Customizing &brandShortName;

You can customize &brandShortName; to better suit your needs using features like Sidebar, bookmarks, Tabbed Browsing, and Add-ons.

This section describes the customizable aspects of &brandShortName;'s browser component.

Sidebar

What is Sidebar?

Sidebar is a customizable area in your browser where you can keep items that you need to use all the time, including your bookmarks, browser history, address book, and other available options. Sidebar presents these items to you in tabs that are continually updated.

&brandShortName; comes with some Sidebar tabs already set up, but you can customize Sidebar by adding, removing, and rearranging tabs.

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Opening, Closing and Resizing Sidebar

To open Sidebar, press F9 or open the View menu in the browser, choose Show/Hide, and then Sidebar from the submenu.

Once Sidebar is opened, you can use its handle to close, open and resize Sidebar's frame. Move the mouse pointer up and down along the left edge of the &brandShortName; window. The pointer changes to a hand when it touches the handle for Sidebar, as shown in the picture.

	Sidebar Handle

• Click the handle to close/open Sidebar's frame
• Click and drag the handle to resize Sidebar's frame

To close Sidebar with its handle, do one of the following:

• Press F9
• Click the X in the upper-right corner of Sidebar
• Open the View menu, choose Show/Hide, and then Sidebar from the submenu

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Viewing Sidebar Tabs

To view a tab:

• Click a tab's title; for instance, click the word Search. The Search tab opens, which allows you to search for web pages.

Tip: To reload a Sidebar tab, right-click on the tab title and choose Reload from the pop-up menu.

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Adding Sidebar Tabs

To add a new tab:

1. Click Tabs at the top of Sidebar, and select Customize Sidebar from the menu
2. In the Customize Sidebar dialog box, select a tab from the list on the left. Double-click the folders to open or close folders.
3. Click Add.
4. Continue adding as many tabs as you want.
5. Click OK to finish.

Note: If you add more than eight tabs to Sidebar, &brandShortName; hides the remaining tabs to reduce clutter. To scroll through the hidden tabs, click the down arrow button at the bottom of Sidebar until you see the desired tab. Click the up arrow button to once again scroll up.

Tips:

• To preview a Sidebar tab before adding it, select a tab from the list on the left side of the Customize Sidebar dialog box and click Preview. After a few seconds, the tab displays in the Tab Preview pop-up window.
• To view an extensive and categorized list of tabs available for Sidebar, click Tabs at the top of Sidebar, and select Sidebar Directory.

You can also turn Sidebar tabs on and off.

1. Click Tabs at the top of Sidebar. Current tabs are listed in the lower part of the menu.
2. Select the tabs you want displayed in Sidebar. Remove the checkmark (deselect) to turn a tab off (it will still be available from the menu).

Tip: To quickly turn off a Sidebar tab, right-click on its name and choose Hide Tab.

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Customizing Individual Sidebar Tabs

Note: Not all tabs can be customized.

1. Click Tabs at the top of Sidebar and select Customize Sidebar from the menu.
2. Select an available tab from the list on the right.
3. Click Customize Tab if it is enabled. A window appears with information and options for customizing the tab.

   The instructions vary depending on the source of the tab—in addition to &brandShortName;, tab providers can be any company, organization, or individual who uses the Internet.

4. After you follow the tab provider's instructions, close the customization window (or follow the provider's instructions to close it).
5. Click OK to finish.

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Reorganizing Sidebar Tabs

1. Click Tabs at the top of Sidebar and select Customize Sidebar from the menu.
2. Select a tab from the list on the right.
3. Click Up and Down to change the tab's placement.
4. Repeat steps 1 and 2 to continue reorganizing as many tabs as you like.
5. Click OK to finish.

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Removing Sidebar Tabs

1. Click Tabs at the top of Sidebar and select Customize Sidebar from the menu.
2. Select a tab from the list on the right.
3. Click Remove.
4. Continue removing as many tabs as you like.
5. Click OK to finish.

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Tabbed Browsing

What is Tabbed Browsing?

Tabbed Browsing lets you open more than one web page in a single window. Each web page has its own tab across the top of a single browser window. Each tab appears on the Tab Bar. For example, you can visit mozilla.org, icq.com, and cnn.com within one window instead of three windows.

