Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 beta 2 released!

This is the second beta release of the next version of Clippings for Thunderbird. It is being made available for testers and early adopters craving the latest and greatest, and are willing to tolerate a few inevitable bugs.

Read on to learn more about what's new in Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0, and how to get it!

What's New

• The Clippings toolbar button in the message compose window has moved from the status bar to the Composition Toolbar. The Clippings toolbar button no longer appears in the main Thunderbird window
• You can now add separators to organize your clippings in the Clippings menu. Separators can be added from Clippings Manager -- right-click on the list of clippings and select Insert Separator from the context menu
• New option to show the shortcut key of a clipping in the Clippings menu. Turn on this setting from the redesigned extension preferences page
• Sync Clippings enhancements: sync data is now compressed, allowing you to sync more of your clippings; also, improved handling of read-only sync files
• When new users install Clippings for Thunderbird, it will only ask for the extension permissions it needs for basic functionality, and will ask to grant additional permissions if turning on Sync Clippings or creating a new clipping from the clipboard for the first time. This is a change from previous versions, where Clippings for Thunderbird requested full, unrestricted access to Thunderbird and your system
• Many behind-the-scenes improvements to ensure compatibility with future versions of Thunderbird
•  New in 7.0b2  New placeholder for embedding a clipping in a clipping. Placeholder syntax: $[CLIPPING(Name of clipping)]
•  New in 7.0b2  On Linux, the option to minimize the Clippings Manager window when it's inactive has been removed, since the window is no longer always on top in recent versions of Thunderbird  

Things You Should Know About

• Users of Clippings for Thunderbird version 5.7 or earlier should take note: Clippings will no longer automatically import your legacy clippings data when upgrading from those old versions. Export your clippings now (select the "Clippings 6" data format) so that you can import them when you're ready to upgrade Clippings to version 7.0 or newer.
  
• Additional extension permissions are now required for some features. When turning on Sync Clippings or performing clipboard actions for the first time, a message box will appear, indicating the extension permission requested and how to grant it. If you're upgrading from an earlier version of Clippings and had Sync Clippings turned on, the necessary permission for this feature will already be enabled.

Compatibility

Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 is compatible with Thunderbird 128 and newer. It is not compatible with Thunderbird 115.x.

The Sync Clippings enhancements require an upgrade of the Sync Clippings Helper app. Read this blog post for details about Sync Clippings 2.0 and how to install the beta release.

How to Get It

IMPORTANT! If you're already using Clippings and want to try the beta release, back up your clippings first before upgrading.

To install this beta release, head over to the Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 beta 2 page on GitHub. Look for the link to clippings-tb-7.0b2.xpi, then right-click on it and select Save Link As, then choose a folder location on your system (for example, the Desktop). Then follow these step-by-step instructions from the Mozilla Support website to install Clippings in Thunderbird.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Clippings 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.

Clippings 7.0 beta 1 released!

This is the first beta release of the next version of Clippings. It is being made available for testers and early adopters craving the latest and greatest, and are willing to tolerate a few inevitable bugs.

Read on to learn more about what's new in Clippings 7.0, and how to get it!

What's New

• Copy clipping text to the clipboard by right-clicking on a clipping in Clippings Manager or in the new Clippings Sidebar
• Create a clipping from the contents of the clipboard in Clippings Manager (Tools → New From Clipboard). This enhancement finally brings back a feature that existed in Clippings for Firefox prior to version 6.0
  
• You can now add separators to organize your clippings in the Clippings menu. Separators can be added from Clippings Manager -- right-click on the list of clippings and select Insert Separator from the context menu
  
• New option to show the shortcut key of a clipping in the Clippings menu. Turn on this setting from the redesigned extension preferences page
• New placeholder for embedding a clipping in a clipping. Placeholder syntax: $[CLIPPING(Name of clipping)].
  
• On Linux, the option to minimize the Clippings Manager window when it's inactive is now turned off by default
  
• Sync Clippings enhancements: sync data is now compressed, allowing you to sync more of your clippings; also, improved handling of read-only sync files
• Many behind-the-scenes improvements to ensure compatibility with future versions of Firefox

Things You Should Know About

• The version number of this beta release will appear as 6.99.1 in Add-ons Manager.
• Additional extension permissions are now required for some features. When turning on Sync Clippings or performing actions involving the clipboard for the first time, a message box will appear, indicating the extension permission requested and how to grant it. If you're upgrading from an earlier version of Clippings and had Sync Clippings turned on, the necessary permission for this feature will already be enabled.
  

