Note: This review addresses v1.1 of the software.
Do your mousing muscles ache after you browse the Web? The GleeBox experimental Chrome extension (and its sibling Firefox add-on) lets you perform many tasks by using your keyboard rather than the mouse--including some tasks that require multi-step actions.
Install the GleeBox extension and type "g," and you'll see a big transparent grey box in the middle of your screen. Then type in a letter or series of letters, and you'll be sent to the first link on the page that contains that letter or letters. The links will also be highlighted in yellow. When you are at any link, press Enter to open it. To go to the next link, press the Tab key.
That's just the start of what this clever script can do. Want to share your current page using Facebook? Type "fbshare $. How about searching videos of Sting on YouTube? Type :tube sting. You can also do much more with gleeBox, such as shortening the URL of the current page using the bit.ly service so you can share it with others.
Note that the Chrome extension is disabled on a number of sites, including the Google, Bing, and Yahoo home pages, and on Gmail. If you want it to work on those sites--or to disable it at additional sites--right-click the GleeBox icon in Chrome, select Options, and then make the change. You might want to disable it if typing the letter "g" on a site to bring up gleeBox somehow interferes with your use of the site.
If you're happy with the way you browse the Web, there's no need to use GleeBox. But if you want to minimize your mousing, this Chrome extension is well worth a try.
Note: This link takes you to Google's add-on site, where you can download the latest version of the Chrome version. If you would prefer to use Firefox, download the Firefox version instead.
--Preston Gralla
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