Click this to open a new tab.
Tab being viewed.	Click this to close the tab being viewed.
Tab Bar

You don't need to have several windows open to visit several web pages; thus, freeing up more space on your desktop. Instead, you can open, close, and reload web pages conveniently in one place without having to switch to another window.

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Setting up Tabbed Browsing

There are several ways to customize Tabbed Browsing. For example, you can change your preferences to open new browser tabs from the Location Bar. You can set up Tabbed Browsing in other ways too, such as loading new browser tabs in the background so the first page is kept on top while the second page is loading. To learn more about setting up Tabbed Browsing in &brandShortName;, see Browser Preferences - Tabbed Browsing.

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Opening Tabs

You can open a browser tab in the following ways:

Opening a New Blank Browser Tab:

• From the File menu: Open the File menu, choose New, and then Browser Tab.
• From the Tab Bar: If visible, click the new tab icon on the left side of the Tab Bar.
• From a pop-up menu: If the Tab Bar is visible, right-click on it, and choose New Tab from the pop.

Opening a Web Page Link in a Browser Tab:

• From a pop-up menu: Right-click or, if you have a one-button mouse, Ctrl-click on a web page link and choose Open Link in New Tab.
• From the Location Bar: Type a web page location in the Location Bar and press Cmd Ctrl+ReturnEnter.

  Note: You must set your Tabbed Browsing preferences to open a browser tab from the Location Bar. See Browser Preferences - Tabbed Browsing for more information.

Tips:

• To quickly open a new browser tab, press Cmd Ctrl+T.
• To reload one or all browser tabs, right-click or, if you have a one-button mouse, Ctrl-click anywhere on the Tab Bar and select Reload Tab or Reload All Tabs, respectively.

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Moving Tabs

Tabs are displayed in the order you open them, which may not always be what you want. To move a tab to a different location within a &brandShortName; window, simply drag it there using your mouse. While you are dragging the tab, &brandShortName; displays an indicator to show where the tab will be moved. Alternately, you can use keyboard shortcuts to move tabs within a window if desired.

Note: The keyboard shortcuts don't work when a text box has focus.

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Bookmarking Tabs

A bookmarked group of tabs is called a Groupmark. To bookmark the group of browser tabs in the current window:

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Bookmark This Group of Tabs.
2. Type a name for the bookmark group in the Name field.
3. Choose a folder in which to create your Groupmark, or click New Folder to create a new folder for your Groupmark.
4. Click OK to add the Groupmark.

Tip: To learn how to use a group of tabs as your home page, see Browser Preferences - Browser.

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Closing Tabs

You can close browser tabs in several ways:

Closing the Browser Tab Being Viewed:

• Open the File menu and choose Close Tab.
• Click the X button on the right side of the Tab Bar.

Click this to open a new tab.
Tab being viewed.	Click this to close the tab being viewed.
Tab Bar

Tips:

• To close any browser tab, even if hidden, right-click on the tab and choose Close Tab from the pop-up menu.
• To keep only one browser tab open, while closing all other tabs, right-click on the browser tab and choose Close Other Tabs.

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Changing Fonts, Colors, and Themes

Changing the Default Fonts

Normally, web pages are displayed in the default font set by your browser or in a font chosen by the web pages' authors.

To change the default fonts:

1. Open the &brandShortName; Edit menu and choose Preferences.
2. Under the Appearance category, choose Fonts. (If no options are visible in this category, double-click Appearance to expand the list.)
3. From the "Fonts for" drop-down list, choose a language group/script. For instance, to set default fonts for West European languages/script (Latin), choose Western.
4. Select whether proportional text should be serif (like Times Roman) or sans-serif (like Arial). Then specify the font size you want for proportional text.
5. If an appropriate font is available for your language/script, select fonts for Serif, Sans-Serif, Cursive, Fantasy, and Monospace. You can also specify what font size you want for monospace text.
6. Specify whether the default font should be serif or sans serif.
7. Select a fixed-width font and size. Certain types of text, such as equations and formulas, are displayed in a fixed-width font.

Many web page authors choose their own fonts and font sizes. To allow fonts other than the ones specified in your preferences, check Allow documents to use other fonts.

