Managing bookmarks in browsers

Table of Contents

Extensions

  1. Brave Sync
    1. Works well - if Brave is the only browser you use
  2. XBrowserSync
    1. The sync functionality doesn’t seem to happen automatically.
    2. Still have to test features like adding a bookmark in one browser in one computer and seeing if it is getting downloaded everywhere else.
    3. Pros
      1. Worked right out of the box
    4. Cons (according to reviews on the internet)
      1. No new updates
      2. Buggy
  3. https://floccus.org/
    1. Gave it a shot.
    2. Couldn’t figure out how to use it.
  4. https://betula.mycorrhiza.wiki/
  5. https://motd.co/2023/09/postmarks-launch/
  6. https://pinboard.in/ -
    1. One-man operation.
    2. Users on reddit said that the owner is pretty bad when it comes to responding.
    3. Users got locked out of their accounts.

What if importing bookmarts is not permitted?

This could happen in a corporate environment - if you are using machines/VDIs provided by companies

  1. Start by exporting bookmarts into a html file from one location
  2. From this point forward, this file acts as the central file for bookmarks across all the VDIs
  3. Save/Move this html file into OneDrive or H drive or a location that can be accessed in all VDIs
  4. In your browser, create a bookmark for this file (that is accessible in that instance of VDI)
  5. Manually edit the html file using IntelliJ or some other text editor
  6. Pros of this method:
    1. Can still maintain bookmarks without support from the browser
  7. Cons:
    1. No source control - but we don’t get that when using the bookmarks feature in browsers either.

Can I export only one folder from my bookmarks in a chrome browser?

Google Chrome doesn’t have a “right-click to export” button for specific folders by default.

But there are some ways to do it - ranging from a quick “no-install” trick to using a dedicated tool.

Using a second browser in a computer

  1. If Brave is the primary browser in the computer
  2. Go to Firefox, import all the bookmarks from Brave into Firefox
  3. Delete all the bookmark folders from Firefox - except the ones you want to export
  4. Export the bookmarks html file from Firefox
  5. Use that wherever you want

Cons with this approach:

  1. The exported bookmarks html file has a lot of junk in it - like icons, added_date, etc.
  2. Use extensions for exporting instead of using the browser option to export them.

Use an Extension (Best for frequent use)

If you need to do this often, there are free extensions designed exactly for this purpose.

  1. Selective Bookmarks Export Tool
    1. Another simple tool that lets you pick and choose before generating the file.
    2. I used this in the past. Worked great.
  2. Bookmark Import/Export
    1. This is a highly-rated extension that includes an “Advanced Export” mode. It allows you to check-mark specific folders or individual links and export only those as an HTML file.

(NEVER USED THIS APPROACH) The “Temporary User” Trick in the primary browser

This is the cleanest way to do it without installing anything. You basically use a second profile as a “filter.”

  1. Create a New Profile: Click your profile icon at the top right of Chrome and select Add. (You don’t need to sign into a Google account; just choose “Continue without an account”).
  2. Drag and Drop: Open the Bookmark Manager (Ctrl+Shift+O) in both your main window and the new guest window. Simply drag the folder you want from your main browser into the Bookmarks Bar of the new guest window.
  3. Export: In the new guest window, click the three dots in the Bookmark Manager and select Export Bookmarks.
  4. Result: You now have an HTML file containing only that folder. You can then delete the temporary profile.

(NEVER USED THIS APPROACH) The “Delete and Undo” Method

This is risky if you aren’t careful, but it’s very fast:

  1. Open the Bookmark Manager (Ctrl+Shift+O).
  2. Export everything first as a backup (just in case).
  3. Delete every folder except the one you want to keep.
  4. Export the bookmarks again. This file will now only have the folder you left behind.
  5. Undo: Immediately press Ctrl+Z (or Cmd+Z on Mac) several times to restore your deleted folders.

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