Read Next 1.1.3 released!

Another update to Read Next 1.1, the reading list extension for Firefox from AE Creations, has been released and is now available from Firefox Add-ons and the AE Creations website. Read Next 1.1 requires Firefox 102 or newer.

If you already have an older version of Read Next installed, it will be updated for you if automatic extension updates are enabled. Otherwise, open Add-ons Manager (Tools → Add-ons), click on the entry for Read Next in the list of installed extensions, and then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Check for Updates.

What's New

• Now available in Ukrainian

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Read Next should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Crowdin contributor Каріна Крушельницька for translating Read Next into Ukrainian!

If you're fluent in English and another world language and would like to help by adding a translation, consider contributing a translation in CrowdIn. Localizations in other languages are always welcome, and will be added in future releases.

Monthly update: November 2023

November is going to be a busy month, as I'll be balancing the time I'm dedicating to AE Creations extensions with commitments relating to my day job, as well as preparation for an upcoming trip.

There is still no fix from Mozilla, the makers of the Firefox web browser, for an issue that is preventing me from releasing Panic Button 5.0, as mentioned in last month's update. I'll be releasing a Preview Release of this Firefox extension later this month; it'll be almost like a Release Candidate build -- the difference being that it may be subject to additional fixes and improvements. More details will be posted here when the Preview Release build is released.

Also look for a minor release of Read Next, which adds support for Ukrainian. Localizations in other languages are always welcome, and will be added in future releases.

I'm starting research into converting Clippings for Thunderbird into a full MailExtension. Currently, this Thunderbird extension is a hybrid of new MailExtension and legacy XUL overlay components (the latter found in the integration with the main three-pane window and the message compose window), and this has caused compatibility challenges with different versions of Thunderbird. Some users have also been scared off by the prompt that appears during installation, informing them that it requires unrestricted permissions to the system. Converting this extension to a pure MailExtension will alleviate these problems, but it's unknown if the MailExtension APIs will support all the capabilities of the legacy APIs, and this is what my research aims to find out.

Read Next 1.1.2 released!

An update to Read Next 1.1, the reading list extension for Firefox from AE Creations, has been released and is now available from Firefox Add-ons and the AE Creations website. Read Next 1.1 requires Firefox 102 or newer.

If you already have an older version of Read Next installed, it will be updated for you if automatic extension updates are enabled. Otherwise, open Add-ons Manager (Tools → Add-ons), click on the entry for Read Next in the list of installed extensions, and then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Check for Updates.

What's New

• Minor fixes and improvements
  

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Read Next should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3.2 released!

A minor update to Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3 has been released to fix a long-standing bug, and is now available from Add-ons for Thunderbird and the AE Creations website. Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3 requires Thunderbird version 115.

If you already have an older version of Clippings for Thunderbird installed, it will be updated for you if automatic extension updates are enabled. Otherwise, open Add-ons Manager (from the Thunderbird menu, click Add-ons), click on the entry for Clippings for Thunderbird in the list of installed extensions, and then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Check for Updates.

What's New

• Bug fix: Backup reminder notifications are appearing even if the "Skip reminder if there were no changes since last backup" option is turned on

Things You Should Know About

• If you want to use Sync Clippings, download and install the Sync Clippings helper app. More information and download links can be found on the Sync Clippings page on the AE Creations website.

Still Using Clippings for Thunderbird 6.2?

The latest version of Clippings for Thunderbird require Thunderbird version 115, the latest stable release of the popular open source email client. If you're still using an older version of Thunderbird, upgrade now to keep Clippings up to date with bug fixes and improvements!

Check out this page on the Thunderbird website to learn more about what's new in Thunderbird 115.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Clippings for Thunderbird should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

Monthly update: October 2023

Work on Panic Button 5.0 is gradually winding down as it gets closer to being ready for public release. However, there is one lingering issue that is giving me pause.

With Panic Button being an MV3 extension, Firefox adds a little indicator below the toolbar button icon, as well as an extra menu item in the toolbar button context menu. It's supposedly meant to tell the user that there are permissions that needs approval -- but there actually aren't any. The context menu item doesn't seem to do anything, as there isn't a way to clear the checkmark.

The little indicator appearing below the Panic Button toolbar button icon.