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Changing the Default Colors

Normally, the background and text colors on web pages are determined by the default colors set by your browser or by the pages' authors.

To change the default colors:

1. Open the &brandShortName; Edit menu and choose Preferences.
2. Under the Appearance category, choose Colors. (If no options are visible in this category, click to expand the list.)
3. Click the colored blocks next to Text, Background, Unvisited Links, and Visited Links. Choose a color for each from the color chart. You can also specify that links should be underlined.

Most web page authors choose their own colors. You can override the authors' intentions by selecting Use my chosen colors, ignoring the colors specified.

When viewing the source of a web page, you can see the HTML syntax of the source of a web page highlighted in specific colors by selecting Enable syntax highlighting.

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Changing the Theme

You can change the look and feel of &brandShortName; by using a different theme. Changing the theme can be done either from the View menu or from the Add-ons Manager.

From the View menu:

1. Choose Apply Theme, and then select a theme from the menu.
2. Quit and restart &brandShortName;.

You can get new themes by selecting Get More Themes. This will open a new tab or window and load the Themes webpage. Here you can download the latest themes and apply them. Another way to install new themes is through the Add-ons Manager (see below). Lightweight themes are applied immediately when you select "Add to &brandShortName;".

From the Add-ons Manager:

1. Open the Tools menu and choose Add-ons Manager.
2. Click the Appearance button in the toolbar.
3. Select a theme from the list, and then click the Enable button.
4. Restart &brandShortName; by clicking Restart Now in the Theme's entry.

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Toolbars

Menu Bar

The Menu Bar provides drop down menus for performing actions within &brandShortName;.

Menu Bar

If the Menu Bar is hidden (not minimized; see Hiding a Toolbar), or if you are in Full Screen mode, press the Alt key to display the Menu Bar.

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Navigation Toolbar

The Navigation Toolbar, pictured here, helps you move around the Web.

Back	Forward	Reload	Stop

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Personal Toolbar

The Personal Toolbar is completely customizable—you decide what you want to keep there.

Personal Toolbar

You can easily add, delete, and rearrange items in the Personal Toolbar.

Adding Personal Toolbar Bookmarks

You can add buttons for your favorite bookmarks, or folders containing groups of bookmarks. To create a new bookmark to add to the Personal Toolbar:

1. Open a web page you want to bookmark.
2. Drag the bookmark icon (located to the left of URL in the Location Bar) to a desired place on the Personal Toolbar. You can drag the icon directly to the Personal Toolbar, or to a folder on the Personal Toolbar. For more information, see Adding Bookmark Folders to the Personal Toolbar.

Note: The bookmark icon may appear as another page-specific icon if you have checked Show Website Icons in preferences. See Appearance Preferences - Appearance for more information on changing this preferences.

Each item in the Personal Toolbar folder appears as a toolbar button. You may need to enlarge the browser window to see them all.

Adding Bookmark Folders to the Personal Toolbar

You can add bookmark folders to the Personal Toolbar to sort your favorite bookmarks into categories. For example, you can have one folder on the Personal Toolbar for hobby-related bookmarks and another folder for work-related bookmarks. To add a new bookmark to the Personal Toolbar:

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. Select your designated Personal Toolbar Folder.
3. Click New Folder on the toolbar.
4. Type a name for your new bookmark folder. By default, the name is New Folder.
5. Click OK to confirm your new bookmark folder name.

The new bookmark folder will appear at the end of the Personal Toolbar.

Designating a Bookmark Folder as Your Personal Toolbar Folder

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. Select the bookmark folder whose items you want to appear on the toolbar.
3. From the View menu, choose Set as Personal Toolbar Folder.

The buttons in your Personal Toolbar now correspond to the bookmarks in the folder you designated.

Removing Bookmarks from the Personal Toolbar

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. Click the Personal Toolbar Folder.
3. Select the bookmark or folder you want to delete.
4. Press Delete on your keyboard.
5. Close the Manage Bookmarks window.

Tip: To quickly remove a bookmark placed on the Personal Toolbar (not in a folder), right-click on the bookmark and select Delete.

Rearranging the Personal Toolbar

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. In your Bookmarks window, click the Personal Toolbar Folder.
3. Select a bookmark or folder and drag it to a new location.
4. When you are finished rearranging items, close your Bookmarks window.

