and safe. Download here.

Awesome Screenshot

There are many reasons you might want to take a screenshot of a webpage, and Awesome Screenshot makes it really easy. It also features an annotate and edit function, so you can highlight or point to the important areas of the page. Download here.

The unveiling and response to Microsoft's Windows 8 was impressive.  Displaying a radically different and user friendly interface, Windows 8 contains two versions of the upcoming Internet Explorer 10.

The focus on a unified visual experience that parallels on both computers and tablets, Windows 8 takes its cues from Windows Phone 7.

The big news is that the two versions of Internet Explorer 10 (IE10) contain the same core functionality, but IE10 Metro contains one large difference - a lack of browser plug-ins in favor of HTML5. Not to say that IE10 has done away with Adobe Flash and other plug-ins, as the legacy version of IE10 will continue to support browser plug-ins.

In IE10 Metro, the browser is built with HTML5 in mind. IE10 Metro is directed towards both mobile devices increasing functionality with lower power consumption - a known issue with Flash and a whole new browsing experience in Windows 8. It should also be noticed that Microsoft's own Silverlight would not be supported in IE10 Metro.

The reasoning behind the lack of support in the browser was said to be for extending battery life for mobile devices and improving security for systems overall.

Metro IE10 is a different way to experience internet browsing and could be the first big step for Microsoft in moving past their stagnant user interface inside old Windows OS to Windows 8.

I switched to Chrome only a few weeks ago. I didn't consider switching before because Firefox was working fine for me, and I wasn't suffering from any of the speed, stability of memory issues everyone around me was complaining about. But when Firefox 4 launched everything changed, and that was the turning point for me. I downloaded Chrome and I'm not going back. Here's my simple guide to switching without a hitch:

Switching to a new browser makes you anxious. Will it be easy to use? Will I be able to adapt? What about extensions? You spend the very first hours exploring menus and options, learning the new location of options and settings, testing if your old keyboard shortcuts are still working. Luckily, moving from Firefox to Chrome is not that difficult - there are just a few things you need to take into account.

Firefox is a really flexible and customizable browser, but over the course of a day it can really start to eat up memory, and slow your PC down. Unfortunately there is no silver bullet for this problem, but here are four ways you can help keep Firefox's memory use in check:

Memory Restart: This little add-on simply lets you set a maximum memory threshold, and allows you to choose either to be warned when it is reached, or to automatically restart Firefox. Memory Restart is a simple solution, and a good way to keep down the memory usage that creeps up over your day.

Memory Fox: This add-on monitors Firefox's memory usage, and when activated it will cut it. This management of Firefox memory use seems to work in the short term, although we found that over time it would creep back up again. Like Memory Restart, it's not perfect, but does help.

Check your Add-Ons: Mozilla has a page that names and shames the add-ons that are the biggest memory hogs. Niamh wrote about it a while back, and suggested some alternatives to the worst offenders. Check out her post here. Disabling add-ons is a common suggested solution to keeping memory usage down, but as many people point out on Firefox support forums, Firefox without add-ons just isn't the same.

Take a deep breath: And change your browser. Both Chrome and Opera are improving their range of extensions. While they aren't as customizable as Firefox, they are more efficient and will lighten the load on your processor. The Firefox memory problem has certainly been noticed, so lets hope something is done about it by Firefox 6, due in September.

If you don't like targeted adverts, or the idea that some websites will use your browsing habits for marketing profiles, it is possible to stop them. Here are the best add-ons for Firefox that make sure websites can't track your internet activities:

TACO

TACO (Targeted Advertising Cookie Opt-Out) prevents over 100 different online advertising networks - including Google, Yahoo and Microsoft - from displaying highly targeted advertisements using the detailed information on your web surfing habits. TACO works by placing 'opt-out' cookies into Firefox which prevent the services from targeting you with ads. Although its a pretty drastic tool - TACO will clear-out all of your existing cookies except the 100 it places in Firefox meaning you'll lose a lot of your stored passwords, filled-in-forms etc - its very effective at stopping you becoming a victim of targeted advertising.

BetterPrivacy

BetterPrivacy is a Firefox add-on that deletes a relatively new type of tracking cookie known as local shared objects (LSOs). This type of cookie, known as 'super cookies' are particularly harmful because they store a huge amount of information and, crucially, can't be deleted like a normal cookie. BetterPrivacy finds the folder on your hard disk where the LSOs are stored and when you finish a session, deletes any it finds there. Again, it deleted everything in your LSO folder - including saved passwords etc that you'd rather keep - but you can preserve certain LSOs on a safelist.

