The Library can be used to manage the properties (name and address location) for each bookmark and organize the bookmarks into folders and sections. It resembles Figure 20.3, “The Firefox Bookmark Library”.

Figure 20.3. The Firefox Bookmark Library

To open the Library, click Bookmark+Organise Bookmarks. The library window is split into two parts: the left pane shows the folder tree view, the right pane the subfolders and bookmarks of the selected folder. Use Views to customize the right pane. The left pane contains three main folders:

Organize your bookmarks using the right pane. Choose actions for folders or bookmarks either from the context menu that opens when you right-click on an item or from the Organise dialog. The properties of a chosen folder or bookmark can be edited in the bottom part of the right pane. By default, only Name, Location, and Tags are displayed for a bookmark. Click More to gain access to all properties.

Use drag and drop to rearrange your bookmarks. Left-click a bookmark and drag it to a new position while holding the mouse button pressed. Drop it by releasing the mouse button. You can use this technique to move a bookmark or a folder to a different folder, or to change the order of bookmarks in a folder.

Tags offer a convenient way to file a bookmark under several categories. You can tag a bookmark with as much terms as you want. For example, to access all sites tagged with suse enter suse into the location bar. Whats more, a smart bookmark folder for each tag is automatically created in the tags folder of the library. Drag and drop a smart bookmark for a tag onto your bookmark toolbar or into a folder of your bookmarks menu to easily access it.

To add tags to a bookmark, open the bookmark in Firefox and click on the yellow star in the location bar. The Edit This Bookmark dialog opens where you can add a comma separated list of tags. It is also possible to add tags via the bookmark's properties dialog which you can open in the library or by right-clicking on a bookmark in the menu or the toolbar.

If you used a different browser in the past, you probably want to use your old bookmarks in Firefox, too. Firefox can automatically import bookmarks from other browsers installed on your system, such as Netscape or Opera. You also can import bookmarks from a file exported from a browser on different computer or from a backup.

To import bookmarks from another browser or from a file in HTML format, open the library by choosing Bookmarks+Organise Bookmarks. Start the Import Wizard by choosing Import and Backup+Import HTML... and choose an import location. Start the import by clicking Next. Bookmarks from another browser are imported to a separate folder under the bookmarks menu named From Browser Name. Imports from an HTML file are imported as is.

Exporting bookmarks is also done via the Import and Backup dialog in the library window. To save your bookmarks as an HTML file, choose Export HTML.... In order to create or restore a backup of your bookmarks, choose Backup... or Restore. Firefox uses the JavaScript Object Notation file format (.json) for backups.

Live bookmarks display headlines in your bookmark menu and keep you up to date with the latest news. This enables you to save time with one glance at your favorite sites. Live bookmarks update automatically.

Many sites and blogs support this format. A Web site indicates this by showing an orange icon in the right part of the location bar. Click the icon and choose Subscribe Now in the page that opens. A dialog box opens in which to select the name and location of your live bookmark. Confirm with Add. This page also lets you choose alternative applications to subscribe to, such as Bloglines, or My Yahoo.

Smart bookmarks are virtual bookmark folders that are dynamically updated. By default, three smart bookmark folders are already predefined: the Most Visited links are available from your bookmarks toolbar, Recently Bookmarked links and Recent Tags are located in the bookmarks menu. You can create new smart bookmarks by searching for certain entries in your library.

To create a new smart bookmark, open the library by choosing Bookmarks+Organise Bookmarks and proceed as follows:

Creating a smart bookmark from your saved bookmarks creates an up-to-date filtered view on your bookmarks that only changes when you add or delete bookmarks matching the search term. A smart bookmark folder based on your browsing history dynamically changes as you surf the Web. Every time you browse a site that matches the search term, it gets “added” to your smart bookmark. For this reason, it is recommended to use search terms as specific as possible. If you are interested in links to SUSE Linux specific topics as opposed to general Linux topics, use SUSE Linux rather than Linux.

Clearing the private data also deletes the browsing history (unless configured otherwise) and so will also clear history based smart bookmarks!

The Bookmarks Toolbar is displayed beneath the location bar and lets you quickly access bookmarks. You can also add, organize, and edit bookmarks directly. By default the Bookmarks Toolbar is populated with a predefined set of bookmarks organized in several folders (see Figure 20.1, “The Browser Window of Firefox”).

To manage the Bookmarks Toolbar you can use the library as described in Section 20.3.1, “Organizing Bookmarks”. Its content is located in the Bookmarks Toolbar Folder. It is also possible to manage the toolbar directly. To add a folder, bookmark, or separator, right-click on an empty space in the toolbar and choose the appropriate entry from the pop-up menu. For adding the current page to the bar use drag and drop: left-click on the Web page's icon in the location bar and drag it to the desired position on the bookmarks toolbar while holding the mouse button pressed. Hovering over an existing bookmark folder for a short while will automatically open it, enabling you to place the bookmark within this folder.

To manage a certain folder or bookmark, right-click on it. A pop-up menu opens which lets you Delete it or change its Properties. To move or copy an entry, choose Cut, or Copy and Paste it to the desired position.