Apps and Add-Ons that Make the Internet Even Better!



Smiling Woman Using LaptopWhat are your favorite websites that you use as resources for genealogy or family history? Those awesome websites can be made even better if you use the add-ons that work with them. Their apps are helpful because they enable you to connect with the website while you are away from your computer. All you need is a smartphone that the app is compatible with. The extensions and add-ons are an easy way to make the internet a more pleasant place to visit.

Feedly

Feedly is a popular newsreader. Genealogists can use it to organize and keep track of their favorite genealogy and family history blogs. Put the RSS feed of a website into Feedly. You can add news site feeds, Tumblr blogs, the blogs of genealogy websites, YouTube channels and more. Feedly will automatically deliver new content from those sources whenever they are updated.

There is a Feedly iOS app and a Feedly App for Android. When you run a Feedly app, it will automatically sync between the app and the Feedly reader on your computer. Found something really interesting that you can’t wait to send to your genealogy friends? Feedly lets you share content on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and other social media websites.

AdBlock Plus


There is some awesome genealogy related content on YouTube. You can find videos of the presentations that were originally done at RootsTech. Sometimes, using YouTube can be more frustrating than fulfilling.

It is possible to block the ads altogether by using AdBlock Plus There are some known bugs with the version for Safari. However, it also exists for Crome, Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Android smartphone or tablet. You can use AdBlock Plus to block the ads, to prevent videos from autoplaying, and to block out the entire comment section.

Social Fixer


Social Fixer makes your Facebook experience a lot more pleasant. Many genealogists are on Facebook because it is an easy way to connect with family. Unfortunately, there is always at least one person in every family that has a tendency to post incredibly unpleasant or volatile things. You can make those posts disappear by using Social Fixer.

Social Fixer lets you create a set of rules that it will use to process the posts in your Facebook feed. For example, you can ask Social Fixer to remove the name of a politician, political party, sports team, or whatever else is troubling you. Your relative will never know that you are blocking their venomous posts and avoiding having to view them. If only we had that type of filter to apply in real life (at family get togethers)!

Image by CollegeDegrees360 on Flickr.

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