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EdgeWare Firefox Extension Version 1.3.5

January 21, 2024
The EdgeWare Firefox Extension (along with your pointing device) advances browsing by creating an ergonomically superior environment which is physically fast and easy to use.*1

Specifically, after the EdgeWare extension is installed, the entire left margin of the Firefox viewport (the area which displays web content) becomes the EdgeWare Click-Field.*2

Thereafter, when the cursor is in the EdgeWare Click-Field, you will see it change to the press indicator (  ), and you can then execute EdgeWare Actions (EWAs) assigned to the mouse button clicks and wheel scroll directions.

Although this document may seem lengthy, if you go through all of it once, and practice using EdgeWare Actions, you will be rewarded with a more pleasing and productive browsing experience.

EWAs may be identical to normal Firefox actions (Browser Back, Undo Closed Tab, etc), enhanced Firefox actions (Tabs Close Others (No Prompt), etc), or unique to EdgeWare (Audio Mute All But Current, Tabs Toggle New Focus, etc).

All of the Actions, however, can be performed without even looking!

It's just a swipe of the mouse to maximum left, and then button clicks or wheel scrolls.

This environment greatly increases the speed and ease of your surfing experience by allowing you to very quickly and easily: with minimal hand-eye coordination.

Note:
In order to utilize a Middle-Click in the EdgeWare Click-Field, you must disable the standard Firefox autoscrolling feature as follows:

Note:
In order to swipe the cursor and hit the Click-Field easily, you should maximize the window that Firefox is running in: the left margin of the window will then line up precisely with the left edge of the screen.
Then, after swiping, you can just continue to drift left with your hand as you click or scroll and not overshoot the Click-Field.
Alternatively, you can increase the Setting "Click-Field Width" to create a larger target for your pointing device. See Settings below.

Note:
In this document, the pointing device described is a 3-button mouse.
Other devices can be utilized (with some minor adjustments, perhaps). See Customization below.

Configuration

An EdgeWare Configuration consists of EWAs (EdgeWare Actions) and Settings:

Default EWAs

The EdgeWare Actions for the default configuration are as follows:

 Buttons 
Left Middle Right
Single-Click > Page Backward Tabs Close Current Page Forward
Double-Click > Zoom In Tabs New Home Audio Mute All But Current
Long-Click > Page Scroll to Top Tabs Undo Close Audio Mute Toggle
Left then Right Right then Left
Serial-Click > Tabs Toggle New Focus Tabs Close Others


 Wheel 
Scroll-Up > Tabs Next
Scroll-Down > Tabs Previous

Hint

The default EdgeWare Actions "Page Backward" and "Tabs Close Current" are probably the two most powerful EWAs available:
They make surfing around the web very quick and easy ---
Additionally, with the use of EWA Tabs Toggle New Focus (Serial‑Left‑Right) you can have new tabs automatically open in the background (for later reference) or foreground (for active media).
See details below.

Page Backward / Page Forward

Left-Click (that is, swiping the mouse to extreme left and clicking the left button once) performs the same funtion as the browser's "Back" button, going back one page in the current tab, but is infinitely easier to execute.

Right-Click, similarly allows you to go Forward in the current tab's page history. This is the same as the browser Forward button, but again, is much easier to use.

Tabs Close Current

Middle-Click (swiping the mouse to extreme left and clicking the middle button once) will close the current (foreground) tab, and make the previous tab current.

If you execute this Action on a pinned tab, it will not close (nothing will happen), and if you execute this Action on the last (only) tab in the window, the action specified in Settings / Tabs Close Last Action will be executed.

Zoom In

Double-Left-Click (that is, swiping the mouse to extreme left and clicking the left button twice) executes Firefox's FullZoom Zoom-In function (the same as the "ctrl +" key combination), enlarging text and images proportionately.