Compatibility

Clippings 7.0 is compatible with Firefox 128 or newer, as well as Firefox 128 ESR.

The Sync Clippings enhancements require an upgrade of the Sync Clippings Helper app. Read this blog post for details about Sync Clippings 2.0 and how to install the beta release.

How to Get It

IMPORTANT! If you're already using Clippings and want to try the beta release, back up your clippings first before upgrading.

To install this beta release, head over to the Clippings 7.0 beta 1 page on GitHub. Look for the link to clippings-7.0b1.xpi, then click on it and follow the prompts to add it to Firefox.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Clippings 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.

Clippings 6.5.7 released!

Another update to Clippings 6.5, the Firefox extension from AE Creations that lets you save frequently-entered text for later pasting into web page forms, 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

• Bug fix: Message bar icons in Clippings Manager are almost invisible in Firefox 128 when using dark mode color themes (issue #474)
• Other 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 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.

Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3.6 released!

Another 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. This update introduces compatibility with Thunderbird version 128, the next major release of the popular email client which is currently in beta.

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

• Compatible with Thunderbird 128

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.

Sync Clippings Helper 2.0 beta 1 released!

A beta release of the next version of the Sync Clippings Helper application is now available for testers and early adopters trying out the new Sync Clippings features found in Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 (and soon, Clippings 7.0 for Firefox). Read on to learn more about how to get it, things you should know about, and how to report a bug.

(If you've just stumbled upon this blog post and don't know what Sync Clippings is, you can learn more about this feature of the Clippings add-on for Firefox and Thunderbird on the AE Creations website.)

What's New

• Supports sync data compression, allowing you to sync more of your clippings. The option to compress sync data is turned on by default in Clippings preferences
• Proper handling of read-only sync files. Creating or modifying a clipping or folder in the Synced Clippings folder is not permitted if the sync file is read-only
  

 Things You Should Know About

• Sync Clippings Helper 2.0 is backwards compatible with older versions of Clippings. Or rather, it should be -- testers are welcome to verify this!
  
• The macOS installer package is not available for this beta release; it will be available at a later date. Until then, see the next section, "How to Get It," for instructions on installing this beta release on macOS
• If you're installing Sync Clippings Helper using the setup shell script, make sure that Python 3 and the Tkinter package (python3-tk) is installed on your system. The setup script will check for those dependencies and will inform you if they aren't found.

How to Get It

Sync Clippings Helper is available as a Windows setup program (requires Windows 7 or newer) and a shell script for Linux and macOS that can be run from the command line. Get them from the Sync Clippings Helper 2.0 beta 1 page on GitHub.

To install on macOS, run the Linux setup shell script, which works on both Intel and Apple Silicon systems.

If you're already running Sync Clippings Helper on Windows, you can install this beta release over your current version. On macOS and Linux, the setup script will automatically detect and prompt you to upgrade a previous version of Sync Clippings Helper.

Help and Support

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

If you find a bug with the Sync Clippings Helper app or its installers, you may file a bug report on GitHub. Please search the issues list first to confirm that your issue has not already been reported.

Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 beta 1 released!

This is the first beta release of the next version of Clippings for Thunderbird. It is being made available for testers and early adopters craving the latest and greatest, and are willing to tolerate a few inevitable bugs.

Read on to learn more about what's new in Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0, and how to get it!

What's New

• The Clippings toolbar button in the message compose window has moved from the status bar to the Composition Toolbar. The Clippings toolbar button is no longer available in the main Thunderbird window
• You can now add separators to organize your clippings in the Clippings menu. Separators can be added from Clippings Manager -- right-click on the list of clippings and select Insert Separator from the context menu
• New option to show the shortcut key of a clipping in the Clippings menu. Turn on this setting from the redesigned extension preferences page
• On Linux, the option to minimize the Clippings Manager window when it's inactive is now turned off by default
  
• Sync Clippings enhancements: sync data is now compressed, allowing you to sync more of your clippings; also, improved handling of read-only sync files
• Many behind-the-scenes improvements to ensure compatibility with future versions of Thunderbird
  

Compatibility

Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 is compatible with the latest beta release of Thunderbird 128. It is not compatible with Thunderbird 115.x.

