How do I use Favourites or Bookmarks?

BY READERS DIGEST

1st Jan 2015 Technology

What happens when you find a website you love and want to visit again? How do you find that website if you can't remember it? What if it doesn't show in your search engine results anymore? That's what bookmarks were made for.

Bookmarking in Internet Explorer

Click on the little star icon at the top right of the browser window and select Add to favorites; a small window appears with the name of the web page – edit this to a shorter and more recognisable name.

Create a new folder by clicking the New folder button next to it (choose a name that will make sense to you later – News Sites, say). Alternatively, click the Create in box to put the website into a folder you have set up previously. Click on Add once you have chosen the right place.

To load one of your Favorites, simply click the star icon. You’ll see a list of saved web pages and folders. Click on a folder to open it, then click on the web page you want to visit.

Bookmarking in Chrome

Click on the star icon at the far right of the address bar and a small

Bookmarks box opens. Here you can change the name of the web page to something recognisable. Then click the arrow in the Folder area to bring up a list of folders; select the one you want to store the page in. Or select Choose another folder and click on New folder to create one.

To load a website stored in your Bookmarks, click on Other bookmarks at the top right of the screen to bring up a list of folders; select the one you want by clicking on it, then click on the required web page.

Bookmarking in Firefox

Click on the star icon at the right side of the address bar; in the small box that pops up you can change the name of the web page. Click the menu next to Folder to bring up a list of folders. Select the one you want. To create a new folder, click on Choose, then click the + symbol. Give the new folder a name, and click Done.

To go to a site stored in your Bookmarks, click on the star image at the top of the screen and select Show All Bookmarks. Click through to the right web page.

Bookmarking in Safari

Click the + symbol on the toolbar; in the box that appears you can edit the name of the web page. Click on the arrow button to bring up a list of folders, select the one you want to store the page in and click Add. Create new folders using the Bookmarks menu at the very top of your screen.

To view your bookmarked page, click on the book symbol on your toolbar, and click on the right folder, then the page you want.

What about if I am on my smartphone?

Tablets and smartphones allow you to make Bookmarks or Favorites into folders too. Go to your browser, and find Bookmarks or Favorites (a book or star icon). Click on Edit (on some phones this may be a pencil icon), and you should have the option to save to existing folders or to make a new one. On some phones, you can also save a web page to your home screen where it will look like yet another app – this way, you can visit it with one tap.

There are some websites that I visit every time I go online, is there a quicker way of loading these?

One of these top sites should be your home page, of course. But most browsers allow you to save web pages to the Favorites/Bookmarks toolbar, which is along the top of your screen. This means you can open the web page with a single click. You’ll find an option to place a website on the toolbar when you are saving it as a Favorite or Bookmark.

I can’t see my Favorites/Bookmarks toolbar. How do I find it?

If the bar isn’t visible:

In Internet Explorer: right-click on the blank toolbar area at the top of the screen and select Favorites bar—it should then have a checkmark next to it. (Repeat to remove the checkmark and hide the Favorites bar.)
In Safari: go to View and click on Show Bookmarks bar.
In Chrome in Windows: click on the three-lines symbol, select Bookmarks and then make sure there’s a tick next to Show bookmarks bar.
In Chrome on a Mac: go to View and select Always Show Bookmarks Bar.
In Firefox: click on the star icon, and select View Bookmarks Toolbar.

I have loads of Favorites, but I haven’t organised them. Help!

You can organise your saved web pages at any point – though it is a dull task. In Internet Explorer, click on the Favorites star icon at the top right of your browser window, then click the arrow next to Add to favorites. Now click Organise favorites.

The box that appears contains a list of your Favorites. You can create new folders (click New folder, name it, then press Enter), click on links and drag them into folders, reposition your folders by clicking and dragging, and rename saved web pages or folders (click on the one you want to change, click on Rename and press Enter). To delete a saved web page or folder, click on it and then click Delete.

Once you are happy with your reorganisation, click Close.

One handy tip if you can’t face doing this: alphabetise! All you need to do is right-click on any item, and then click Sort by Name.

How do I arrange my Bookmarks?

It’s a simple process but varies depending on the browser you are using:

In Chrome:you can sort your Bookmarks by clicking on the three-lines icon , then on Bookmarks, then on Bookmark Manager. If you wish to order the links alphabetically, click on Organise and then Reorder by title.From that same Organise menu you can also click to add a new folder or new page. To move pages into folders, drag and drop them across the screen to the required folder.
In Safari: on the Bookmarks bar click the open-book icon to open your bookmarks list. To add a new folder, click the + button at the bottom of the list on the sidebar at the left and type the name you want to give the folder. You can click and drag if you want to move them to a different place.
In Firefox:click the star icon at the top right and choose Show All Bookmarks. A box with your bookmarks in it will pop up. If you want to alphabetise the links in any folder, right-click on that folder and select Sort By Name (or click and select this option in the three-lines menu).You can also move links and folders around by dragging and dropping them to the desired location on screen. If you right-click on any folder, you can choose New Folder to create a new folder right there (on a Mac, click on the gear icon and select New folder from there).

I am always spotting articles online that I want to keep for later. Is there a way of saving web pages temporarily?

Yes, there is. In Safari, this feature is built in. It’s called Reading List, and the icon is a pair of spectacles. You click on this and a window appears to the left of the browser. Click on Add to save the web page, and you can read it offline. You can look at your reading list at any time by selecting Show Reading List in the View menu at the top of the screen. Delete an item by passing your mouse over and clicking on the X to the right; or select Clear All. Other browsers also have a Reading List function, but it is an add-on.

It’s called Read Later Fast in Chrome, and Read It Later in Firefox and Internet Explorer.

What exactly is an add-on?

It is an optional extra that you can add to your browser. Add-ons, extensions or plug-ins are software programs that add something to the website you are using and allow it to perform other functions. The

Readability feature is an add-on. Few of them are essential—but many are useful, or might fit your particular needs (there are add-ons that allow you to use diacritic marks in foreign language text, for example). A browser add-on could be, say, a video player that allows you to watch movies on a website. If you don’t have the add-on required for that site, you won’t be able to make use of all the functions the site offers—for example, you would just see text and wouldn’t be able to view videos.

How do I know what extras I need?

If you need a video player, say, then your browser will bring up a message across the top of the internet page, saying that a certain add-on (or plug-in) is required and asking you if you wish to install it. If you feel you need the add-on to get the full benefit of the page you are viewing, then follow the instructions and download it (only if you trust the source, of course). Or find your browser’s online store at iegallery.com, chrome.google.com, addons.mozilla.org, and extensions.apple.com and see what is available.

But don’t install add-ons unless you need them—they take up memory on your computer and may make your internet experience slower.