Cool Google Chrome Tricks You Must Know

I introduced some of the coolest Google Chrome tricks that you should know:

1. Add home button to Toolbar

Click the Wrench icon -> Go to Options/Preferences -> Check the checkbox that says ‘Show Home Button’ and you’re done. Alternatively you can open your default homepage using the combination Alt+Home.

2. Mastering the Omnibar

Google has revolutionized web browsing by unite the address bar and the search box into a feature called the Omnibar. This Omnibar can be used in two ways: Typing in the address bar say www.galaxyexperts.blogspot.com which will take you to our site and second typing in TechSource that will perform a query on Google for the same term. So to avoid confusion between searches and addresses, we use a question mark before the term to perform a plain search. This is useful if you are performing unreadable queries like ‘example.com’ on Google. If you’re a keyboard person, then Pressing Ctrl+L anywhere on the page will put focus on the Omnibar allowing you to type the address/query. Similarly, by pressing Ctrl+K anywhere on the page will help you to perform a search query through the Omnibar. Note that, searches are made through the Omnibar will depend on which search engine you select as your default one.

3. Undo a closed tab

If you accidently close an important tab and you’ll realize that there is no specific option to recover it. This trouble can be avoided by a simple shortcut. Just press Ctrl+Shift+T anywhere and you’ll get your tab back.

4. Quickly go undercover

Google comes with a private browsing mode that can prove to be indispensable when using a public computer. This browsing mode titled ‘incognito mode’ allows you to browse as usual but without recording any of your data. This means no cache, no cookies and no history. The option can easily be enabled using the wrench menu. But hey, why take so much trouble when you can use a quick shortcut? Just press Ctrl+Shift+N anywhere on the page and a new window will pop up. Any sites you visit using that window will not be cached or recorded. Please note that Incognito mode doesn’t mean that you’ll be able to evade ISP and Government monitoring.

5. Quickly Cycle thru tabs

If you have open to many tabs at the same time, cycling through them can be completely a drag. Just clamp Ctrl+Tab to cycle through the tabs from left to right.  To change in other direction, simply use Ctrl+Shift+Tab. However, if you want to access a specific tab, you can always use Ctrl + the tab number. For eg: you can open the 2nd tab from the right using the combo Ctrl + 2.

6. Kill slow processes

Anyone who has used a Windows computer long enough will never forget killing those dreaded process that slowed the PC down. Even though the rocket fast Chrome rarely slows down, its extensions tend to freeze sometimes. This in turn, slows down the whole browser. Chrome provides a smart way to handle this problem by providing a Task Manager for the browser itself. To access it, just use the combo Shift+Escape and a familiar-looking task manager opens up. Check the stats for the plug-in that hog memory the most and kill it by selecting it and pressing the End Process button. Also, it is important to remember that too many Google Chrome extensions will slow down the browser eventually. Even though Google Chrome is faster than Firefox, it cannot effectively handle too many plugins at once, which Firefox can.

7. Search within sites from omnibox

Google Chrome comes with a nifty little feature that allows you to search within various sites from the Omnibar itself. Try typing Youtube, then press tab. Now any query you enter here will search the YouTube site not Google. Cool huh?

You can also try adding TechSource to the list by going to the Manage Search Engines (Wrench -> Options -> Manage Search Engines) menu. Here, you’ll see 3 entry fields at the bottom. In the leftmost field enter the word ‘Techsource’ without quotes. In the adjacent field, enter the keyword Techsource or TS whatever you’re comfortable with. Then, in the rightmost field enter this link http://www.galaxyexperts.blogspot.com/search?q= and you’re done! Now whenever you want to search TechSource, press Ctrl+L followed by the keyword (Techsource or TS) then Tab to search our site.

Whenever you visit a site and search its contents, the site gets added automatically to Chrome’s list of search engines. The above example is just to explain the process of adding sites as search engines.

8. Quickly access Downloads

Chrome does come with a dedicated download manager, which can be easily accessed by opening the Wrench menu and clicking on “Downloads”. The download manager will open in a new Tab, showing a list of currently running downloads as well as completed ones. The same menu can be accessed using the shortcut Ctrl+J.

9. Getting more out of back/forward buttons

back/forward buttons are a standard offering when it comes to all web browsers. sometimes we may need to jump back/forward more than one step. Google Chrome allows a great way to view the previously visited 4-5 links for particular tab. All you have to do is right-click on the back/forward button and a list of recently visited pages will drop down. At the bottom, there will also be a link to your complete browsing History. The History menu can also be accessed using the shortcut Ctrl+H.

10. Quickly downloading images

This is another feature that is relatively unknown amongst many Chrome users. It is possible to download any image you find on Google Chrome by simply dragging and dropping onto the Desktop. The process is simple and saves some valuable time if you download images a lot.