Note:
When zooming-in (enlarging), keep an eye on the bottom margin of the browser viewport: If the page view becomes so large horizontally that Firefox cannot display all of it, a scroll bar will appear.

Tabs New Home

Double-Middle-Click creates a new tab and loads the Home page.

Audio Mute All But Current

Double-Right-Click causes the current tab to be the only un-muted tab.

Page Scroll To Top

Long-Left-Click (that is, swiping the mouse to extreme left clicking the left button, holding (longer than the Long-Click Time period), then releasing scrolls to the top of the current page. This is particularly useful when a navigation menu or table of contents is available.

Tabs Undo Close

Long-Middle-Click re-opens the last tab that was closed.

Audio Mute Toggle

Long-Right-Click toggles the mute state of the current tab.

Tabs Toggle New Focus

Serial-Left-Right (that is, clicking first the left button, releasing it, then clicking the right button) toggles new tab focus, as follows:
By default, Middle-Click on a link creates a new tab in the "background". That is, it is placed in the Tab Bar, but is not visible (does not have "focus") until made "current" by actually clicking the tab.
This works well when selecting multiple links to view after, say, a web search (see Tabbed Browsing Usage below).

However, if you Middle-Click media links (videos, music, etc), they may begin to play immediately, or if you just want to view a new tab immediately, you can cause each new tab to open in the "foreground" (with "focus") by executing this function.

New tabs will thereafter open in the foreground, until you execute Serial-Left-Right again, to toggle this setting to its previous state.

Note that there is no indication of this Action: You will only see the results when you middle-click on a link.

Tabs Close Others

Serial-Right-Left (that is, clicking first the right button, releasing it, then clicking the left button) causes all tabs except the current one to be closed.

Tabs Next / Previous

Scroll-Up (that is, swiping the mouse to extreme left and scrolling the mouse wheel up) makes the Next tab the current one: It will become visible (in the foreground).
You don't have to search the Tab Bar to locate the current tab and then click the "next" one.

Scroll-Down makes the Previous tab current.

All Actions

The complete list of EdgeWare Actions currently supported is as follows:
Name Description
Audio Focus First UnMuted Make first not-muted tab the current tab (left-to-right)
Audio Mute All Mute Audio for all Tabs
Audio Mute All But Current Mute Audio for all but the current Tab
Audio Mute Toggle Toggle Audio Mute setting for current Tab
EdgeWare All Actions Menu Show a menu of All EdgeWare Actions (this list) for execution (also ShiftKey + Left-Click in Click-Field).
See All Actions Menu below.
EdgeWare Options Panel Open EdgeWare Options panel (also CtrlKey + Left-Click in Click-Field)
History Pages Show a selection menu of Previous Pages to load in a new Tab
n/a No Action occurs.
However, when a button's Double-Click Action is set to this, it's Single-Click Action is executed instantly.
See Fast Single-Click below.
Page Backward Load previous page in current Tab (browser 'Back' button)
Page Forward Load next page in current Tab (browser 'Forward' button)
Page Homepage Load Home page in current Tab
Page Reload Reload page in current Tab (browser 'Reload' button)
Page Scroll to Top Scroll to top of current page
Page Scroll to Bottom Scroll to bottom of current page
Page Scroll Down Scroll down one full screen
Page Scroll Up Scroll up one full screen
Page Shift Left Shift current page to the left
Page Shift Right Shift current page to the right
Tabs Next Make next Tab current (foreground)
Tabs Previous Make previous Tab current (foreground)
Tabs Close Current Close current Tab, or take specified action if Last Tab
Tabs Close Others Close all Tabs except current Tab
Tabs Close All To Right Close all Tabs to right of current Tab
Tabs New Blank Create a new blank Tab
Tabs New Home Create a new Tab and load Home page
Tabs New NewTab Create a new Tab and load the "Newtab" page
Tabs Duplicate Create a duplicate of the current Tab
Tabs Toggle New Focus Switch between newly-created Tabs opening in the foreground or background
Tabs Undo Close Re-Open last closed Tab
Window Close Close the current Window
Window New Open a new browser Window
Window FullScreen Toggle Toggle window Full Screen mode
Window Minimize Make current window Minimized
Zoom In Full-Zoom enlarge current page
Zoom Out Full-Zoom reduce current page

All Actions Menu

The EdgeWare "All Actions" EWA causes a popup menu of all the available EdgeWare actions to be displayed. You may then click any EWA, or dismiss the popup by moving the cursor off the menu.

