Here is how I enter a new URL into the Firefox Address Bar. It is the fastest way to jump somewhere new (without linking), and it keeps my hands on the keyboard (not the mouse).
Step One ("Quick Complete" starts on Step Three, but this is a bonus tip, and will speeds things up too.):
Press "Alt-D" on the keyboard (hold down both keys at the same time). This will more the cursor to go to the Address Bar, and also select any URL that is already there. With all the text highlighted, the next thing you type will erase what's already there, saving you the step of manually erasing the current URL before typing a new one.
Step Two:
Type the base of the URL. In other words, if you want to go to http://www.yahoo.com, you'd only type "yahoo" at this point.
Step Three: Quick Complete
With just the base entered into the Address Bar, you now press "Control-Enter" to wrap the base with the full .com stuff. By pressing "Control-Enter", the base "yahoo" instantly becomes "http://www.yahoo.com. (You may use the 10-Key number pad's "Enter" key in addition to the primary "Enter/Return" key.)
If you want a .org address, press "Control-Shift-Enter" instead. This will turn "craigslist" into "http://www.craigslist.org".
With those three tiny steps, you'll be flying around in no time. Alt-D, "cnn", "Control-Enter" take no time at all.
Note: On Mac's, replace "Control" with the "Apple" key I think.
Filed on January 5, 2005 at 11 PM (Permalink) in these cateories:
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Comments
Actually on a mac, just hit Apple-L to highlight the address bar, type "yahoo" (no quotes) or whatever you're aiming for, and hit return. No need to "quick complete" or some such silly thing. This works in Safari and Mac IE as well. Has for years and years. Happy browsing.Posted by: ben | Jan 6, 2005 3:15:32 PM
Hi Ben, thanks for the comment. Actually, that works on the PC too in many cases. The downside to letting it "guess", is that it's slower. What I think happens in that situation is it performs a quick websearch on the query and takes you to the first result. So, it's as much slower as running the search would be. In contrast, if you ask to go to a fully qualified URL (http://www.yahoo.com), then no search or lookup (besides DNS) is needed, and it will be somewhat faster. Thanks again for the comment.Posted by: Nate Koechley | Jan 6, 2005 3:44:41 PM
That is what Win IE seems to do, and it always annoys me. Here's what happens on the Mac clients: 1) First and foremost, the browser trusts you. In my example, it tries to resolve http://yahoo/ first. (This is nice if you're on a private network and those addresses are valid. eg at my office http://web/ and http://finance/ are valid web pages). 2) Failing that, it will immediately try adding a www. and a .com. Voila, you're there. Under no circumstance will Safari, Mac FireFox, or Mac IE do a web search on your address bar entry.Posted by: Ben | Jan 6, 2005 4:47:44 PM
To summarize and add a few more:- Ctrl+L selects URL line (same as Alt+D from IE)
- Ctrl+Enter adds .com and goes
- Ctrl+Shift+Enter adds .org and goes
- Shift+Enter adds .net and goes
- Throw Alt in and it opens in a new tab for any of the above
Posted by: randy | Jan 7, 2005 10:10:36 AM
All of these browsers handle incomplete URLs more or less the same way: they just go to a website and grab the first match. Firefox uses google, IE uses some MS thing. To prove this, type "http" in Firefox and press enter. A Google search of the same will explain the result.Posted by: justaguy | Jan 10, 2005 6:24:59 PM
Ben, this technique really is noticably faster than letting it guess.Unfortunately, on Mac, Firefox doesn't support .com or .org, only .net. Check out the reference; the "Complete .com" and "Complete .org" commands say "Win/Linux" next to them. I actually found this blog while googling for a rationale.
Posted by: Joe Cheng | Jan 23, 2005 7:54:09 AM
Anyone know of a way to change the defaults for this? For example, if I use .ca more than .net can I change it so Shift+Enter does .ca instead?Posted by: MJ | Feb 2, 2005 1:04:28 PM
i downloaded the google search bar in firefox and now when i open it , it automatually shut downs im hoping to erase the search bar but i dont know how to thanxz zoePosted by: zoe | Aug 15, 2005 4:53:42 PM
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