Tip: To move a bookmark placed on the Personal Toolbar quickly, click and drag the bookmark to another location on the Personal Toolbar or to a folder.

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Status Bar

The Status Bar is located at the bottom of any &brandShortName; window. It includes the following:

• Component Bar: Allows you to switch between components. For more information, see Component Bar.
• Status information: Displays information like the web-page URL and load status information.
• Work Offline or Work Online icon: Click the icon to toggle working offline or online. Working offline prevents &brandShortName; from attempting to connect to the Internet, for example to load images on web pages or automatically check email.
• Lock icon (Example: ): Indicates whether the entire contents of the page was encrypted while it was being received by your computer. For more information, see Checking Security for a Web Page.

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Component Bar

Use the Component Bar at the bottom left of any &brandShortName; window to switch between tasks (such as browsing or mail).

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Hiding a Toolbar

There are two ways to hide the toolbars.

To minimize a toolbar:

• Click the small triangle at the left of the toolbar. To show the toolbar, click the triangle again. (Note: You cannot hide the Component Bar using this method.)

To completely hide a toolbar, including its triangle:

1. Open the View menu.
2. Choose Show/Hide and uncheck the toolbars you want to hide.

To reverse this action, open the View menu, choose Show/Hide, and then select the toolbars you want to show. You can also right-click on an empty section on the Menu Bar, Navigation Toolbar or Bookmarks Toolbar to turn toolbars on and off.

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Bookmarks

What Are Bookmarks?

Bookmarks are shortcuts to your favorite and most-visited web pages. Rather than typing in long URLs (web addresses), you can create bookmarks that take you directly to the pages you want to see.

You access your bookmarks through the Bookmarks menu, the Bookmarks tab on Sidebar, and the Manage Bookmarks window. You can control what's listed in the Bookmarks menu by adding bookmarks for your favorite web pages and organizing your list of bookmarks any way you want.

Using Bookmarks

&brandShortName; comes with some bookmarks already available. To use a bookmark:

1. Open the Bookmarks menu.
2. Choose a bookmark from the list or from a folder in the list.

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Creating New Bookmarks

You can bookmark your favorite websites to make it easy to return to them.

To bookmark the current page, perform one of these steps:

• To add a bookmark to the Bookmarks menu, open the Bookmarks menu and choose Bookmark This Page.
• To add a bookmark to a specific folder on the Bookmarks menu, or to provide a specific name or URL for your bookmark:
  1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose File Bookmark. Choose from any of these options:
     • Name: Enter a name for the bookmark if you want a different name.
     • Location: Enter a URL for the bookmark if you want a different URL.
     • Keyword: Enter a keyword for the bookmark if you want to be able to open the bookmarked page from the Location Bar (see Using Custom Bookmark Keywords).
     • Destination: Choose a folder in which to create your bookmark.
     • New Folder: Click this to create a new folder in which to create your bookmark.
  2. Click OK to add the bookmark.

  Tip: If you have multiple browser tabs open in a window, you can select Bookmark this groups of tabs to add a single bookmark that will open all of the open tabs in the current window.

• To add a bookmark to the Personal Toolbar, drag the bookmark icon next to the Location Bar to a place on the Personal Toolbar. You can drag a bookmark to the following places:
  • In the Bookmarks folder on the Personal Toolbar.
  • In a bookmarks folder you've created on the Personal Toolbar.
  • To the Personal Toolbar itself, on the right side of all bookmarks folders.

    For more information about adding bookmarks to the Personal Toolbar, see Adding Personal Toolbar bookmarks.

Personal Toolbar

• To add a bookmark to the Bookmarks tab in Sidebar, open Sidebar, select the Bookmarks tab, and drag the bookmark icon next to the Location Bar to a place on the bookmark list in the Bookmarks tab.

Notes:

• The bookmark icon may appear as another page-specific icon if you have checked Show Website Icons in preferences. See Appearance Preferences - Appearance for more information on changing this preferences.
• After adding a bookmark using any of the methods listed above, it can be accessed using the Sidebar Bookmarks tab, the Manage Bookmarks window, and the Bookmarks menu.