The Sync Clippings enhancements require an upgrade of the Sync Clippings Helper app. An announcement of a beta release of the next version of Sync Clippings Helper will be posted here shortly.

How to Get It

IMPORTANT! If you're already using Clippings and want to try the beta release, back up your clippings first before upgrading.

To install this beta release, head over to the Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 beta 1 page on GitHub. Look for the link to clippings-tb-7.0b1.xpi, then right-click on it and select Save Link As, then choose a folder location on your system (for example, the Desktop). Then follow these step-by-step instructions from the Mozilla Support website to install Clippings in Thunderbird.

Help and Support

Questions and comments about Clippings 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: July 2024

I've been repeatedly postponing the release of the first beta build of Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 due to some additional work that I wanted to get done, and I admit that I've fallen victim to scope creep. But it is now in a state where it's almost ready for release; there are still parts where it feels like it's half finished, but at least it's usable enough for testing. There's just some minor tweaks I'm making to the folder icon that appears in the Clippings menu and Clippings Manager, but that should be it....

Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 will require an upcoming version of the Thunderbird email client. Thunderbird 128 is currently in beta testing (it's available from the Thunderbird website) and a public release is expected very soon.

What about Clippings for Firefox? Work on the next version of Clippings for the Firefox web browser is currently in progress. This new version of the Firefox extension will have most of the same features found in Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 but with a few additional enhancements, including a new Clippings sidebar in the browser window. The first beta build of Clippings 7.0 for Firefox is planned for release in a few weeks -- keep an eye on this blog for the beta release announcement!

The improvements to Sync Clippings that are coming in Clippings 7.0 will require upgrading to a new version of Sync Clippings Helper, so also watch for an announcement of a beta release of this background helper application.

Clippings 6.5.6.1 released!

This update to Clippings 6.5.6 fixes a bug that is occurring on Linux. It is now available from Firefox Add-ons and the AE Creations website.

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

• Bug fix: On Linux, pasting a clipping with placeholders doesn't work (issue #463)
  

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 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.

Clippings bug on Linux: Pasting a clipping containing placeholders doesn't work

The latest version of Clippings that was released last week introduced a regression bug where pasting a clipping containing a placeholder doesn't work. This issue is occurring on Linux only, and is being tracked in this GitHub issue.

An update to Clippings 6.5.6 with a fix for this issue is currently under review by the Firefox Add-ons editors. An announcement will be posted here when it's released.

In the meantime, Linux users can work around this issue by downgrading to version 6.5.5, which is available from the Clippings version history page on the AE Creations website. Those who are interested in trying out the update with the bug fix can install a beta release of Clippings 6.5.6.1 from GitHub.

Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3.5 released!

Another 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

• Minor fixes and improvements
  

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.

Clippings 6.5.6 released!

Another update to Clippings 6.5, the Firefox extension from AE Creations that lets you save frequently-entered text for later pasting into web page forms, 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

• Bug fix: Ampersands (&) don't appear in the Clippings menu for folder names (issue #422)
• Bug fix: On macOS, pasting a clipping using keyboard paste or containing placeholders doesn't work in full-screen browser windows (issue #432)
• Other 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 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.

Sync Clippings Helper doesn't work on Firefox releases packaged with Snap or Flatpak

There's a known issue affecting Firefox releases that are distributed with Ubuntu 22.04 and Fedora 40; both of these Linux distributions use Snap and Flatpak, respectively, to distribute software packages. Firefox releases that were installed via these package managers are unable to connect to Sync Clippings Helper.

A symptom of this issue is an error that appears when trying to open the Sync Clippings settings dialog from the extension preferences page:

The About dialog also shows that Sync Clippings Helper is not installed, even if it is:

To work around this issue, download Firefox for Linux from the Mozilla website and install that instead of from the default package manager in Ubuntu, Fedora or other affected Linux distributions.

Monthly update: June 2024

Work is progressing well on the next version of Clippings. The work I've done in the last two releases has paid off, making the conversion to Manifest V3 fairly smooth. That means more time can be spent on implementing the same new features from Clippings for Thunderbird, and maybe even fit in one extra enhancement.

In the meantime, a minor release of Clippings 6.5 and Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3 will be out soon, which contains a few bug fixes, such as one for a macOS-specific issue where I was able to find a suitable fix that was less complicated than a larger UI revamp that I originally had in mind. Proving that keeping it simple is the way to go!

Read Next 1.1.5 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

• Bug 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 6.3.4 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

• Added special handling of import files created from future versions of Clippings

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.

