crazychucks.com

So I was thinking... - Dec 31 2006
...what's the last thing that the world needs right now? Hey, how about another toolbar/Browser Helper Object (BHO) for Internet Explorer? Yeah I know, but let me at least justify why I am doing this.

Better than 90% of web surfers are on a Windows platform, and a large majority of those users are using Internet Explorer (IE). Certainly, Internet Explorer has had its fair share of problems, but then again so has Firefox. I'm not going to start a "my browser can beat your browser" contest here - I really couldn't care less and I think people should use the browser they like the most. Since most people chose Internet Explorer I feel that I could help the most people by making a toolbar for them.

BHOs or toolbars have been available since Internet Explorer 5. Some do some neat things, like Google's toolbar integrates with their search engine and blocks popups. Yahoo!'s toolbar integrates with their search engine and has a spyware scanner. As is the case with most technology meant to make people's lives easier, BHOs have also been used for shady purposes. A lot of spyware and adware comes in the form of toolbars, and these can do things like hijack your webpages and force-feed you advertising. It's because of the growth of spyware that the term "BHO" has gained a negative connotation, but in the case of Google's and Yahoo!'s (and others) toolbars, there are some good ones out there.

So there are good ones and bad ones - so what? Well, I've seen a lot of people with stacks of toolbars on their browsers, some of which were doing similar functions (especially blocking popups). I usually consider 3 to be a tasteful limit, and even that is pushing it. What I want to do is to place several essential functions onto a single toolbar. Here's a list of some of the things I want in a toolbar:

Spyware and virus scanners (yes, plural)
One-button temporary file cleanup (to remove browsing tracks)
A popup blocker, to augment IE's built-in one (Windows XP and higher)
A search function that will let me change to several search engines
An adult content filter that parses pages to prevent Junior from browsing sites with erotica instead of doing his homework
Proxy functionality, to let folks surf anonymously
Site status - a visual indication if the site you are on is known for malicious behavior
Webmail integration with the "Big Three" (Gmail, Hotmail, and Yahoo!)
Here's the kicker - I want to do all these things for FREE, at no cost to the user

Sure, there's other stuff I would add too, but mostly to satisfy my geeky desires rather than to be helpful to the general public. For instance, people like my parents (your typical Internet users) aren't going to need nslookup or WHOIS functionality at their fingertips, but I do.

So I've started on The Mother of All Toolbars. It's not released yet, not even really ready for beta testing, but here's a list of functions that are in the current build:

Search via Google, MSN/Live, Yahoo!, and Wikipedia, all selectable on the fly
Popup blocker with whitelist functionality (to allow good popups)
Four (4) spyware scanners
Seven (7) virus scanners
One-button "Clean Sweep" of Internet history, cookies, temporary files
User configurable - colors, fonts, and even what functions are available are selectable by the user
Automatic toolbar updates
Small memory impact - it weighs in around 900kB

So I think I am on to a good start. If time allows, I'll post a beta version if people are interested. There should be some beta versions of the toolbar posted by mid-January, and I hope to have an initial release by early February. Anyway, let me know what you would like to see in a toolbar - I'd love to hear it!