Download Yahoo Toolbar

Just when you thought you've downloaded enough toolbars, Yahoo steps up with its very own free download of the Yahoo Toolbar, integrated with various Yahoo tools and services. This is an ideal toolbar for any casual Yahoo user: keep a tab on unread emails, check a map, bookmark a page on del.icio.us, find a Wikipedia entry, read current sports standings, check your Myspace profile on the fly, and get a whole bunch of other things done at your whim.



Customizing Yahoo Toolbar brings you to the remotely-hosted page above, where you can add or subtract features via a regular web page. Simply download Yahoo toolbar, install & finish adding features through this menu, and move your selections up or down on a list, click submit, and have your toolbar refresh to display its new settings. The most decent attribute of this site-based menu for the Yahoo Toolbar is that it gives you a full spectrum of what can be added (or taken off) of your toolbar, rather than scrolling through a long, monotonous drop-down list.

Anti-Spy Spyware Protection
This is Yahoo Toolbar's own built-in spyware protection (think of it as a built in Spybot-fashioned service). It's integrated in your Yahoo Toolbar, and will appear automatically as the icon seen to your right. You'll most likely never have to run it on its own, as it is always working - but the option is available to you in its drop down list.

How to Activate Yahoo Toolbar Anti-Spy
Anti-spy isn't active by default. To activate it (or the other alternative: Norton Security), click "Settings" and "Add/Edit Buttons." Click "Button Gallery," then "Select Category." Here, you'll see the options for Anti-Spy and Norton. Note that this will not be visible for Windows Vista users, at the current moment.

Real estate most likely isn't plentiful on your browser
So, which bar raises the bar? Yahoo has more options out of the box: set it up almost identically as you would set up your Firefox bookmarks bar. Yahoo offers many, if not most of the important web tools most people use - from Maps, to Wikipedia and Social Bookmarking services.

Pros to the Yahoo Toolbar
If you're a Yahoo fanatic and regularly use Yahoo Mail, it's not even a tough decision. Get a live update on the number of new emails that are waiting, or access anything else Yahoo, instantly. Conserve browser space by putting some of your bookmarks directly on the Yahoo Toolbar - even add your own custom chosen buttons. This toolbar has more features than Googles', hands down. Also, after you download the Yahoo Toolbar and install it, you'll now have two search bars: one for your browser's pre-set search field (i.e., Google), and one for Yahoo on the toolbar. It's convenient for anyone who needs to use both search engines, especially those who manage websites and need to check rankings.

Cons to the Yahoo Toolbar
Obviously, it's not much of a help if you never use Yahoo.com, or need to check the Google Page Rank of every page you visit.

This tip is helpful for web designers, search engine optimization practitioners and general internet users: your browser has an option under "View" -> "Toolbars", where you can show or hide toolbars that you've already downloaded. Technically, you can load up your browser with as many toolbars as you want with no performance repercussions, and just use them when you desire: if you need to use Yahoo Toolbar's features, enable it, then disable it until you need it again. In essence, if you download Yahoo Toolbar, you don't necessarily have to keep it active at all times - just use it when you want to!

In conclusion - download Yahoo Toolbar if you have a Yahoo e-mail account, use Yahoo.com on a weekly basis, or are looking for a better toolbar that lets you add what you want (instead of what they want you to use), reducing the clutter of your existing browser's built-in button bars:
With Yahoo Toolbar's new themed toolbars, you can now go with a more customized experience that brings you information and features from the "niche" you're interested in.

If you're a web designer, download Yahoo Toolbar solely for its ability to cram more custom bookmarks, and take advantage of the social bookmarking feature. If you're using your browser's bookmark bar, you can essentially double the number of bookmarks on your screen at the same time...pretty convenient!