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Good work guys. For those using Firefox, I have one question. Is there any way to replicate Chrome's tab-to-search feature? It's literally the ONLY reason I'm

Good work guys. For those using Firefox, I have one question. Is there any way to replicate Chrome's tab-to-search feature? It's literally the ONLY reason I'm still on Chrome. Let me explain by showing how I would search for "apples" in youtube across both browsers. Firefox: 1 - Ctrl+L (go to location bar) 2 - Type "you", press "down" to select youtube from history. 3 - Wait for site to load...... 4 - Click on search box 5 - Type in "apples" 6 - Press enter Chrome: 1 - Ctrl+L (go to location bar) 2 - Type "you", and if youtube is first item in history, 3 - Press "tab" 4 - Type in "apples" 5 - Press enter. Youtube opens up with my searched item. Nice and easy with far fewer key presses no waiting nor mouse clicking. Works for youtube, hacker news, wiktionary, google images, and a heap of other sites I use daily.

jesse_m 8y ago
If you use duck duck go as your search engine I think you can use their bang search functionality
andersha 8y ago
Hi, I am using firefox with duckduckgo. Firefox + DDG = Ctrl+L - Type "!yt apples", press enter https://duckduckgo.com/bang https://duckduckgo.com/bang
- camjohnson26 8y ago
  !hn for hacker news, !gi for google images and !wt for wiktionary.
  - kakaorka 8y ago
    Thanks for these. I always want to search in hn specifically. This will be so helpful.
    - jgruen 8y ago
      There are a ton of these in DDG: https://duckduckgo.com/bang https://duckduckgo.com/bang
- tripzilch 8y ago
  yeah, that's what I love most about DDG for my default search engine, it's just like having a zillion custom keyword searches preconfigured.
  - meruru 8y ago
    It would be cool if Firefox itself had those keyword searches preconfigured. That way you wouldn't have to send all your queries through DDG.
- Perceptes 8y ago
  This is so cool! DDG is my default search engine but I only knew about !g for Google.
moosingin3space 8y ago
It should be possible to build this with an extension, but I haven't tried. That being said, there are a few alternatives. Firefox Top Sites supports search engines, as described in https://blog.mozilla.org/firefox/save-a-search-step/ https://blog.mozilla.org/firefox/save-a-search-step/. Additionally, if you use DuckDuckGo as your default, you can use bang patterns, which I prefer as they are curated.
detaro 8y ago
I think in Firefox the closest is to manually add them as search providers with a short code :/ Right-click in e.g. the search field on YouTube, there's an option to add it with a key word, e.g. "yt". You then can do "yt apples" in the address bar. Maybe there's an extension that does the Chrome thing, but I searched in the past and didn't find one.
AbuAssar 8y ago
even simpler in firefox: [1] open youtube.com [2] right click on the search bar and select "Add a keyword for this search" [3] in the dialog enter the character "y" as the keyword. [4] done! now to search youtube from the address bar just enter y followed by the search terms!
- detaro 8y ago
  I'd argue that manually adding each site individually is not "even simpler".
  - oblio 8y ago
    Does Chrome do it for random site searches? Not for Google properties.
    - 8_hours_ago 8y ago
      Chrome automatically adds sites if they have an OpenSearch description document: https://www.chromium.org/tab-to-search https://www.chromium.org/tab-to-search Firefox requires the user to add the search engine manually: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/add-or-remove-search-engine-firefox https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/add-or-remove-search-en...
chocolatkey 8y ago
I love that feature too. It uses the opensearch spec, and shouldn't be hard to implement
- ljoshua 8y ago
  Ah wow, I had always wondered what magic was behind this feature! Had no idea there was a spec about it, that makes tons of sense.
  - 8_hours_ago 8y ago
    Here's a description of the spec, if you are interested: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/OpenSearch https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/OpenSearch Firefox uses it to populate the search bar drop down menu with the available search engines for a site, but it does not add them automatically like Chrome does.
ender341341 8y ago
You have to bookmark the search URL replacing the query with %s then set a keyword on the bookmark location: https://www.google.com/search?q=%s https://www.google.com/search?q=%s keyword: g example search 'g test query'
- kentosi 8y ago
  See, this means that I need to do this for every site I want to search in advance. With Chrome I literally just have to visit the site. No creating bookmarks, nothing.
BoumTAC 8y ago
Yes but it isn't as good as google. Go to youtube. Right click on the youtube search bar. add a keyword for this search. choose your keyword (ex: yt) now you can type in the omnibar "yt my search" and it will do directly the search. It's not as good as chrome solution but it's the only thing for now.
- ziftface 8y ago
  Wow I actually like this better. Didn't know about these features in either browser though.
  - JensRex 8y ago
    I remember first using this feature in IE6 back when that browser was new, and I've used it since then. I have "i" for IMDb search, "w" for WikiPedia. "g" goes to DuckDuckGo now after Google became malicious and evil, because of years of muscle memory.
- ainar-g 8y ago
  You sir/mam have just revolutionised by browsing experience. I now love FF even more.
  - cpeterso 8y ago
    Here is more detail about creating custom keyword searches. For example, I have a Bugzilla keyword search so the keyword "bug" will expand the URL "https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=%s" https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=%s". Thus, entering "bug 1000000" in the address bar will expand to "https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1000000" https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1000000". https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-search-from-address-bar https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-search-from-address...
- PuffinBlue 8y ago
  Wow, that's absolutely awesome. It respects container tabs too (search opens in YouTube container tab if launched from any other container). This'll actually make a measurable difference to me on a daily basis with how much I search youtube for study at the moment. Thanks.
throwaway453405 8y ago
Create a Search Bookmark 1. Got to the Bookmark Library and Right Click > New Bookmark and fill it as follows: Name: YouTube Search Location: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%s https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%s Keyword: you 2. Click Add 3. Now in the Location bar type "you apples" and apples will be searched on YouTube. I use this for a lot of sites with search inputs. I often do searches using ddg of sites I visit with forums or other buried content. Any search that has a URL that you can input a set of terms into can be used. Just use %s in the location for where the terms are in the URL. Example using DDG to search CarForum.com:https://duckduckgo.com/?q=site%3CarForum.com+%s&t=ffab&ia=web https://duckduckgo.com/?q=site%3CarForum.com+%s&t=ffab&ia=we... This does the query "site:CarForum.com %s" on DDG.
- aembleton 8y ago
  I even use it to quickly reach Jira tickets that I know the number of. Just modify the URL with a Bookmark.
sorenjan 8y ago
Firefox have a search bar for this purpose. Isn't Chrome sending everything you type in the omnibar, including urls and search queries, to Google? To search for "apples" on Youtube, press Ctrl-E to focus on the search bar, type "apples", click on the Youtube icon or press Ctrl-down/up arrow to choose Youtube, then enter. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/search/?type=search https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/search/?type=search
- konart 8y ago
  Most people don't use search bar these days. Why have two fields when you can use one? Also - too many actions in your example vs. very simple and effective tab-to-search or keyword search available in Firefox.
owaislone 8y ago
I use DuckDuckGo as my default search engine. Doing this is as simple as: 1 - Ctrl+L (go to location bar) 2 - Type "yt! apples" 3 - There is not step 3.
- erfgh 8y ago
  This needs to go to DDG first, which makes it slow.
AbuAssar 8y ago
you can add it manually by clicking on the page options button (the three dots in the address bar) then choose "Add Search Engine"

