Firefox/Chrome: Gmail's address book is nice, but isn't mind-blowing.

Many of us probably right-click on links to open them in new tabs or search for text on Google. Reader hackbreaker shows us another quick way: just drag links or text to the tab bar. More »

The stable channel of Chrome has finally updated to version 10, with a lot of cool new features. Reader os points out one we overlooked: you can now search for the setting you want in the Preferences menu. More »

Jolicloud, once only a cloud-focused Linux distro for netbooks, has been re-branded as Joli OS. The company's focus has shifted slightly, though the goal is still to provide access to a fun, easy-to-use Internet experience. In addition to offering the OS itself, the Joli "cloud" portion will become a Web-based launchpad which users can install in Google Chrome (already available), Safari, Firefox, and even on the iPad.

The company has also announced a set of changes in the Joli OS 1.2 update, which brings an integrated file browser, an automatic Jolicloud login option, and Guest mode -- for those times when you want to let a friend take your Joli OS-powered notebook for a spin.

Chrome: If you find that all of Google Reader's extra social features just get in your way, Minimalist Google Reader will let you slim down the interface quite nicely, while also adding a useful shortcut that opens links in the background. More »

Most Desktop and Mobile Platforms: There's no shortage of digital comic book readers out there, but new service Graphic.ly stands apart: instead of downloading CBR files, you build up a library from their web store and sync it across all your devices. More »

If there's one single thing that truly sets Chrome apart from its herd of rivals, it's the Omnibar. Chrome users already know and love this feature, but Google's just made it possible for developers to create extensions that will push it even farther ahead of the competition by providing an API for it. Now, there are already huge numbers of extensions available for Chrome -- many of which we here at Download Squad couldn't live without -- but none of them have thus far been able to make full use of the Omnibar.

As an example of how the API can be used, take a look at Switch to Tab, shown above. It allows users who leave ridiculous amounts of tabs open to use the Omnibar to search them all for the specific tab they need to find. It only shows up to 5 results right now, but the concept is pretty decent just the same -- and there's no telling what kind of goodies that devs will come up with now that they can treat a browser's address bar like a command line.

Google's Chrome beta update brings with it a slew of goodies for the adventurous users who prefer slightly more cutting-edge features over tried-and-true stability. Version 10.0.648.82 hit the beta channel earlier today, and it affected just about every piece of the browser, from the settings interface to the rendering engine.

First and foremost, the already-impressive V8 "Crankshaft" JavaScript engine has been updated. Along with the addition of GPU-accelerated video, that means browsing with Chrome is going to be noticeably snappier than with the previous version. This is no placebo effect, either; according to the Official Chrome Blog, the V8 version used in this beta shows a 66% performance increase over the current stable release.

Browser settings are now opened in their own tab, as opposed to a separate window. The added space and cleaner layout that this provides is actually quite nice, and when you think about it, a browser that can use multiple tabs really has no reason to make new windows at all, so it just makes sense. One cool side-effect of moving settings into a tab is that they're actually browsable, meaning that if you get good enough at it, you can go directly to the page for certain settings just by using its address -- like "chrome://settings/advanced" or "chrome://settings/browser."

Whether you have multiple users or just want different setups for work and play, multiple browser profiles are handy. Instead of going through the trouble to set them up, though, reader cbstryker recommends just using Chrome and Chromium side-by-side instead.

Chrome: Adding extra features to Gmail isn't a new idea, but Minimalist Gmail for Chrome is the best tweaker yet: You can hide items, add row highlights, and even change the five Google links at the

We've previously shown you how to move your Firefox cache to