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Automate Routine Firefox Tasks With DejaClick

Scott Blitstein — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 22:00:40 +0000

It should be obvious by now that here at Web Worker Daily we are big fans of the Firefox web browser. We’ve covered the recent launch of Version 3 in detail and have published a good number of round-ups highlighting useful add-ons.

Everyone has their own reasons for choosing Firefox but for me it’s mostly a matter of efficiency. I feel that the add-ons that are available let me work smarter and get more done in less time. That’s why I was particularly intrigued when I heard about the DejaClick extension which promotes itself as a web recorder and Super Bookmark utility.

In a nutshell, DejaClick allows you to record any series of steps or actions you take in your Firefox browser and then play them back with a single click. Setting up simple scripts is remarkably easy. In fact, if you have ever used any sort of macro recorder such as in Word you will feel right at home with the interface.

Click the begin button, perform your actions, click the stop button. Save and replay. I was creating simple login and search scripts in just a few minutes and without any difficulty. I particularly enjoyed watching the replays run through the steps I had just recorded. This is so cool, I thought – the possibilities are endless.

Then I just kind of got stuck. What was I going to use this for? After a couple of weeks, I still haven’t come up with much.

In reality, as much “fun” as this sort of thing can be, DejaClick is really a pretty feature rich site monitoring and testing tool. You can create scripts that simulate users on your web site and use them during your development to test new user registrations, form completions, complex searches and such with just a click. Used in conjunction with the AlertSite Service, scripts can be uploaded and used to simulate activity to provide performance and availability metrics on your production sites.

While DejaClick hasn’t been the productivity booster for me I was hoping it would be, I think that is partially a fault of my own lack of imagination as to how it can be best implemented. However, the identity crisis of whether it is a development tool or an end user product carries over to the web site where seemingly very few resources are provided for non-developers. I like the product and see great potential but would really like to see a more interactive user group focusing on real word end-user solutions and implementations to help prime the pump and provide inspiration.

DejaClick is a free download for Firefox 2.0 – 3.0.* Acceptance of a license agreement is required.

Do you use a web recording utility like DejaClick or iMacros? How is it a benefit to you and your productivity?

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Paid Video M&A: Zipidee Buys TotalVid

Liz Gannes — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 13:00:15 +0000

Fresh from the womb, Zipidee, a marketplace for educational videos that launched last month, has acquired competitor TotalVid for an undisclosed amount. The purchase doubles Zipidee’s library to more than 10,000 titles.

Whereas many web products and services are increasingly offered for free and ad-supported, San Francisco-based Zipidee is asking customers to pay for what it calls “digi-goods” — primarily audio and video files. The site’s model consists of acquiring the exclusive rights to sell a file online and then deducting 20 percent of any transactions as a processing fee. Three-year-old TotalVid employed another alternative business model: a $9.95 per month subscription fee.

Zipidee CEO Henry Wong said in an interview on Monday that he sees a need for “mid-tail” online content, for example instructional videos, that’s high quality and unobstructed by advertising. He explained of the TotalVid deal, “We were building the company from scratch and this fell in our laps.”

TotalVid and sister site VideoWaza were previously part of Landmark Communications, owner of the Weather Channel and other media outlets. Wong declined to state details of the transaction or elaborate on Zipidee’s funding situation, but he said the company is raising a Series B round now. Zipidee had raised a Series A round of venture funding earlier this year from Individuals’ Venture Fund, Novus Ventures, and Khalda Development. We wish Zipidee were more forthcoming about its numbers and less prone to coining unfortunate terms like “digi-goods.”

The three sites will be run from Zipidee’s headquarters in San Francisco. Another competitor would be Cruxy (our coverage).

In other paid video news: Motionbox Wants $30; VCs Give it $7M

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Get ready for another Tablet PC meetup at CES

James Kendrick — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 19:25:36 +0000

The CES is rushing up on us fast as early January will be here before you know it. Kevin and I will be attending the giant show again this year and I am so happy to see Lora Heiny is planning another Tablet PC meetup this year! I have attended the last two and let me tell you they are a blast and always have some great folks in attendance. I am talking folks like Robert Scoble and Chris Pirillo, two of my favorite people. Lora is in the process of organizing the event and it asking for your input to help determine where it will be this year and exactly which day of the CES. I hope it’s at Cheeseburger Las Vegas again this year as I find that venue to be comfortable and friendly which is important for an event like this. If you are an ISV or OEM who would like to demonstrate your wares to the crowd be sure and let Lora know, it is very welcome. See you there!

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CellPhone, Fashion Accessory

Om Malik — Tue, 23 Nov 2004 03:59:47 +0000

Is cell phone a fashion accessory? We think it is, so does Nokia and Samsung. The Feature disagrees, and writes, “Even worse, the simple act of needing to switch between phones, most likely by transferring the SIM card, may be seen as too much of a pain to be worth it. So between swapping SIM cards and choosing which phone for what occasion, having multiple phones adds a mental transaction cost that many won’t want to pay.”

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