Top 5 Google Chrome Extensions for Bloggers/Writers
In this article, I'm going to feature the top 5 Google Chrome extensions that I personally use and find very useful.
Google Chrome is one of the most popular web browsers in the digital world. Not only does it offer a seamless browsing experience but also provides a host of extensions that make everyday Internet activities easy and simple. Here are the Top 5 Google Chrome Extensions that I use on an everyday basis.
Focus 45
I do a lot of my work on a computer. I make videos, blog and write articles as a hobby. It's obvious most of the readers/authors of Techulator are also bloggers and write a lot. I'm sure while writing an article, a lot of us get tempted to quickly check our Instagram/YouTube/Facebook posts. This 2-minute distraction sometimes deviates me from the topic I'm writing on and somehow, does not let me express my opinion in words.
For times like these, I've started using an extension called 'Focus 45'. This little app sits tight on your extension bar that once clicked, gives you complete focussed, deviation-free time for 45 minutes. During these 45 minutes, it will not allow you to check Facebook and other websites that may disturb you.
You can add/remove the websites you'd like to block for these 45 minutes and can even change the duration of the block to any number you like. If, however, during these 45 minutes you really need to visit one of the blocked websites, this little app would give you an 'unlock allowance' of 5 minutes (customizable) during which you can access that particular website.
The icon on the extension bar turns green when activated and shows the amount of minutes left for the blockage. It can be deactivated by either pressing the 'Stop Focussing' button on the app or by closing the Chrome browser window.
Grammarly
Grammarly is one extension that every blogger/writer should have in his/her kitty. It's a boon for those aspiring to write and need to gain a hold on their grammar/spelling mistakes. This Chrome extension checks for grammatical and spelling mistakes in your article as you write and red flags them, so that you can correct them on the go.
I am currently being shown errors on this article as I write. These errors can range from spelling mistakes to incorrect use of grammar, sentence formation errors to punctuation errors. This extension continuously monitors what you write and immediately flags incorrect usage. I would highly recommend this extension to every active member of Techulator and other bloggers who love to write.
This extension is absolutely free to use, a paid version is also available with extra features and benefits. Having used this extension for a few months, I can safely say that it has helped me avoid silly mistakes and has made proof-reading, a thing from the past.
Nimbus Screenshot & Screencast
Taking a screenshot on your PC is fairly easy. All you need to do is, hit the 'Print Screen' button and a picture of the display is copied to your clipboard. It, however, becomes difficult when you need to take a screenshot of an entire page. 'Print Screen' option does not let you scroll down or up and attach it all as one picture. This is where Nimbus screenshot extension makes it a piece of cake.
If you need to take a screenshot of a page that has a large amount of content and needs scrolling, use Nimbus screenshot and screencast extension. This extension gives you a lot of options to take a screenshot. It can take a screenshot of the visible part of the page, an entire page, fragment, selected area, among other options as shown below.
It then saves the screenshot in a jpg/png format either on your hard drive or on one of the cloud storage services you use. Before you save, you can also edit the screenshot and personalize it by overlaying text, arrows, colours and blurring a part of the entire image. What's more, this extension also holds the capability to record your screen activity and save it in a video format in case you need to make a video tutorial or may need it for some other reason. A must-have extension!
AddThis - Share & Bookmark
If you like sharing and promoting good content that you find on the Internet, this little extension will make your life easier. This little widget easily allows you to share the content you are viewing to over 300 social media websites. You obviously need to sign-up to these respective social media websites to share the content, but with a click of a button, it can immediately share your current web page to all the websites you select from its list.
I am a content creator, I create a lot of videos for my YouTube channel and also write articles for Techulator. Once I'm done with writing/making videos, I use this extension to share my content all over the web. Some of the websites that it lets you share content on are listed in the image above. You can add/remove and customize the websites it displays by going into its Settings.
Hola VPN
What happens when one fine day, you go to your favourite website and find it blocked by your country's telecom provider? What if your livelihood depends on that website?
I make money off YouTube video I create. What if tomorrow my country also blocks all access to YouTube? I will never be able to upload anymore videos. This is where a VPN comes into the picture. A Google extension by the name of Hola VPN lets you access any particular website from any part of the world. This also works when you need to visit a country specific website.
For example, you need to have a look at the products being sold on the Google Play Store in the USA. If you head onto play.google.com from India, it will redirect you to India's Play Store with hardly any products on offer. However, if you switch on Hola VPN extension and select the USA as your country, it will open USA's Play Store and you can access all the products they have on offer. A blocked website in your country can also be viewed from another country using the same method.
I hope these Google Chrome extensions would be useful to you. Please let me know if this article helped and mention your favourite extension for bloggers/writers in the comment section below.
Follow
The Grammarly extension is indeed a boon for people like me who have a faster typing habit. I have a bad habit of typing faster and then leaving it as it is without checking the article for spelling mistakes. Ever since I have commenced using the extension, my grammar errors have come down a lot. I will need to check out the other extensions and have a first hand experience of them. Meanwhile, a good collection and a nicer explanation for each of them.