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Organizing Your Bookmarks

To organize your bookmarks, open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks. Perform any of the following tasks in your Manage Bookmarks window.

Tip: You can open the Manage Bookmarks window from the Bookmarks tab in Sidebar. Click on Manage at the top of the Bookmarks tab.

To view bookmarks inside of folders:

• Double-click a folder to view its contents.

To move a bookmark or a folder to another location in the list:

• Drag the bookmark or folder that you want to move to the new location. To put a bookmark in a folder, drag it to the folder.

To create a new folder or separator:

• Click New Folder or New Separator at the top of the Bookmarks window. The new folder or separator appears below the current selection.

To remove a bookmark or a folder from the list:

1. Click to highlight the bookmark or folder that you want to remove.
2. Press the Delete key on your keyboard, or click Delete in the Bookmarks window.

To sort your bookmarks in the Manage Bookmarks window:

• Select the folder you want to sort.
• To sort bookmarks by Name, open the Edit menu and select Sort Folder by Name.
• To sort bookmarks in other ways, open the Edit menu and select Sort Folder. In the dialog, choose how you want the list sorted.

  Tip: To add more columns, open the View menu, open Show columns, and select a column header in the list.

Designating a New Bookmark Folder

When you create a new bookmark, &brandShortName; normally adds it to the bottom of your bookmarks list. If you prefer to file your bookmarks in a folder, you can designate a new bookmarks folder.

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. In your Bookmarks window, select a folder to hold new bookmarks.
3. Open the View menu and choose Set as New Bookmark Folder.

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Changing Individual Bookmarks

You can change the information for any individual bookmark.

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. In your Bookmarks window, click a bookmark.
3. Click Properties.
4. In the bookmark Properties dialog box window, click the Info tab.

You can rename the bookmark (the name appears in your bookmark list), add descriptive information, or set a keyword.

You can also set &brandShortName; to check bookmarked websites for changes.

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. In your Bookmarks window, click a bookmark.
3. Click Properties.
4. Use the pull down lists and the textfield under Check this location for updates to specify how often you want &brandShortName; to check the bookmarked page for changes.
5. To be notified when the bookmarked page changes, choose from the options in the Notification section.

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Searching Your Bookmarks

To search the bookmarks list:

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. In your Bookmarks window, open the Tools menu and choose Search Bookmarks. You see the Find Bookmarks dialog box.
3. In the drop-down lists, choose options to define your search, and then click Find. Bookmarks that match your search criteria are displayed. Choose from the following Search options:
   • Choose "contains," "starts with," or "ends with" if you know only part of the word or phrase for which you're searching.
   • Choose "is" if you know exactly what you're searching for.
   • Choose "is not" or "doesn't contain" to exclude pages.
   • Click the fill-in field and type all or part of name or URL (web address) for the bookmarks or history listings that you want to find or exclude.
   • Select Save query in bookmarks to save this search for later use.
4. Double-click a bookmark in the list to go to that page.

Tip: If the list is hard to read, try expanding the search results window.

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Exporting or Importing a Bookmark List

Your bookmarks are stored in a file named bookmarks.html. You can export a copy of this file and save it in a folder of your choosing. You can then edit it and treat it as you would any HTML file.

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. In your Bookmarks window, open the Tools menu, and choose Export.
3. In the Export Bookmarks File dialog box, choose a folder. Your bookmarks.html file will be copied into the folder you designate.
4. Click Save.

Your &brandShortName; bookmarks are not altered by this procedure.

You can also import bookmarks from other sources. For example, you can import bookmarks from earlier &brandShortName; versions, other browsers, or from bookmarks files that your friends send you.

Before you start, make sure that the bookmarks file you want to import is an HTML file.

1. Open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks.
2. In your Bookmarks window, open the Tools menu and choose Import.
3. In the dialog that appears, choose whether you want to import bookmarks from earlier versions of &brandShortName;, or from a bookmarks file on your computer.
4. Click Continue.
5. If you have chosen to import bookmarks from an earlier version of &brandShortName;, select the profile you want to import bookmarks from, then click Continue. If you have chosen to import bookmarks from a file, navigate to and select the bookmarks file you want to import, then click Open.

The imported bookmarks are treated as a group of new bookmarks and added to the bottom of your bookmarks list. If you have designated a new bookmark folder, the imported bookmarks are added to that folder.

