3 Profiles

Unlike Internet Explorer, Firefox lets you retain your bookmarks, passwords and extensions when you switch to a new PC. Just back up the Profiles folder found at the following locations (it is a long string so be careful when you type).

For Windows Vista users:

%APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox Profiles\xxxxxxxx.default

For Windows XP users:

C:\WINDOWS\Application Data Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles xxxxxxxx.default

Next, launch Profile Manager by typing "firefox.exe -ProfileManager" in the Start search box (for Windows Vista users), or the Run dialogue box in the Start menu (for Windows XP users).

Then, create a new profile and select a folder to store it in. Exit Profile Manager and replace the files from the new profile folder with those from the backed up profile folder.

4 Add-ons

Add-ons are software enhancements created by third-party developers that you can install on top of Firefox. While IE8 now supports add-ons, Firefox's extensive collection of add-ons could take a while for Microsoft to match.

Popular add-ons include GreaseMonkey, which lets you use small bits of JavaScript to customise the way a webpage is displayed, and Adblock Plus, which gets rid of online ads and banners.

Go to https://addons.mozilla.org/ en-US/firefox/.

5 Download manager

Firefox has a basic download manager that lets you look at the files you have downloaded or resume your downloads if the Internet connection was interrupted.

Though it may not be as sophisticated as add-ons such as DownloadThemAll, it is a useful tool that is still lacking in Internet Explorer.

This story was first published in The Straits Times Digital Life.

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