Clippings 6.5.5 released!

An update to Clippings 6.5, the Firefox extension from AE Creations that lets you save frequently-entered text for later pasting into web page forms, 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

• Added special handling of import files created from future versions of Clippings
  
• 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.

Monthly update: May 2024

Much progress has been made on the next version of Clippings for Thunderbird, and I plan on releasing the first beta build to testers and early adopters soon. Separators in the Clippings menu, compressed sync data, and user interface improvements are just a few things to look forward to in Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0!

In the meantime, minor updates to Clippings, Clippings for Thunderbird and Read Next will be coming in mid-May, at around the same time that Firefox 126 is due to be released. After that, I'll be switching my focus to Clippings for Firefox, beginning with migrating the extension to Manifest V3 (MV3) which is expected to be a fairly large effort. Most of the new features and improvements that are coming in Clippings for Thunderbird 7.0 will also be included.

Working on these projects take a lot of time, effort and motivation to bring them to fruition for you and thousands of users around the world. Show your support for my work by making a donation through Liberapay or PayPal. Your generosity is very much appreciated!

Clippings 6.5.4 released!

An update to Clippings 6.5, the Firefox extension from AE Creations that lets you save frequently-entered text for later pasting into web page forms, 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

• Bug fix: Error when redoing new clipping creation by drag 'n drop into Clippings Manager (issue #443)

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.

Clippings for Thunderbird 6.3.3 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

• Bug fix: Error when redoing new clipping creation by drag 'n drop into Clippings Manager (issue #161)

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.

Monthly update: April 2024

April is a busy month for me, with work continuing on the next version of Clippings for Thunderbird which also includes new features for Sync Clippings. I will be coming back to the current versions of Clippings and Clippings for Thunderbird to release a minor update with a bug fix for Clippings Manager.

Panic Button 5.0 was released last week. It has only been localized in Polish, but contributions for other languages are always welcome. If you'd like to help, go to the Crowdin project for Panic Button.

Panic Button 5.0 released!

Panic Button is the Firefox extension from AE Creations that quickly hides your browser windows from curious eyes with a click of a button. Panic Button 5.0 is the newest version of this extension, and it's 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

• 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. 
  
• Panic Button 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.
• 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.

Panic Button 5.0 release candidate 1 released!

A release candidate build is now available for Panic Button, the Firefox extension from AE Creations that hides your browser windows from curious eyes with a click of a button. Unless there are any last-minute showstopper bugs, this may become the official release of Panic Button 5.0.

Read on to learn more about what's new in this version of Panic Button, 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 release candidate build will appear as 4.999.1 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 preview release, head over to the Panic Button 5.0 release candidate 1 page on GitHub. Look for the link to panicbutton-5.0rc1.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.

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.

Clippings 6.5.3 released!

An update to Clippings 6.5, the Firefox extension from AE Creations that lets you save frequently-entered text for later pasting into web page forms, 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

• Bug fix: Unexpected change in appearance of checkboxes and drop-down menu buttons in Firefox 124 (issue #442)
• Other 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.

Read Next 1.1.4 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

• Bug fix: Unexpected change in appearance of checkboxes and drop-down menu buttons in Firefox 124 (issue #81)
  

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.

Panic Button 4.4.6 released!

An update to Panic Button 4.4, the Firefox extension that quickly hides your browser windows from curious eyes with a click of a button, 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

• Bug fix: Unexpected change in appearance of checkboxes and drop-down menu buttons in Firefox 124 (issue #91)
  

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.
  
• 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.

Updates to AE Creations extensions for Firefox 124

Firefox version 124, which is planned for release on Tuesday, March 19th, changes the appearance of some user interface elements in the extension preferences page and other extension pages, dialogs and windows. This change will affect all Firefox extensions by AE Creations.

The UI appearance changes are unexpected and unwelcome, and a minor update for Clippings, Panic Button and Read Next is needed to revert them. The plan is to get them out a few days in advance to give all users time to update before Firefox 124 is released. The release timing for Clippings will be a bit tricky due to it requiring review by a Firefox Add-ons editor, since it is a Recommended Extension.

Make sure to turn on automatic extension updates in Add-ons Manager, and watch this blog for release announcements.

Monthly update: March 2024

I'm making progress on migrating the remaining legacy XUL-based user interface code in Clippings for Thunderbird to the MailExtensions API. There's still one feature remaining to migrate, as well as removal of remaining code that uses legacy APIs.