Thus, by assigning this EWA to a mouse-click, you can execute any EdgeWare Action by a simple swipe and 2 clicks: One to popup the menu, and one to execute the desired EWA.

Additionally, the "All Actions Menu" is always available by ShiftKey + Left-Click (in the Click-Field).

Fast Single-Click

Normally, when you execute an EWA click, EdgeWare waits to detect a possible Double-, Long-, or Serial-Click.

However you can bypass this wait time and instantly execute the EWA Single-Click assigned to a button by AltKey + Click.
That is, by holding down the "AltKey" and then Left-, Middle-, or Right-Clicking, you will execute the Single-Click EWA defined for that button instantly.

Alternatively, you can customize a button's Double-Click EWA with the "n/a" Action. Thereafter, EdgeWare will automatically execute that button's Single-Click EWA instantly.*3
This provides "Fast Single-Click Action" (with no keypress required), but sacrifices the button's Double- and Long-Click Actions, as they can never be executed.

Key + Click

EdgeWare supports the following Key + Click combinations (in the Click-Field).
These functions are executed by holding down the specified key and then clicking the indicated button.
Key + Click EWA / Description
AltKey + button Fast Single-Click /
Executes the Single-Click EWA assigned to the button instantly.
See Fast Single-Click for details.
ShiftKey + Left-Click EdgeWare All Actions /
Shows the popup menu of All EdgeWare Actions for immediate execution
CtrlKey + Left-Click EdgeWare Options /
Opens the EdgeWare Options panel for Customization

Settings

The EdgeWare Settings currently supported are as follows:
Name Description
Click-Field Width Specifies the width of the Click-Field
Click-Field Color Specifies the color of the Click-Field
Double-Click Delay Specifies the maximum time allowed between the two clicks for a double-click
Long-Click Delay Specifes the time required to hold a button down for a Long-Click
Tabs Close Last Action Specifies the action when "Tabs Close Current" on the Last Tab
Popup Menu Font Size Specifies the popup menu font size for ease of use
All Actions Menu Columns Specifies the number of columns for the "All Actions Menu" popup menu.

Customization

The default EdgeWare configuration described above is designed for general web browsing with a 3-button mouse.

However, all EWAs can be reassigned as desired, and thus used for any device or browsing situation.

Use the following procedures to Customize EdgeWare:

Either:
   1. Execute EWA CtrlKey + Left-Click (in the Click-Field).
or:
   2. If the EWA "EdgeWare Options" is assigned to a button, execute it.
or:
   3a. Click the Firefox Button, or Tools (in the Menu bar, if visible).
   3b. Click the Add-ons menu item.
   3c. Locate the EdgeWare entry, and click the Options button.

Drag/Drop any item from the Actions list to the desired mouse Button/Click or wheel Scroll/Direction position.

In the Settings section, you can change other EdgeWare properties.

Install

To install the EdgeWare Firefox extension: Now, enjoy EdgeWare surfing: creating, traversing, and deleting tabs, and zooming around the web with ease!

