Flock – is this browser ready for the big times?
Flock is a
fairly new entrant in the ‘browser wars’. As such the first question that any
critic would ask is what new value can Flock introduce that would persuade
someone to switch browsers? The discussion that follows will highlight some of
the points that the creators of Flock would probably raise if they were to
answer the above question.
In order to
organize my thoughts my review of the browser was categorized under six
headings. The issue of privacy & security will not be discussed as this is
a major issue which needs further research before drawing any conclusions.
One of the
major objectives of Flock is to make it easy for people to ‘easily access and
share videos, photos and comments across social communities, media providers,
and popular websites’. Flock has a lot to offer even t if you are a social
network sceptic.
Flock is
developed based on Firefox. It is not surprising therefore that the Firefox
add-ons and extensions work with Flock.
The six headings
or categories are as follows;
- Basic features
- Extensions/Add-ons
- Customizing
- Flickr and Photobucket
- Blog
- Interface/user experience
BASIC
FEATURES
Tab
browsing is available just like IE7. You need a Firefox Add-on to display the
tabs as thumbnails or ‘showcase’ the tabs as it is know in Firefox. All Favorites
can be imported from Internet Explorer. Flock also supports two Favorites
sharing services; del.icio.us and Shadows. You will need an account before
you can update your favorites online using Flock’s Star feature. Once you have
an account, you can set it up in Flock using the Account and Services menu
under ‘Tools’.
EXTENSIONS/ADD-ONS
Add-ons and
Extensions are available to improve the functionality of the browser. These are
available both from the Flock website and from the Firefox website. Some
Firefox add-ons may have to be converted by Flock’d before being installed in
Flock. My personal favourites are listed as follows:
- Gmail Manager – for Gmail accounts management and mail notifications.
- Flock’d
– used to convert a Firefox extension into a Flock extension through the
Flock’d website. This extension ensures that the full arsenal of Firefox
extensions is available to Flock users. - BetterSearch – This extension enhances the search results of Google, A9, MSN,
Yahoo, Answers.com and many other search engines. It does this by adding
thumbnail previews, Amazon product info and special links to the results. - Answers
– Alt+Click on any word or term for quick information. This is a very
useful extension. - Get Company Info – You can get company information on any webpage that has the
company name or ticker. All you have to do is right-click the name or
ticker and select company info from the context menu. This ideal for
researchers, financial analysis or any who needs additional information
about listed companies.
– This add-on allows the user to split the browser window vertically,
horizontally as you like.- Cooliris Previews – A Simple and powerful way of navigating through search results or
links on WebPages. It allows the user to see preview of the Webpage
without leaving the current page. - Firefox Showcase – This extension allows the user to easily locate any tab that has
been opened. This feature is also available in IE7. - Foxy Tunes – This extension allows the user to control any media player from the
browser window. It is useful as the control buttons are added to the
browser and you do not have to navigate away from a Webpage to start,
stop, fast forward etc. the music player.
CUSTOMIZING
–SERVICES AND EXTENSIONS
Customizing
the toolbar is very easy as it has ‘drag and drop’ functionality. Adding new
Toolbars are extremely easy. Further customizing can be done under the Account
and Services found under ‘Tools’.
FLICKR AND
PHOTOBUCKET
You can
setup and upload photos into Flickr straight from the browser’s Photo Toolbar.
It also works with Photobucket and similar services.
BLOG
After
setting up your Blog in the browser, you can write and publish a Blog straight
from the browser window. Also, you can Blog any story by simply ‘right
clicking’ on the story and select ‘Blog this’ from the context menu.
INTERFACE/USER
EXPERIENCE
The fastest
way to navigate the Internet with Flock is to use the Favorites Manager. The interface is reminiscent of Internet
Explorer 7 as is has a sidebar on the left of the page showing the Collections
or Folders with the links exploding to the right of the selected Collection. A
really ‘cool’ feature of the Favorites Manager is that you can search for the
link using the search bar at the bottom of the screen. You can search for the
full name, a part of the name or tags to find the link. The results of the
search are displayed as you type. Now because it is the Favorites Manager, you
can double the link to go to the Webpage or you can right the link to execute
commands such as open the page, open new window or open a new tab. This menu
also allows you to copy or delete the link. The Favorites can also be accessed
from a ‘drop down’ menu at the top of the screen.
This is a
general introduction to what I think is an exciting browser. You should give it
a try.
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