It's clear from the response to this post that many people are still having problems using the Video DownloadHelper extension in Firefox on Macs. Since a slightly simpler solution has emerged since it was written, here is a crystal-clear guide that may make it easier for some users.

1. Download ffmpegX into a folder on your Mac:

2. Double click on the DMG file. Right click on the ffmpegX icon and select "Show Package Contents":

Last week I explained why I'm sticking with Firefox which has generated quite a bit of debate about whether it really is the best browser out there. However, I was very close to ditching Firefox altogether after a frustrating problem which seemed to appear after I first used Tor. Specifically, the problem seemed related to the Torbutton for Firefox which had effectively "broken" Firefox on my Mac.

The reason is because the Tor Button changes Firefox's proxy preferences when you toggle it on and off. Although most of the time it works quite smoothly, over time it can get "stuck" and permanently change your Firefox proxy settings even when you toggle off Torbutton. The result is that Firefox behaves very erratically sometimes taking ages to load pictures and pages and eventually, may refuse to load pages at all by returning a "Privoxy" error page as happened to me.

When Opera 11 was released last month, the browser added support for extensions for the first time. At the time of launch there were only around 200 add-ons available. Now that figure has almost doubled, as developers clamor to produce plug-ins for the excellent new browser. Here is a selection of the 10 that we consider to be the most useful:

FastestTube

Want to download a video from YouTube? Thanks to FastestTube you can do so directly from Opera 11 while browsing YouTube.

Download Helper

If you download stuff from file dump sites such as MegaUpload, Mediafire or 4Shared, then you’ll find this add-on very handy. Download Helper allows you to save time when using these sites, by automatically starting the download after the waiting time ends.

Translate

One of the great features of Google Chrome is now available for Opera: the ability to automatically translate web pages that are in a different language.

Weather Forecast

Install Weather Forecast in Opera 11 and you’ll be able to stay on top of what’s happening in the skies at all times. The Yahoo! Weather Channel-powered extension displays temperature wind, pressure, humidity and more.

Facebook Chat

Now you can keep chatting to people on Facebook without actually being on the site itself. The Facebook Chat extension for Opera is accessible from a button on the toolbar, loading the chat feature in a floating window.

Panic Button

If you’ve ever been in a situation where you’ve been caught looking at something online that you shouldn’t be, install Panic Button to prevent it happening again. The extension allows you to hide all your tabs at once with a single click, then restore them later.

Gmail Checker

Gmail users shouldn’t be without this Opera 11 extension. Gmail Checker displays the number of unread messages in your inbox, and allows you to go to your mail account with a single click. You can even enable sound notifications for when a new email comes in.

BugMeNot

Don’t you just hate it when web sites make you register in order to access them? With this extension installed you just hit a button and BugMeNot automatically fills in free login details for the site, saving you lots of time.

YoutubeSoundRipper

Like the sound of a song you’re listening to on YouTube? With this app installed, you just need to hit a button and the audio will be directly downloaded to your PC as an MP3 file.

AdSweep

Ad-blocking extensions are always among the most popular, and AdSweep is arguably the pick of the bunch for Opera 11. The small add-on hides elements of a page that show advertisements.

Calculator

If you want to perform a quick calculation while browsing the web, this extension is ideal. Simply click the button in your toolbar and you've got instant access to a calculator in Opera 11!

Via OnSoftware España

Last weekend I attended one of the most popular blogging events in Spain, and among other activities (namely taking part in workshops, doings lots of networking and eating tapas) I learnt about a new online service called Glass. Glass is, according to their developers, "a browser add-on that lets you share experiences and not just content". And in my own words, it's a mixture between a block of virtual sticky notes and a web-based chat app that lets you exchange messages with your friends about a specific website.

Like many tools, Glass is easier to understand when you see it in action. After signing up for the service (you'll need someone else to send you a code or invite you) you're presented with a nicely designed interface, where you can manage your slides - that is, the messages you leave on each website. There are also special tools to bookmark slides and create custom lists with them.

What is it with OS X updates and Apple Mail problems? The introduction of Snow Leopard caused a nightmare for many Mail users and now OS X 10.6.5 has broken Letterbox - a popular Mail plugin that allows Mailbox users to view messages in widescreen.

This time however, it's not Apple that's to blame because Letterbox is a third-party plugin. Over the weekend, users have been frantically trying to fix the problem manually by adding a couple of extra strings to a plist file. The good news is, the developer has now released a fully compatible OS X 10.6.5 version which you can download here so you can once again using Mail in widescreen:

Note that at the time of writing, the developer is running a bare bones version of his website while a revamped one is launched but the download link works fine.

