The Official Google Blog reminisces: "Back in 1999, the Internet was a very different place. At that time, you had to fight annoying pop-up ads that would randomly appear as you navigated from one page to another. You had to fill in endless forms with your personal information in order to create accounts for websites you wanted to use. And when you wanted to find information on your airline's luggage policy, you spent more time finding the right search terms to get you there than actually packing for your trip."
Google say that it is always working hard to try and "make the time you spend on the web more enjoyable and productive" - hence its creation of Google Toolbar.
The image shows just how much the toolbar has evolved over the last eight years, going from helping users to conduct searches and find out the latest news to adding a pop-up blocker and easy ways to get at your e-mail and favourite bookmarks.
With the latest version being launched out of beta, Google Toolbar is now available in a whopping 40 languages. You can add gadgets to your toolbar, synchronise your settings online to be able to access the toolbar wherever you are and you can also now create multiple profiles to keep your business and personal information separate.
As Internet Explorer is still the most commonly used browser, it's not a surprise that it gets the new shiny update first. But just when is the toolbar for Google's own browser, Google Chrome going to be released?
