the blog

Xerpi just keeps getting better.

If you've logged in recently, you've noticed it looks a little spiffier. But here's a complete rundown of all the new features.

• Old School Favorite Management

  I love that name -- and I love this feature! Let's say you want a break from Xerpi's elegant, intuitive simplicity. Just click this hyperlink (after clicking the "Xerpi tools" icon at the upper-right of your screen.) It'll show all your favorites as just a big ol' list -- the name, the URL, plus links for editing (or deleting) the link! It's a great way to get a giant, all-at-once look at all your favorites.

• Browser Buttons

  The other Xerpi tool is one of the handiest. I've talked about it before (further down this page) -- but if you've missed the buzz, here's two words for you: Browser Buttons.

  After clicking the Xerpi tools icon -- it's still at the upper-right of the screen -- you'll see hyperlinks for instructions about how to install two new Xerpi buttons directly into your browser. One button will let you send any web page you're visiting on straight into your Xerpi home page! And the other button lets you return to Xerpi with just one click...

• Importing Bookmarks

  Here's an even easier way to add new favorites to your Xerpi home page. Now the bookmarks in your browser can become the bookmarks on your Xerpi home page!

  Just click on "Import bookmarks" at the upper-left of your screen. It describes an easy geek trick that saves your browser's bookmarks to a file on your hard drive. Then just click the grey box that says "Import" -- and presto. They're on your Xerpi home page. (And your browser's bookmark folders each become a separate link block!)

  Right now this only works with the Firefox brower -- but if you're using Internet Explorer, there's a workaround. Just open up Firefox, import your IE bookmarks, and then save them to your hard drive for uploading to to Xerpi!

• New icons
  

  There's some other changes that make Xerpi even easier to user. Now there's a new row with little icons -- right over your Xerpi favorites. These buttons make it even easier to add a new block of favorites to your Xerpi home page -- a block for new links, for your friends' favorites, or for links that matched your tags.

  And there's also an "Add Widget" icon. (A "widget" is a useful tool for your Xerpi home page -- like a search window that lets you enter words for a definition from Dictionary.com!) I couldn't live without my Google Maps widget.

For me the most exciting thing about all this is that Xerpi is evolving. I feel like I got in on a good thing, early -- and now I'm watching it grow.

It was already cool and easy to use -- but now it's even easier.