Smart bookmark
Encyclopedia
Smart Bookmarks are an extended kind of internet bookmark used in web browser
s. By accepting an argument they directly give access to functions of web sites, as opposed to filling web forms at the respective web site for accessing these functions. Smart Bookmarks can be used for web searches, or access to data on web sites with uniformly structured web addresses
, e.g. user profile
s in a web forum.
Smart Bookmarks first were introduced in OmniWeb
on the NEXTSTEP
platform in the mid-1990s, and subsequently taken up by Opera
, Galeon
and Internet Explorer for Mac
by the turn of the century. As of 2007, they can now be used in many web browsers, most of which are Mozilla
based, like Kazehakase
and Mozilla Firefox
.
In Epiphany
, Smart Bookmarks appear in a dropdown menu when entering text in the address bar. By selecting a Smart Bookmark the respective web site is accessed using the text as argument. Smart Bookmarks can also be added to the toolbar
, together with their own textbox.
The same applies to Galeon
, which also allows the user to collapse and expand the textboxes within the toolbar
. In Kazehakase
queries can be formulated either with a simple argument, or more flexibly using regular expression
s.
Smart Bookmarks can also be shared, and there is a collection of them at the web site of the Galeon
project.
Web browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
s. By accepting an argument they directly give access to functions of web sites, as opposed to filling web forms at the respective web site for accessing these functions. Smart Bookmarks can be used for web searches, or access to data on web sites with uniformly structured web addresses
Uniform Resource Locator
In computing, a uniform resource locator or universal resource locator is a specific character string that constitutes a reference to an Internet resource....
, e.g. user profile
User profile
A user profile is a collection of personal data associated to a specific user. A profile refers therefore to the explicit digital representation of a person's identity...
s in a web forum.
Smart Bookmarks first were introduced in OmniWeb
OmniWeb
OmniWeb is a proprietary Internet web browser developed and marketed by The Omni Group. It is available exclusively for Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X operating system...
on the NEXTSTEP
NEXTSTEP
NeXTSTEP was the object-oriented, multitasking operating system developed by NeXT Computer to run on its range of proprietary workstation computers, such as the NeXTcube...
platform in the mid-1990s, and subsequently taken up by Opera
Opera (web browser)
Opera is a web browser and Internet suite developed by Opera Software with over 200 million users worldwide. The browser handles common Internet-related tasks such as displaying web sites, sending and receiving e-mail messages, managing contacts, chatting on IRC, downloading files via BitTorrent,...
, Galeon
Galeon
Galeon is a web browser for GNOME based on Mozilla’s Gecko layout engine. Galeon’s self-declared mission was to deliver the web and only the web. Galeon was discontinued in September 2008....
and Internet Explorer for Mac
Internet Explorer for Mac
Internet Explorer for Mac was a proprietary web browser developed by Microsoft for the Macintosh platform. Initial versions were developed from the same code base as Internet Explorer for Windows...
by the turn of the century. As of 2007, they can now be used in many web browsers, most of which are Mozilla
Mozilla
Mozilla is a term used in a number of ways in relation to the Mozilla.org project and the Mozilla Foundation, their defunct commercial predecessor Netscape Communications Corporation, and their related application software....
based, like Kazehakase
Kazehakase
Kazehakase is a web browser for Unix-like operating systems that uses the GTK+ libraries. Kazehakase embeds the Gecko layout engine as well as GTK+ WebKit. However, the author also plans to add the ability to switch between additional different rendering engines...
and Mozilla Firefox
Mozilla Firefox
Mozilla Firefox is a free and open source web browser descended from the Mozilla Application Suite and managed by Mozilla Corporation. , Firefox is the second most widely used browser, with approximately 25% of worldwide usage share of web browsers...
.
In Epiphany
Epiphany (web browser)
Epiphany is an open source web browser for the GNOME desktop environment. The browser is a descendant of Galeon, and was created after developer disagreements about Galeon's growing complexity...
, Smart Bookmarks appear in a dropdown menu when entering text in the address bar. By selecting a Smart Bookmark the respective web site is accessed using the text as argument. Smart Bookmarks can also be added to the toolbar
Toolbar
In a graphical user interface, on a computer monitor, a toolbar is a GUI widget on which on-screen buttons, icons, menus, or other input or output elements are placed. Toolbars are seen in office suites, graphics editors, and web browsers...
, together with their own textbox.
The same applies to Galeon
Galeon
Galeon is a web browser for GNOME based on Mozilla’s Gecko layout engine. Galeon’s self-declared mission was to deliver the web and only the web. Galeon was discontinued in September 2008....
, which also allows the user to collapse and expand the textboxes within the toolbar
Toolbar
In a graphical user interface, on a computer monitor, a toolbar is a GUI widget on which on-screen buttons, icons, menus, or other input or output elements are placed. Toolbars are seen in office suites, graphics editors, and web browsers...
. In Kazehakase
Kazehakase
Kazehakase is a web browser for Unix-like operating systems that uses the GTK+ libraries. Kazehakase embeds the Gecko layout engine as well as GTK+ WebKit. However, the author also plans to add the ability to switch between additional different rendering engines...
queries can be formulated either with a simple argument, or more flexibly using regular expression
Regular expression
In computing, a regular expression provides a concise and flexible means for "matching" strings of text, such as particular characters, words, or patterns of characters. Abbreviations for "regular expression" include "regex" and "regexp"...
s.
Smart Bookmarks can also be shared, and there is a collection of them at the web site of the Galeon
Galeon
Galeon is a web browser for GNOME based on Mozilla’s Gecko layout engine. Galeon’s self-declared mission was to deliver the web and only the web. Galeon was discontinued in September 2008....
project.
See also
- Bookmarklets, making it possible to use javascript with smart bookmarks
- iMacros for FirefoxIMacrosiMacros is an extension for the Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Internet Explorer web browsers which adds record and replay functionality similar to that found in web testing and form filler software. The macros can be combined and controlled via JavaScript. Demo macros and JavaScript code...
, embeds web browser macros in bookmarks or links
External links
- Smart Bookmarks at the Galeon site
- Introduction to Smart Bookmarks with examples, at the Epiphany site
- Smart Bookmarks And Bookmarklets