The toolbar button context menu item that doesn't appear to do anything.

Apparently, there is a bug reported in Bugzilla about this, but there hasn't been any activity.

This is a rather poor user experience, and for this reason, I am hesitant on releasing Panic Button 5.0 until this is resolved. I may consider releasing a so-called "technical preview" release for those that are interested in trying out the latest and greatest.

In the meantime, a minor release of Read Next is planned for later this month, which will mainly be a maintenance update. I'm also looking ahead to start working on the next major version of Clippings for Thunderbird, beginning with converting the remaining legacy XUL overlay code to make it a full MailExtension.

Panic Button 5.0 beta 2 released!

This is the second beta release of the next version of Panic Button, the Firefox extension from AE Creations that hides your browser windows from prying eyes with a click of a button. It is being made available for testers and early adopters craving the latest and greatest, and while this build is the most stable yet, users should expect to run into the occasional bug.

Read on to learn more about what's new in this release, and how to get it.

What's New

• Improvements to some of the built-in Panic Button icons
• Enhanced keyboard navigation in the extension preferences page, Change Icon dialog, and the Restore Session page
• Other behind-the-scenes improvements to ensure compatibility with future versions of Firefox
•  Fixed in 5.0b2  In the extension preferences page, resetting the keyboard shortcut doesn't appear to work if it was changed from Manage Extension Shortcuts in Add-ons Manager (issue #88)

Things You Should Know About

• Panic Button 5.0 requires Firefox 115 or newer. 
  
• The version number of this beta release will appear as 4.99.2 in Add-ons Manager.
  
• Panic Button won't work if Firefox is set to "Never remember history" in Privacy & Security settings.

How to Get It

To install this beta release, head over to the Panic Button 5.0 beta 2 page on GitHub. Look for the link to panicbutton-5.0b2.xpi, then click on it to install.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Panic Button should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

If you find a bug, you may file a bug report on GitHub. Please search the issues list first to confirm that your issue has not already been reported.

Panic Button 4.4.5 released!

An update to Panic Button 4.4 has been released, and is now available from Firefox Add-ons and the AE Creations website.

If you already have an older version of Panic Button installed, it will be updated for you if automatic extension updates are enabled. Otherwise, open Add-ons Manager (Tools → Add-ons), click on the entry for Panic Button in the list of installed extensions, and then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Check for Updates.

What's New

• Added Polish localization
• Bug fix: In the extension preferences page, resetting the keyboard shortcut doesn't appear to work if it was changed from Manage Extension Shortcuts in Add-ons Manager
  

Things You Should Know About

• The Hide and Replace action won't work if Firefox is set to "Never remember history" in Privacy & Security settings.
• The Hide and Replace action is unable to restore any browser tabs displaying Firefox pages such as Add-ons Manager and Firefox Settings.
  
• On Firefox 115 and newer on macOS and Linux, there is an issue with the "Minimize All Windows" action that occurs if the "Open a new window after all browser windows are minimized" option is selected. If this action is invoked, and then the browser windows are restored by clicking the Panic Button or pressing the keyboard shortcut on the temporary browser window, the restored browser window heights are shrunk down. This issue is not occurring on Windows.
• Any downloads in progress will continue in the background if clicking the Panic Button to hide or minimize all windows. If Close All Windows was selected in extension preferences as the Panic Button action, downloads in progress will be canceled.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Panic Button should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Crowdin contributor jeleniogorzanin for translating Panic Button into Polish!

If you are fluent in English and another world language and would like to help update or add a new translation, consider contributing a translation in Crowdin. Localizations in other languages are always welcome, and will be added in future releases.

Follow-up to Firefox issue on macOS affecting Panic Button's "Minimize All Windows" action

Back in August, I wrote about an issue affecting Panic Button on macOS that occurs if the Panic Button action is set to "Minimize All Windows" and the "Open a new window after all browser windows are minimized" option is selected. More details can be found in this blog post.

Unfortunately, the most recent version of Firefox (version 117 at the time of this post) hasn't fixed the issue. I've investigated further and discovered that this issue is also occurring on Linux (confirmed on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS). The good news is that this issue is not reproducible on Windows, even with the latest Firefox release.