Note: Importing a bookmarks file imports the bookmarks and folders from that file. It does not create two bookmarks files.

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Add-ons

One of the most exciting ways to customize &brandShortName; is through the addition of Add-ons. In this section, you will learn what Add-ons are, how to install them, and how to use the Add-ons Manager.

About Add-ons

An Add-on is a piece of software that can be added to &brandShortName; to change its appearance, behavior, or to add new features. It can also change the language shown in the user interface. Add-ons can be classified in four types:

• Extensions: This type of Add-on either changes the way &brandShortName; behaves or adds new features to it. For instance, there are extensions that provide you with weather forecasts, that add a full-featured FTP client, or that block advertisements in web pages. Some extensions are designed to work only with specific websites.
• Themes: Themes change the appearance and design of &brandShortName;, but don't add or change features. They act as a skin. &brandShortName; ships with two themes, Default Theme and Modern Theme, but you can add more to fit your style.
• Plugins: Plugins act as connectors between &brandShortName; and other programs. They enable you to see special content (like Flash movies, or Adobe PDF documents) directly inside the &brandShortName; browser window, instead of opening the target program in a separate window.
• Languages: While you can download &brandShortName; in a number of languages, you may add additional languages to it in the form of language packs. This way, different users may use &brandShortName; in their own language without having to install the program for everyone. This is specially useful if you are going to install &brandShortName; on a computer that is shared by different users in, for example, a computer lab.

  Note: Language packs only change the user interface language. Web pages, messages, newsgroup and news & blog posts will still be shown in the original language in which they were written.

Add-ons always come as packages. Each Add-on is a single file with the XPI extension, except in the case of plugins which usually are binaries specific to the target operating system.

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Installing Add-ons

There are a number of ways to install Add-ons:

• By clicking a link or a button for an Add-on on a web page. This will trigger a &brandShortName; dialog asking you to confirm or cancel the installation, with the Install button disabled for some seconds in order to avoid accidentally clicking it just as the dialog shows up.
• By opening a previously saved Add-on package, just like you open a regular file that you previously saved on your hard drive: Select Open file from the File menu, or press CmdCtrl+O; you can also open the Tools menu in the Add-ons Manager (next to the search box) and select Install Add-on from File, or just drag-and-drop the installer file into the Add-ons Manager tab or window.
• By using the Search functionality or the Get Add-ons panel of the Add-ons Manager, as described in the next section.

Notes:

• For security, &brandShortName; only allows installing Add-ons from a list of permitted websites in the Software Installation preferences panel.
• Also, if you unchecked Allow websites to install add-ons and updates there, you will be prompted to enable that function before anything else happens. This is not a temporary change, you would have to uncheck that box again to disallow installations and updates in the future.
• Plugins are usually installed as a separate program while &brandShortName; is closed so both the external program and the corresponding plugin for &brandShortName; get installed correctly.

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Using the Add-ons Manager

The Add-ons Manager enables you to install and uninstall Add-ons, enable and disable them and, in some cases, set preferences for them.

To access the Add-ons Manager, follow any of these steps:

• Open the Tools menu, then select Add-ons Manager.
• Open the &brandShortName;Edit menu and choose Preferences, expand the Advanced category, click Software Installation, then Manage Add-ons.

The Add-ons Manager opens either in its own dialog window or in a browser tab. You can modify this behavior in the Tabbed Browsing preference settings.

Searching for Add-ons

After accessing the Add-ons Manager, you can search all available Mozilla Add-ons directly from the Add-ons Manager and install them as desired:

• To search for Add-ons based on name, description or tags, type a word or phrase into the Search box and press ReturnEnter. The search panel will open and display a list of matching Add-ons that are compatible with your current version of &brandShortName;. You can sort the results by name or date of the most recent release. You can also search your installed Add-ons by clicking My Add-ons.
• To get additional information about a specific Add-on in the list, click More for that entry.
• To install an Add-on in the list, click its Install button.

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Using the Add-on Converter

The Add-on Converter has been created to convert Firefox and Thunderbird extensions for use in &brandShortName;. You can try to convert any extension by uploading it from your computer or by pasting the download URL from addons.thunderbird.net (AMO) into the appropriate input line on the Add-on Converter start page. If you are an expert user, you can make adjustments in the Advanced Options area.