jesse_m 8y ago

If you use duck duck go as your search engine I think you can use their bang search functionality

andersha 8y ago

Hi, I am using firefox with duckduckgo. Firefox + DDG = Ctrl+L - Type "!yt apples", press enter https://duckduckgo.com/bang https://duckduckgo.com/bang

camjohnson26 8y ago
!hn for hacker news, !gi for google images and !wt for wiktionary.
- kakaorka 8y ago
  Thanks for these. I always want to search in hn specifically. This will be so helpful.
  - jgruen 8y ago
    There are a ton of these in DDG: https://duckduckgo.com/bang https://duckduckgo.com/bang
tripzilch 8y ago
yeah, that's what I love most about DDG for my default search engine, it's just like having a zillion custom keyword searches preconfigured.
- meruru 8y ago
  It would be cool if Firefox itself had those keyword searches preconfigured. That way you wouldn't have to send all your queries through DDG.
Perceptes 8y ago
This is so cool! DDG is my default search engine but I only knew about !g for Google.

moosingin3space 8y ago

It should be possible to build this with an extension, but I haven't tried. That being said, there are a few alternatives. Firefox Top Sites supports search engines, as described in https://blog.mozilla.org/firefox/save-a-search-step/ https://blog.mozilla.org/firefox/save-a-search-step/. Additionally, if you use DuckDuckGo as your default, you can use bang patterns, which I prefer as they are curated.

detaro 8y ago

I think in Firefox the closest is to manually add them as search providers with a short code :/ Right-click in e.g. the search field on YouTube, there's an option to add it with a key word, e.g. "yt". You then can do "yt apples" in the address bar. Maybe there's an extension that does the Chrome thing, but I searched in the past and didn't find one.