I've opened a bug in Mozilla's Bugzilla database. Until this is resolved, the workaround solution remains the same: users on macOS and Linux should consider turning off the option to open the temporary browser window, or change the Panic Button action to a different selection.

Panic Button 5.0 beta 1 released!

This is a beta release of the next version of Panic Button, the Firefox extension from AE Creations that hides your browser windows from prying eyes with a click of a button. It is being made available for testers and early adopters craving the latest and greatest, and although it is fairly stable, expect to encounter a few inevitable bugs.

Read on to learn more about what's new in this release, and how to get it.

What's New

• Improvements to some of the built-in Panic Button icons
• Enhanced keyboard navigation in the extension preferences page, Change Icon dialog, and the Restore Session page
• Other behind-the-scenes improvements to ensure compatibility with future versions of Firefox
  

Things You Should Know About

• Panic Button 5.0 requires Firefox 115 or newer. 
  
• The version number of this beta release will appear as 4.99.1 in Add-ons Manager.
  
• Panic Button won't work if Firefox is set to "Never remember history" in Privacy & Security settings.

How to Get It

To install this beta release, head over to the Panic Button 5.0 beta 1 page on GitHub. Look for the link to panicbutton-5.0b1.xpi, then click on it to install.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Panic Button should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

If you find a bug, you may file a bug report on GitHub. Please search the issues list first to confirm that your issue has not already been reported.

Monthly update: September 2023

With summer winding down, I am getting back into my projects. For Panic Button 5.0, I'm adding a few more improvements to user interaction in the extension preferences page, the Change Icon popup window and the Restore Session page (the password prompt that appears when restoring the browser session after clicking the Panic Button to hide all browser windows). These enhancements will improve the user experience, especially for those who prefer to navigate through the UI using the keyboard, and bring it one step closer to making it feel more like a native application. If these changes are successful and are well received, I plan on bringing these enhancements to other AE Creations extensions.

The first beta release of Panic Button 5.0 should be expected very soon; keep an eye on this blog if you're interested in getting your hands on it and testing it out!

Minor updates to Clippings and Clippings for Thunderbird have just been released. I am still interested in having the Portuguese (Brazil) localization updated; if you would like to help out, head over to the Crowdin project page.

Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3.1 released!

A minor update to Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3 has been released, and is now available from Add-ons for Thunderbird and the AE Creations website. Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3 requires Thunderbird version 115.

If you already have an older version of Clippings for Thunderbird installed, it will be updated for you if automatic extension updates are enabled. Otherwise, open Add-ons Manager (from the Thunderbird menu, click Add-ons), click on the entry for Clippings for Thunderbird in the list of installed extensions, and then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Check for Updates.

What's New

• Updated Dutch localization

Compatibility

Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3 is compatible with Thunderbird 115. It is not compatible with Thunderbird 102. If you're still on Thunderbird version 102, either upgrade to version 115 to get this new release of Clippings, or stick with Clippings for Thunderbird 6.2.6 for now.

Things You Should Know About

• If you want to use Sync Clippings, download and install the Sync Clippings helper app. More information and download links can be found on the Sync Clippings page on the AE Creations website. 

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Clippings for Thunderbird should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Crowdin contributor Klaas Swart for updating the Dutch localization of Clippings!

If you are fluent in English and another world language and would like to help update or add a new translation, consider contributing a translation in Crowdin. Localizations in other languages are always welcome, and will be added in future releases.

Clippings 6.5.1 released!

A minor update to Clippings 6.5 has been released, and is now available from Firefox Add-ons and the AE Creations website. Clippings 6.5 requires Firefox 102 or newer.

If you already have Clippings installed, it will be upgraded for you if automatic extension updates are enabled. Otherwise, open Add-ons Manager (Tools → Add-ons), click on the entry for Clippings in the list of installed extensions, and then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Check for Updates.

What's New

• Updated Dutch localization
• Minor fixes and improvements

Things You Should Know About

• Thunderbird Users: This version of Clippings is designed for Firefox and is not compatible with Thunderbird. Get Clippings for Thunderbird, which is compatible with Thunderbird versions 102 and 115.
  