Not all Firefox and Thunderbird extensions will work in &brandShortName;. Most extensions will install successfully, but some may not work properly once installed. The compatibility list will help you to anticipate how well a converted extension will work.

The easiest way to use the Add-on Converter is to install the AMO Browsing for SeaMonkey extension, which will overlay additional information and links onto the Add-on pages at addons.thunderbird.net. If the Add-on is not already compatible with &brandShortName;, a link will be added to the Add-on Converter, which will select appropriate conversion parameters automatically.

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The Get Add-ons panel

The Get Add-ons panel in the Add-ons Manager uses web services provided by the Mozilla Add-ons website to present a list of recommended Add-ons, as well as giving you the option to browse the available Mozilla Add-ons. After accessing the Add-ons Manager, click the Get Add-ons button to show the Get Add-ons panel:

• To get more information about one of the recommended Add-ons in the list displayed by default, click that entry. The entry will expand to use the full tab, showing screenshots, a description of the Add-on, and reviews as available. You will also be able to directly install the Add-on by clicking the Add to &brandShortName; button inside the expanded entry.

  Note: If you disallowed websites to install add-ons and updates in the Software Installation preferences panel, you will be prompted to enable that function before anything else happens. This is not a temporary change, you would have to uncheck that box again to disallow installations and updates in the future.

• The Get Add-ons panel also allows you to open the Mozilla Add-ons website in a new browser window (or a new browser tab, depending on your preference settings) to browse extensions and themes.

Note: Personalized Add-on recommendations require a list of your currently installed Add-ons to be sent to the Mozilla Add-ons website. If you have privacy concerns, this function can be switched off in the Software Installation preferences panel.

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The Extensions panel

The Extensions panel in the Add-ons Manager lists the installed extensions. After accessing the Add-ons Manager, click the Extensions button to show the Extensions panel. There, you can perform the following actions:

• To get more information about any of the installed extensions, click More for the entry in the list. The entry will expand into the full tab and show the description of the extension along with its update options.

  Note: Disabled extensions will appear greyed out. Incompatible extensions will appear greyed out, since they are also disabled, and with a forbidden sign over the extension icon (incompatible extensions are those which define themselves as not compatible for the version of &brandShortName; you are using).

• To access options of an extension (if the extension features a preferences panel), click the Options button for the entry corresponding to the desired extension.

  Note: If the extension does not feature a preferences panel, the Options button will be hidden. You can't access preferences of disabled or incompatible extensions.

• To disable an extension, click the Disable button for the entry corresponding to the desired extension. An info bar appears if the changes will apply only once you restart &brandShortName;. The info bar features a Restart Now option.
• To enable an extension, click the Enable button for the entry corresponding to the desired extension. An info bar appears if the changes will apply only once you restart &brandShortName;. The info bar features a Restart Now option.
• To uninstall an extension, click the Remove button for the entry corresponding to the desired extension. An info bar appears if the changes will apply only once you restart &brandShortName;. The info bar features a Restart Now option.

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The Appearance panel

The Appearance panel in the Add-ons Manager lists the installed themes. After accessing the Add-ons Manager, click the Appearance button to show the Appearance panel. There, you can perform the following actions:

• To get more information about any of the installed themes, click More for the entry in the list. The entry will expand into the full tab and show the description of the theme along with its version information.
• To use a theme, click the Enable button for the entry corresponding to the desired theme. An info bar appears if the changes will apply only once you restart &brandShortName;. The info bar features a Restart Now option.

  Note: Contrary to extensions, you can use only one theme at a time.

• To uninstall a theme, click the Remove button for the entry corresponding to the desired theme. An info bar appears if the changes will apply only once you restart &brandShortName;. The info bar features a Restart Now option.

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The Plugins panel

The Plugins panel in the Add-ons Manager lists the plugins found. After accessing the Add-ons Manager, click the Plugins button to show the Plugins panel. There, you can perform the following actions:

• To get more information about any of the plugins found, click More for the entry in the list. The entry will expand into the full tab and show the description of the plugin along with its version information.
• Click Check to see if your plugins are up to date to open a new tab or window connecting to a Mozilla website to check for status and update information on all of your enabled plugins.
• To disable a plugin, click the Disable button for the entry corresponding to the desired plugin.
• To enable a plugin, click the Enable button for the entry corresponding to the desired plugin.

