Firefox 3 smart address bar: wildcard search Apr22 '08

I love Firefox 3's smart address bar. Quite often I'll open a new tab and start typing the first few characters of a domain. In most web browsers, this type of character match only looks at the beginning of a URL.

So let's say I am trying to open this URL:

http://www.google.com/calendar/

In other browsers, I'd have to type the entire base domain first, then subsequent directories would load as I type the first few letters:

google.com/ca

This would be enough to pull matches for http://www.google.com/calendar/. This is a lot of typing though.

In Firefox 3, I can just type the beginning of the relevant word, calendar, to conduct a complete wildcard search:

Screenshot of Firefox 3

Notice it pulls any URL with the word "calendar" in it - no matter where it appears in the sequence of the URL.

The wildcard search in Firefox 3 also looks at the title element on a web page.

Screenshot of Firefox 3

Notice, in the above example, the search "bank" is not even in the Capital One URL itself. It only resides in the page's <title> element, but it's still enough to show up in the search results.

Of course, bookmarks solve this problem entirely, but sometimes I don't have time to bookmark every single site I come across each day, and may happen to visit again.

Categories: Browsers , Features , Firefox , Search , Tips

Add Feedback (view all)

Leave feedback

Feedback

Input format: The editor controls below will assist with Markdown syntax.

Status

Sub-status

Your info Name: Email (will not show on page):

Follow new comments via email? (You can turn this off any time)

Do you want your comments emailed to yourself?

Home Page (optional):

So you're using your Capital One credit card to book a trip to Tahiti? make sure you put an entry on your....(wait for it)...calendar! ... Read more.

So, Dare I ask: how do you disable such an annoyance? I ABSOLUTELY HATE, LOATHE, ABHOR the "Smart Address Bar"!! Thanks for the feedback! - ... Read more.

yea, how the hell turn that thing down? How to disable this smart adress bar :/ ... Read more.

http://onlyubuntu.blogspot.com/2008/05/how-to-disable-smarter-address-bar-in.html "How to Disable "Smarter" Address Bar in Firefox 3 ... Read more.

THANK YOU! That feature was a pain in the arse ... Read more.

Thank you so much! That was the only thing I didn't like about Firefox 3. ... Read more.

I think it is a good feature but I don't want people looking over my shoulder seeing other websites I've visited sometimes. Thanks for posting! ... Read more.

matthom is published and produced by Matt Thommes - an independent publishing enthusiast, mobile blogger, content creator, informative writer, web developer from a suburb of Chicago. Never one to conform, Matt intends to promote the effect the web has on our lives, in an effort to intensify, instruct, and clarify all that is happening around us.