• Some features may not be available when Firefox is in Private Browsing mode, or if the browser privacy settings are too restrictive.
• If you want to use Sync Clippings, download and install the Sync Clippings helper app. More information and download links can be found on the Sync Clippings page on the AE Creations website.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Clippings should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Crowdin contributor Klaas Swart for updating the Dutch localization of Clippings!

If you are fluent in English and another world language and would like to help update or add a new translation, consider contributing a translation in Crowdin. Localizations in other languages are always welcome, and will be added in future releases.

Monthly update: August 2023

It is now summer time here in North America, and I plan on spending most of August enjoying the sun and doing some travel. I will still keep up with the messages on the help and support forums, but work on my projects will slow down a bit.

I have made some progress on planned improvements to Panic Button, and work on that will continue to the end of this month, with the goal of getting the first beta release of Panic Button 5.0 into the hands of testers and enthusiasts by early September.

A maintenance release of Clippings and Clippings for Thunderbird is also planned for release in September, which will also include updates to the Dutch localization. Additions or updates to localizations for Clippings and other AE Creations extensions are always welcome, and will be included in future updates.

Firefox issue on macOS affecting Panic Button's "Minimize All Windows" action

Panic Button users on macOS should take note!

There is an issue with the "Minimize All Windows" action that occurs if the "Open a new window after all browser windows are minimized" option is selected. If this action is invoked, and then the browser window states are restored by clicking the Panic Button toolbar button or pressing the keyboard shortcut on the temporary browser window, the restored browser window heights are shrunk down.

 The shrunk-down browser windows after they are restored.

A similar issue happens when the Panic Button action is set to "Minimize Current Window."

This is confirmed to be occurring on Firefox versions 115 and 116 on macOS. This issue is not occurring on Windows.

The good news is that this issue is fixed in Firefox 117, which is due to be released at the end of August. Until then, consider turning off the option to open the temporary browser window, or change the Panic Button action to a different selection. This is understandably a bothersome inconvenience for many users -- indeed, Firefox 117 can't come soon enough!

Read Next 1.1.1 released!

An update to Read Next 1.1, the reading list extension for Firefox from AE Creations, has been released and is now available from Firefox Add-ons and the AE Creations website. Read Next 1.1 requires Firefox 102 or newer.

If you already have an older version of Read Next installed, it will be updated for you if automatic extension updates are enabled. Otherwise, open Add-ons Manager (Tools → Add-ons), click on the entry for Read Next in the list of installed extensions, and then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Check for Updates.

What's New

• Now available in Chinese (Simplified)
• The "Open In Current Tab" menu item in the reading list context menu has been renamed "Open"
• Other fixes and improvements
  

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Read Next should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Crowdin contributor heretic43 for providing the Chinese (Simplified) localization of Read Next!

If you're fluent in English and another world language and would like to help by adding a translation, consider contributing a translation in CrowdIn. Localizations in other languages are always welcome, and will be added in future releases.

Read Next 1.1.1 release candidate 1 released!

This is a release candidate of the next version of Read Next, the reading list extension for Firefox from AE Creations. Unless there are any last-minute showstopper bugs, this may become the official release of Read Next 1.1.1.

Read on to learn what's new in this version of Read Next, and how to get it.

What's New

• Now available in Chinese (Simplified)
  
• The "Open In Current Tab" menu item in the reading list context menu has been renamed "Open"
• Other fixes and improvements
  

How to Get It

If you've installed the previous beta release of Read Next, you'll be automatically updated to this release candidate, if automatic add-on updates are turned on in Firefox.

New users can install this release candidate build by heading over to the Read Next 1.1.1 release candidate 1 page on GitHub and then clicking the link to readnext-1.1.1rc1.xpi. Follow the prompts to complete the installation.

Read Next 1.1.1 requires Firefox 102 or newer.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Read Next should be posted to the AE Creations Help and Support forums, now hosted on Groups.io.

If you find a bug, you may file a bug report on GitHub. Please search the issues list first to confirm that your issue has not already been reported.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Crowdin contributor heretic43 for providing the Chinese (Simplified) localization of Read Next!

If you're fluent in English and another world language and would like to help by adding a translation, consider contributing a translation in CrowdIn. Localizations in other languages are always welcome, and will be added in future releases.