I recently released a minor update to Clippings 6.5.2 to fix an issue that caused it to stop working when pasting a clipping into the message composer in X, the website previously known as Twitter. A new update for Clippings will be released soon, at around the same time as the next release of Firefox, to make some minor updates and improvements before I begin migrating Clippings to Manifest V3 (MV3).

The preview release of Panic Button 5.0 has been out for a while, and there have been no new issues reported. It's time to make it official -- a release candidate will be out soon, so watch this blog for the release announcement. Updates to localizations for Panic Button are still very much welcome; if you would like to help, consider contributing a translation in CrowdIn.

Clippings 6.5.2.2 released!

A minor revision to Clippings 6.5.2 has been released to fix an issue that is occurring when pasting a clipping into a new post in X, the website formerly known as Twitter. It 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

• Bug fix: Clippings no longer works on Twitter (also known as X) (issue #441)
  

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.

Monthly update: February 2024

I've experimented with Thunderbird MailExtension APIs for inserting text into the message composer, obtaining text from the clipboard using the Clipboard API, and optional permissions in the extension manifest. I'm now ready to begin migrating the remaining legacy code in Clippings for Thunderbird, with the goal of making it a 100% MailExtension, and this will be my main focus this month.

Also, I'm aiming to add a few improvements to Sync Clippings Helper -- specifically, compressing the data between this native messaging app and the Firefox or Thunderbird extension, and handling read-only sync files to prevent modification.

Clippings 6.5.2.1 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

• 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.

Panic Button 5.0 preview release 2 released!

Panic Button 5.0 is an upcoming new version of the Firefox extension from AE Creations that hides your browser windows from prying eyes with a click of a button. This second preview release comes with a bug fix and is being made available for testers and early adopters craving the latest and greatest.

Read on to learn what's new in version 5.0, 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 5.0pre2  A blue dot appears below the Panic Button toolbar button icon, and an extra menu item in the toolbar button context menu, indicating that there are there are permissions that needs approval even though there actually aren't any

Things You Should Know About

• Panic Button 5.0 requires Firefox 115 or newer. 
  
• The version number of this preview release will appear as 4.998.2 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 preview release, head over to the Panic Button 5.0 preview release 2 page on GitHub. Look for the link to panicbutton-5.0pre2.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.

Translators Needed!

Panic Button needs to be updated for French, German and Portuguese (Brazil) -- and as always, translations in other languages are welcome! If you would like to help by adding or updating a translation, consider contributing a translation in CrowdIn.

Monthly update: January 2024

With the new year well underway, it's time to jump back into my projects and start making progress on the enhancements and updates to the extensions for Firefox and Thunderbird.

A preview release of Panic Button 5.0 is now available for those that crave the latest and greatest. I'm backporting the improved toolbar button icons and a few cosmetic fixes from that release to version 4.5, which will be the next minor release of this Firefox extension. Watch here for updates on this new version.

I managed to find time to do some research over the holidays to inform the planned changes coming to Clippings. There's still more work to do to confirm the feasibility of converting Clippings for Thunderbird to a full MailExtension which I'll be focusing on this month.

Panic Button 5.0 Preview Release 1 released!

Panic Button 5.0 is an upcoming new version of the Firefox extension from AE Creations that hides your browser windows from prying eyes with a click of a button. This preview release is being made available for testers and early adopters craving the latest and greatest, and are willing to tolerate a few bugs.

(What's a preview release? Unlike a release candidate, preview releases may still have some minor issues, and localizations may be incomplete.)

Read on to learn what's new in version 5.0, 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 preview release will appear as 4.998.1 in Add-ons Manager.
  
• Panic Button won't work if Firefox is set to "Never remember history" in Privacy & Security settings.

Known Issues

• A blue dot may appear below the Panic Button toolbar button icon, as well as an extra menu item in the toolbar button context menu, indicating that there are there are permissions that needs approval even though there actually aren't any.

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

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

How to Get It

To install this preview release, head over to the Panic Button 5.0 preview release 1 page on GitHub. Look for the link to panicbutton-5.0pre1.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.

Translators Needed!

Panic Button needs to be updated for French, German and Portuguese (Brazil) -- and as always, translations in other languages are welcome! If you would like to help by adding or updating a translation, consider contributing a translation in CrowdIn.