Alternately, you can install by the following:

Changelog

Version Date... Comments...
1.3.5 2024.01.21
  • Upgrade deprecated functions
1.3.4 2024.01.14
  • Repair invisibility on some pages
  • Update documentation
1.3.3 2021.02.01
  • Rename 'click-field' internally
1.3.2 2021.01.25
  • Repair 'Tabs Close Current' when last
1.3.1 2021.01.23
  • Repair 'Tabs Close Others'
1.3.0 2021.01.22
  • Repair 'current tab' determination
  • Repair 'Audio Mute All But Current'
    (ensure Current un-muted)
1.2.0 2020.08.28
  • History Pages item click now loads in new tab
1.1.9 2020.03.11
  • Enlarged EdgeWare options page numeric fields
1.1.8 2019.07.09
  • Use 'auxclick' for middle/right clicks
1.1.7 2019.02.07
  • Minor GUI and icons (again) repair
1.1.6 2019.02.06
  • Repair icons
1.1.5 2019.02.06
  • Update Tutorial text
1.1.4 2017.12.03
  • New EdgeWare Action "Window FullScreen Toggle"
  • New EdgeWare Action "Window Minimize"
1.1.3 2017.11.17
  • Added "Popup Menu Font Size" option
1.1.2 2017.11.16
  • Always catch click-field click
  • Combine "menu" routines (internal only)
1.1.1 2017.11.14
  • Display URL when cursor hover on "History Pages"
1.1.0 2017.11.13
  • Added new EdgeWare Action "History Pages"
  • Minor adjustments
1.0.0 2017.11.01
  • Re-code "Edgewise" legacy extension for Web Extensions architecture

Background

Firefox Browser

The Firefox Browser (by mozilla.org) is one of the more popular web browsers in use. It is freeware, open-source, community-supported, and has many extensions ("Add-ons") that do all sorts of things from timely alerts and reminders to stock quotes and language translators.

It can be installed in addition to any other browser(s) on your system, so you can experiment and get accustomed to it.

Tabbed Browsing

Tabbed Browsing is a powerful feature of modern browsers that lets you load web pages into separate "tabs" which appear near the top of the browser window. Clicking a tab brings it to the foreground (makes it visible, or "current"), so you can jump between tabs quickly and easily, without having to traverse any links in between.

Tabbed Browsing Usage

As an example, imagine you are reading a news story and want to follow an embedded link without losing your place. By middle-clicking the link (clicking the mouse wheel once), Firefox will create a new tab, and load the link page into it.

Now, you can read and follow any additional links in the new tab while the original story stays exactly where it was, in the first tab.

When you're finished with the new tab, you can just close it, by EWA Middle‑Click (Tabs Close Current), or middle-clicking the tab, and return to the original story.

So, even if you've followed many links in the new tab, you return to your original story with just 1 or 2 clicks, rather than having to backtrack all the links (if you can even remember exactly where you started).

Also, you can just click the original tab and jump back to the original story, while leaving the new tab intact, for further reading later.

This methodology is also very useful when searching the web:
After querying your favorite search engine (Google, Bing, etc), you can go down the search-results-list page and middle-click any number of the interesting items, creating a new item-tab for each.
As you click and read each item-tab page, you will still have the search-results-list page in the first tab, and can then process the next group of items in the same manner.

Firefox Install

To install the Firefox browser on your computer (the following assumes you are currently using Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome. etc.):

* Notes

1. EdgeWare is a re-coding of the older "Edgewise" extension by this author, which is compatible with the new "Web Extensions" architecture.
The older "Edgewise" cannot function in the latest versions of Firefox (57+).
"EdgeWise", then, was a re-write and re-branding of the "MileWideBack" extension by "nrlz" with the addition of support for double-clicks, serial-clicks, long-clicks, adjustable timers, drag/drop customization, different "Actions", and this tutorial.
Assistance was also derived from the "FireGestures" extension by Gomita.
and the "Classic Theme Restorer" extension by "aris".

2. Currently, "Web Extension" add-ons (like this one) are not allowed in certain pages (about:newtab, some mozilla.org, for example).

3. Thanks to Firefox user "agrajag" for suggesting this solution to the "click delay" condition.



Comments?, Suggestions? Email: pauljayd