Adobe AIR, everyone's favorite cross platform sexy app-maker/resource hogger is soon updating to version 2.5, with some important new features. The big news is support for the Android platform and for TV.

Taking advantage of the proliferation of Android devices around today, Adobe is clearly hoping AIR will catch on with smartphone and tablet users. Just like on your desktop, if you try to use an AIR application on your Android device, you will now be directed to download the AIR runtime from the Android Market. This may not be ideal, but Adobe hopes to convince manufacturers to sell devices with AIR pre-installed.

The second big development is a deal to put Adobe AIR in Samsung TVs. There will be a Samsung Apps platform that allows consumers to buy and download apps for their television. With Apple and Google stepping up to make TV the next technology for a platform war in our homes, I wouldn't like to bet on Adobe managing to succeed here, but the competition should be fun.

One of the pending things in my life - besides the traditional "plant a tree, write a book and have a child" - is learning to code. I'm quite good at languages, but unfortunately I'm not as skilled when dealing with programming languages. I guess my brain is more artistically-oriented and it's hard for me to reach the levels of analysis and abstraction required to code. But that doesn't mean I won't keep on trying!

Luckily there are thousands of coding resources on the web, from tutorials for newbies to online communities around specific programming languages. For the coding-challenged like me, there are also tools that help you create your own apps without requiring a single line of coding, like the Ovi App Wizard or the Android App Inventor. Following this line of simplified software to create apps, I found Mozilla's Add-on Builder: an online coding tool that lets you create extensions for Firefox with the help of a few extra ready-made elements.

I've been trying out a bunch of Facebook-related Greasemonkey scripts lately, and I've realized that maybe not everybody knows what a Greasemonkey script is - or even Greasemonkey, for that matter. So here's a short tutorial on the wonderful world of Greasemonkey, and everything you can do with it.

To begin with, Greasemonkey is a Firefox extension that doesn't do anything by itself. It just allows you to use small bits of JavaScript (the so called Greasemonkeyscripts) on your browser, to customize the way a certain website looks or interacts with you. This means that, in order to use any of those scripts, first you need to install Greasemonkey on Firefox.

Once installed, Greasemonkey displays a small monkey icon in the bottom right corner of the browser interface. A left click on this icon disables the extension - and all the scripts you've installed so far. A right click on the icon shows the extension's context menu, with access to installed scripts, configuration options and a script manager.

Now, the big question: where do you get scripts from? The answer is userscripts.org, an online script database with thousands of scripts to use with Greasemonkey. You'll find scripts of all sorts, to customize and enhance hundreds of popular websites, including Gmail, Facebook, Google, Twitter,YouTube and lots more.

Windows: Apple's iconic web browser, available also for Windows, has been updated. The new Safari 5 is faster than ever, with better page caching and DNS prefetching. Other new features include a special Reader tool to view online articles, improved HTML5 support, a Bing option for the browser's search field and new Safari Developer Tools.

 iPhone: Bounce Bullet is a fun shooting game in which you must take out as many people as you can - with one bullet! It's essentially a remake of the classic browser game, Ricochet Kills. You do this by bouncing shots off of walls and platforms to hit the standing stick men who are dotted around the screen. This latest major update includes three new types of enemy - mutants, ninjas, and 'The Stumbler'.

Mac: Keychain on Mac does a pretty good job of managing passwords but once you've tried 1Password you'll probably never look back. If you're tired of making up passwords to access sites or worried that your passwords are not secure enough, it really is invaluable. 1Password creates strong, unique passwords for you, then remembers and restores them all within your web browser and it now works with the latest version of Safari.

Spotify is one of the best music applications on Mac but the only drawback of the free version are the ads. As the application becomes more popular, the ads have increased a lot but help is at hand from Smutefy which aims to reduce them intruding on your listening as much as possible.

Smutefy is a free small menu bar application that automatically detects and mutes Spotify ads. It doesn't actually block the ads - it simply reduces the volume when an ad comes on so that you don't hear it.

Firstly, you'll need to make sure that you have both Growl and Soundflower installed for Smutefy to work. Smutefy doesn't block Spotify Growl ad popups but it uses both Growl and Soundflower to monitor the application so that it can auto adjust the volume when an ad comes on.

All you have to do to activate Smutefy is double click on it in your Applications folder. Smutefy then places a small icon in your menu bar. When an ad is detected by the application, the icon will change color and mute the system sound until the ad finishes.

Smutefy works very effectively the only problem being that the first second of an advert isn't muted but it kicks-in pretty quickly after that and all you hear is silence instead of adverts until the next track starts.

Smutefy is an ideal application for all those Spotify users that prefer silence over adverts.