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Customize Google will save your time, security

Google is quick and easy to use, but it could be better. Finetune the search engine, and add new, handy features with this great Firefox extension.

Josh Lowensohn Former Senior Writer
Josh Lowensohn joined CNET in 2006 and now covers Apple. Before that, Josh wrote about everything from new Web start-ups, to remote-controlled robots that watch your house. Prior to joining CNET, Josh covered breaking video game news, as well as reviewing game software. His current console favorite is the Xbox 360.
Josh Lowensohn

We realize not everyone uses Firefox to browse the Web, but for those who do, there's a really great extension that's been getting a lot of buzz lately. It's called Customize Google and it does just that. You can customize every service Google offers, from basic tasks such as automatically redirecting to the secure versions of Gmail, Google Reader, and Google Docs and Spreadsheets, to actually adding links to other search services such as MSN, Yahoo, and Ask.com. Social bookmarking nuts can also add links to services such as Reddit, Digg, and Del.icio.us, right from the results.

My favorite option is the streaming results page. If you're a Google user and you're signed in to your account, you can automatically configure Google to display as many as 100 results. While this is handy, it can also slow things down, or be overkill if what you're searching for is in the top few results. If you're not signed in, you're stuck viewing the default of 10 results at a time. Customize Google's solution is to stream the results, which will pull up the next 10 results as you scroll down the page. It only begins to grab the next set once you get near the end, so you can keep scrolling through hundreds of results without clicking anything.

The creators have put together an explanatory video here.

[via CNET Download.com's The Daily Download]

Search results can be numbered, given save options on social networks, and even searched for using 11 other search engines.