AbuAssar 8y ago

even simpler in firefox: [1] open youtube.com [2] right click on the search bar and select "Add a keyword for this search" [3] in the dialog enter the character "y" as the keyword. [4] done! now to search youtube from the address bar just enter y followed by the search terms!

detaro 8y ago
I'd argue that manually adding each site individually is not "even simpler".
- oblio 8y ago
  Does Chrome do it for random site searches? Not for Google properties.
  - 8_hours_ago 8y ago
    Chrome automatically adds sites if they have an OpenSearch description document: https://www.chromium.org/tab-to-search https://www.chromium.org/tab-to-search Firefox requires the user to add the search engine manually: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/add-or-remove-search-engine-firefox https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/add-or-remove-search-en...

chocolatkey 8y ago

I love that feature too. It uses the opensearch spec, and shouldn't be hard to implement

ljoshua 8y ago
Ah wow, I had always wondered what magic was behind this feature! Had no idea there was a spec about it, that makes tons of sense.
- 8_hours_ago 8y ago
  Here's a description of the spec, if you are interested: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/OpenSearch https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/OpenSearch Firefox uses it to populate the search bar drop down menu with the available search engines for a site, but it does not add them automatically like Chrome does.

ender341341 8y ago

You have to bookmark the search URL replacing the query with %s then set a keyword on the bookmark location: https://www.google.com/search?q=%s https://www.google.com/search?q=%s keyword: g example search 'g test query'

kentosi 8y ago
See, this means that I need to do this for every site I want to search in advance. With Chrome I literally just have to visit the site. No creating bookmarks, nothing.

BoumTAC 8y ago

Yes but it isn't as good as google. Go to youtube. Right click on the youtube search bar. add a keyword for this search. choose your keyword (ex: yt) now you can type in the omnibar "yt my search" and it will do directly the search. It's not as good as chrome solution but it's the only thing for now.

ziftface 8y ago
Wow I actually like this better. Didn't know about these features in either browser though.
- JensRex 8y ago
  I remember first using this feature in IE6 back when that browser was new, and I've used it since then. I have "i" for IMDb search, "w" for WikiPedia. "g" goes to DuckDuckGo now after Google became malicious and evil, because of years of muscle memory.
ainar-g 8y ago
You sir/mam have just revolutionised by browsing experience. I now love FF even more.
- cpeterso 8y ago
  Here is more detail about creating custom keyword searches. For example, I have a Bugzilla keyword search so the keyword "bug" will expand the URL "https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=%s" https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=%s". Thus, entering "bug 1000000" in the address bar will expand to "https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1000000" https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1000000". https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-search-from-address-bar https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-search-from-address...
PuffinBlue 8y ago
Wow, that's absolutely awesome. It respects container tabs too (search opens in YouTube container tab if launched from any other container). This'll actually make a measurable difference to me on a daily basis with how much I search youtube for study at the moment. Thanks.

throwaway453405 8y ago

Create a Search Bookmark 1. Got to the Bookmark Library and Right Click > New Bookmark and fill it as follows: Name: YouTube Search Location: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%s https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%s Keyword: you 2. Click Add 3. Now in the Location bar type "you apples" and apples will be searched on YouTube. I use this for a lot of sites with search inputs. I often do searches using ddg of sites I visit with forums or other buried content. Any search that has a URL that you can input a set of terms into can be used. Just use %s in the location for where the terms are in the URL. Example using DDG to search CarForum.com:https://duckduckgo.com/?q=site%3CarForum.com+%s&t=ffab&ia=web https://duckduckgo.com/?q=site%3CarForum.com+%s&t=ffab&ia=we... This does the query "site:CarForum.com %s" on DDG.

aembleton 8y ago
I even use it to quickly reach Jira tickets that I know the number of. Just modify the URL with a Bookmark.

sorenjan 8y ago

Firefox have a search bar for this purpose. Isn't Chrome sending everything you type in the omnibar, including urls and search queries, to Google? To search for "apples" on Youtube, press Ctrl-E to focus on the search bar, type "apples", click on the Youtube icon or press Ctrl-down/up arrow to choose Youtube, then enter. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/search/?type=search https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/search/?type=search

konart 8y ago
Most people don't use search bar these days. Why have two fields when you can use one? Also - too many actions in your example vs. very simple and effective tab-to-search or keyword search available in Firefox.

owaislone 8y ago

I use DuckDuckGo as my default search engine. Doing this is as simple as: 1 - Ctrl+L (go to location bar) 2 - Type "yt! apples" 3 - There is not step 3.

erfgh 8y ago
This needs to go to DDG first, which makes it slow.

AbuAssar 8y ago

you can add it manually by clicking on the page options button (the three dots in the address bar) then choose "Add Search Engine"