Weave: Synchronize Firefox 3 Bookmarks

Dec 26

Weave: Synchronize Firefox 3 Bookmarks

Mozilla has been investigating ways to make it easy for users to carry information (bookmarks, history, etc…) from one browser to another. What they came up with is an extension called Weave, and it can be used across several computers to synchronize data.

After signing up you will receive a confirmation email (I got mine in a matter of seconds). The link provided will give you the information to get started, which primarily consists of the link to download the extension. You’ll then restart Firefox and setup the extension using a Wizard. Don’t worry, you’ll be able to change the settings at anytime:

(Click to Enlarge)

The initial transfer of data may take a little while to complete depending on how much has to be synchronized, and after that Firefox will scan for changes every 30 minutes. In the future they hope to take a new approach much like what the Foxmarks extension has done, where it synchronizes changes immediately when they occur.

This is by no means extravagant, which is expected from such an early release. It will surely be compared to Opera Link (review), and right now I would say Opera is ahead since they have an online interface for browsing bookmarks. I’m sure Mozilla will capitalize on “add-ons” for Weave, which would allow users to synchronize data/settings saved in the browser and even extensions. All of this could result in the ultimate backup for your browser.

You must be using a pre-release version of Firefox 3 in order to test this out, and I would say that Weave still needs some polish before hitting the mainstream market. I tried out the extension, but for the time being I don’t really feel like I need it.

Tip: If you’re looking to install the add-on without signing up again, just go to https://services.mozilla.com/ and click on the Need the add-on? link.

Get Mozilla Weave for Firefox 3
Thanks to “S” for the tip!

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