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Ask HN: What does your New Tab page look like?
So I'm working on a New Tab replacement extension for Chrome, and it already works for me personally, but I'm curious - what do hackers use New Tab for? Did you settle with your browser's defaults? Did you customize it? Do you use any URL as a start page? What is it made of?
- pndy 5y agoNowadays it's about:blank for years on desktop, entered manually. I've tried some speed-dial extension in Chromium once but I figured it was gathering too much data. I like the bookmarks style new tab page in iOS.
- vladstudio 5y agoThank you! about:blank is as extreme as it can get, hehe.
- WalterGR 5y agoDefaults. > Do you use any URL as a start page? Tabs from previous session, with no additional start page.
- vladstudio 5y agoto start, here is what I currently have: https://postimg.cc/SjZ2YhW1 https://postimg.cc/SjZ2YhW1
- themodelplumber 5y agoI have a few different pages of convenient links and tools I use as start pages depending on the current set of start page needs or interests. Some pages are more about news from specific fields, while others are more about enjoyment or relaxation. Still others are about making the browser feel like home, because I've never used it before and am trying it out. It's amazing to me how many iterations these pages may need before they become reliably useful. The tech is all over the place, from boilerplate html to LOffice and other exports to simple experiments that turned into a layout somehow. I used a start page extension for my browser for a while, some years ago. I think it would have been smart for the dev to build in customizable export tools. I likely would have kept the one I liked, and then returned to the software more often for tweaks. But in a lot of cases I end up using different browsers or disabling extensions, so the tool itself isn't able to persist. Good luck with your project, I hope it goes well.
- vladstudio 5y agoThank you so much for the detailed comment. I do agree the tool itself will likely be just another in the endless row of experiments!
- wruza 5y agoIt’s opera:speeddial. A grid of thumbnails 5xN that I use daily: searches, gmails, translate, youtube, docs, tv series bookmarks, links for what I’m working on right now, links for remembering to educate/research myself on. If someone asked me how to change it, I’d say that I want not that stupid grid, but a surface with smaller (but varying) tiles organized into groups (which are bookmark folders). E.g. the top row for services I use often with medium icons and titles below them. Below that, to the left, a column of non-tall (hierarchical) rows with links to various documentation (~15 of them which right now live in a folder on a bookmarks bar), like node fs, express {index, {request, response}}, bulma {index, {buttons, forms}}. Small icon and text to the right, offset for subitems, you get the idea. To the right of that a column of address box and various search boxes for npm, google, images, wiki, etc. No need for the address bar at the top, just focus on it in the tab area and allow to <tab> my way to other searches. Below that: few other categories like “attic”, “work”, “to read”, also placed/layouted by myself (but not with css, give me easy structure and mouse-way to do it). I actually want this in file explorers too. These grid/table interfaces are nice for a naive user, but are stupid as hell for those who want to organize their “start area”.
- vladstudio 5y agoAhh, thank you! I _think_ my extension does things almost exactly the way you described. Alas, it is, for now, for Chrome only. https://new-tab.vlad.studio https://new-tab.vlad.studio Thanks again - the idea to "<tab> my way to other searches" is inspiring. I'll give it a thought.
- wruza 5y agoHoly. This could be a reason to try switch to chrome for me again, thanks for sharing! And btw I think it’s completely worth hitting the frontpage.
- vladstudio 5y agoI could not agree more :-) thanks!
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