FTT - Make your Chrome Extensions Work for you!

Make Your Chrome Extensions Work for you!

@LisaBerghoff/@MrKimDHS

Let's face it, the only reason people use Internet Explorer is to download Chrome. It's a sad, sad reality for the once-king of internet browsers. While being one of the biggest RAM hogs in the business, Chrome at the very least offers some serious utility for teachers who are for better or worse, spending more and more time on the internet. Here are two simple, yet useful Chrome Extensions that can give your productivity a boost.

Speaking of RAM

Depending on how many active Chrome tabs you've got open, Chrome can be a super greedy program that can really slow your computer down.  The problem is, I always feel like I NEED every single tab! Although I do a daily Tab Audit to see which tabs I can close down, I still have over a dozen tabs open at once. As a response, there are a number of cool extentions that can freeze your tabs to clear up some RAM.  

The Great Suspender is a quick little extension that essentially freezes or suspends tabs that you aren't actively using. So for example, if I've got an important tab open that I want to keep, but don't view it for a set period of time, the Great Suspender will suspend the tab and clear up any memory or CPU burdens that tab owes. 

As seen below, TGS gives you granular control over what gets suspended (or not). A decent amount of attention has been give to specific time periods, preferential treatment to pinned tabs, tabs playing music, and whitelisted sites. 

Suspended tabs can easily be unsuspended by merely viewing the tab. 

Where do I find things? Black Menu

Have you ever felt slightly overwhelmed by the number of Google-related products or services we use on a daily basis? Right now Google's famous apps launcher (9 dots in a square) does a decent job organizing our tools, but did you know there is a tidier way to access them? 

Black Menu is seriously one of the most underused extension out there, relative to the amount of utility it offers. Essentially it creates a simple menu that has all of your Google services and tools like - Search, Gmail, Drive, Sheets, Calendar, Keep and more. It also comes with a drop-down menu that allows you to use or access the tool without leaving your tab, or better yet, having to create a new one. Confused as to why this is better than Google's Launcher? Check it out below:

Black Menu is simple, light-weight, and easy to use. Perfect for a quick experiment with new tech! Know of any other must-have extensions that increase your quality of work-life? Comment below!