Notes:

• Contrary to other types of Add-ons, enabling and disabling plugins doesn't require restarting &brandShortName;.
• Info bars may appear for any plugins which are determined to be outdated, incompatible, or blocked for security reasons.

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The Languages panel

The Languages panel in the Add-ons Manager lists the installed language packs. This panel only appears if you have installed a language pack.

After accessing the Add-ons Manager, click the Languages button to show the Languages panel. There, you can perform the following actions:

• To get more information about any of the language packs, click More for the entry in the list. The entry will expand into the full tab and show the description of the language pack along with its update options.
• To disable a language pack, click the Disable button for the entry corresponding to the desired language pack.
• To enable a language pack, click the Enable button for the entry corresponding to the desired language pack.
• To uninstall a language pack, click the Remove button for the entry corresponding to the desired language pack.

Note: Enabling a language pack in the Language panel doesn't change the language shown in &brandShortName;'s user interface, it only makes the language available for selection in the Appearance Preferences panel.

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Updating Add-ons

Updates are by default performed automatically for any Add-ons installed through the Search or Get Add-ons panels if such updates are offered through the Mozilla Add-ons website. The global settings can be found in the Software Installation preferences panel. You can override those for individual Add-ons by clicking More and then selecting the desired option.

Update functions are also offered in the Add-ons Manager's Tools menu, found next to the search box:

• You can check for updates for all installed Add-ons manually and set or reset automated updates for all Add-ons.
• If new updates are found for one or more Add-ons, an Update Now button appears for each Add-on. They are also listed in a new Available Updates panel. Rather than updating each Add-on separately, the Include in Update checkbox can be used to select the updates to be performed, then click the Install Updates button.
• View Recent Updates opens a Recent Updates panel which lists Add-ons of all types for which updates have been performed, along with the date of that update.

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Specifying How &brandShortName; Starts Up

Specifying a Starting Page

You can specify the page that loads when the browser starts:

1. Open the &brandShortName; Edit menu and choose Preferences.
2. Under "Display on Browser Startup" choose whether you want a blank page, your home page, or the last web page visited to open automatically when you launch your browser. Alternatively you can tell &brandShortName; to restore the previous session, i.e. the windows and tabs you had open when you last exited &brandShortName;.

   Note: If you selected Home Page, type the URL in the Location Bar.

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Session Restore

&brandShortName; periodically saves your browsing session (open windows and tabs, including form data) to disk. When you start &brandShortName; with Session Restore enabled, the windows and tabs from your previous session will be restored. This is especially useful if your previous browsing session ended unexpectedly (e.g. your computer crashed or a website you visited forced &brandShortName; to terminate). &brandShortName; will automatically restore the previous session if "Restore Previous Session" under "Display on Browser Startup" has been selected. If you chose to not be warned when you close a browser window with multiple tabs open (see Tabbed Browsing preference panel), &brandShortName; will open a page from where you can choose which windows/tabs from the previous session you want to restore. The same will happen if &brandShortName; crashes repeatedly.

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Changing Your Home Page

Your home page is the page that opens when you click the Home button in the Personal Toolbar. Depending on how your preferences are set, it may also be the page that opens automatically when you launch &brandShortName;.

To specify your home page:

1. Open the &brandShortName; Edit menu and choose Preferences.
2. Click the Browser category.
3. In the Home page section, perform one of the following:
   • Type your home page's URL (web address) in the Location field.
   • Click Use Current Page to make the page currently displayed in the browser window your home page.
   • Click Choose File to select a file from your computer's hard drive.

Tip: To specify your home page quickly, drag the bookmark icon from the Location Bar to the Home Page button on the Personal Toolbar.

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Specifying Which Components Open at Launch

You can choose components (such as Mail & Newsgroups and Composer) to launch when you start &brandShortName;:

1. Open the &brandShortName; Edit menu and choose Preferences.
2. Click the Appearance category.
3. Select the components you want opened automatically each time you start &brandShortName;.

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