Google have launched a new version of the popular Google Toolbar with an array of new functions and features.Still in beta at the moment, the toolbar seems to operate perfectly happily in Internet Explorer.
It gives users protection against pop-up ads, which, with email spam, are some of the most irritating by-products of the modern Internet experience. It also allows users to "vote" for their favourite site, and to search Google News, groups, images, the directory and the regional databases.
For those users who use Blogger, there is a button that can automatically add a blog entry with a link to the site the user is currently viewing.
Additionally, there is a form-autofill feature that will automatically fill out many website forms with some default user-data stored in the toolbar.
All the old favourites of the original toolbar are still available, including the infamous PageRank bar, and the Page Info button.
The interesting mix of features in this new toolbar show that Google are considering both their end-users and webmasters, with a range of functions that suit both camps.
Goolgle has taken steps to integrate and embed technology acquired in the takeover of Applied Semantics, and it will be interesting to see where else this trends takes the World's most popular dedicated search engine.
