CaretTab

Yes! All features and functionality is completely free to use.

If you'd like to help support the development of CaretTab, you can buy me a coffee.

None at all!

Nope. Nor do I want to! The extension does not require any accounts, does no tracking, has no advertisements, and no unnecessary data collection. There isn't even any analytics involved (with the exception of this site and the store listings).

Your data and settings are saved to your browser's internal storage. No data is saved on any CaretTab servers. The only time your data or settings will be placed on a server would be if you are signed into your browser and have enabled syncing, in which case it is only synced with your browser maker's servers. CaretTab only offers it to be synced but does not have any access to that data outside your browser.

This isn't just talk either, CaretTab's source code is Open Source and freely available on GitHub.

That's fantastic! Feel free to share it via the contact form or by posting to the CaretTab Discussions page.

Understandable confusion! "BlueCaret" is the screen name/alias for the owner and developer of this site and the CaretTab extension, and is also the name of the business it is all listed under. "CaretTab" is the name I gave this Chrome Extension that replaces the New Tab page. CaretTab is listed in the Web Stores under the publisher name of BlueCaret. This is also why pages such as the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy bring you to bluecaret.com.

CaretTab attempts to use minimal permissions when possible. If anything is not needed at the start, you will be prompted for the optional permission when enabling the feature that requires it. Below is a list of the permissions CaretTab uses and why:

• Storage: Used to store your settings in the browser's storage area.
• Replace the page you see when opening a new tab: Used to replace the New Tab page with this extension.
• This extension can read and change your data on sites: The sites listed with this permission are used to retrieve data for CaretTab to function.
  • https://fonts.googleapis.com/*: The fonts available in the extension are from Google Fonts; this URL is where the fonts are loaded from.
  • https://dtfv5mvrx9.execute-api.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/*: This is an Amazon Web Services server that CaretTab accesses to retrieve various data such us API access for weather among other data. Data is only ever retrieved from this address, never sent.
  • (Optional) https://developer.sepush.co.za/*: Used to retrieve data for the Loadshedding widget.
• (Optional) Read the icons of the websites you visit: Used to display the favicons (logos) of the website you add to your quick links.
• (Optional) Read a list of your most frequently visited websites: Used to display the "most visited" menu on the quick links widget, when enabled.
• (Optional) Read and change your bookmarks: Used to display your browser bookmarks on the quick links widget, when enabled.

Anytime you close the settings panel your changes are automatically saved. You can also click the save button in the top right corner at any time to save without closing. In addition, some actions such as adding or removing widgets will automatically save in that moment. You can revert some changes by simply refreshing or closing the tab before closing the settings panel; anything that was changed since opening the settings should revert back.

Settings sync is automatically enabled when you sign into your browser, providing the browser supports syncing. Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge should both sync your settings when signed into each respectively.

It is currently not possible to sync your settings between different types of browsers.

Another option available is exporting your settings from one browser and importing them to the other. This option can be found in the Settings Dashboard, under "Extension settings", select "Advanced settings" and you will see an Export and Import option. Note that this is a manual process and any time you make changes to your settings you will want to perform the export/import process again.

Once you've added a widget, click the "edit" button on the dashboard then open the "Widget container" section. In this area you can change the alignment, position, and size of the widget container. You may need to play around with some of the options here to get what you are looking for as some may work slightly different depending on the widget type.

Pro tip: Click the square icon in the top right corner of the settings panel near the save button to enable the Outliner mode. This will temporarily display an outline around widgets giving you a better idea of what the size and placement of the widget actually is. Also try the dotted grid icon next to it which overlays a grid on the page to help with alignment.

There are a few possibilities. First, make sure the widget is not disabled on the Settings Dashboard; ensure the toggle is on next to the widget name in the list of widgets.

Second, you might need to try adjusting the options within the "Widget Container" section of the widget's settings. The widget being set too small or large, or the position is too far one direction or the other, could all contribute to the widget not being visible.

Finally, it could be the text color of the widget is the same or similar to the background color. Try adjusting the color options under "Widget Font Styles".

Be sure that the shadow is enabled via the "Enable" option at the top right of the shadow menu.

Different widgets may behave differently to the size options available. For example, you could set the weather widget to a very small width in the container settings, but it still may display wider as the content within will keep with the layout. This can cause the content to "overflow" the widget's container.

One way to avoid this when designing your tab is by clicking the square icon at the top right of the Settings panel, it's the button to the right of the eye. Enabling this option will show an outline around all widget containers, this makes it easy to tell if any content is overflowing. The option will automatically be disabled when you open a new tab, or you can click it again to disable.

While you are here, try the next button to the right that looks like a dotted grid. This option overlays a grid on the tab page, making it easy to align widgets.