How can I work with tags better?
I use the "show all bookmarks" and the search at the upper right. It seems to find all links with the search phrase in it. That's not what I want.
I get confused about what tags I've already created.
1) I'd like to bring up a list of my tags in a searchable format. So I can find all the tags with a word/phrase in them.
2) Then once I know what tags I might have saved the link under, I want to search all bookmarked links for any with those tags.
3) I'd like to change the name of some of my tags so that all links with that tag have the new tag name.
4) I'd like to be able to bring up two groups of links with two different tags, and combine them. Or bring up everything with a tag and split it into two easily.
5) I'd like to move unsorted bookmarks into folders
In other words I made a mess over the last few years using tags and I'd like to be able to search through them, and organize them better. I'm sure there are other functions I'd like to do too.
Thanks!!
see also /questions/1111066
Another two similar questions were asked ~J99
Modified by John99
Chosen solution
Sorry, I have never used that feature. My old man brain couldn't see any advantage to using Tags, when I tried it as a new feature in Firefox 3.0 back in mid-2008. I just kept on using different folders and saving the same bookmark into different folders, by using drag'n'drop to save the 2nd and subsequent copies.
Have you looked for an add-on that might fulfill your needs? Like maybe this? https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/bookmarks-x-tags/
Read this answer in context 👍 1All Replies (6)
No one has any ideas to offer? How do YOU deal with these issues? Maybe i can switch methods....?
Chosen Solution
Sorry, I have never used that feature. My old man brain couldn't see any advantage to using Tags, when I tried it as a new feature in Firefox 3.0 back in mid-2008. I just kept on using different folders and saving the same bookmark into different folders, by using drag'n'drop to save the 2nd and subsequent copies.
Have you looked for an add-on that might fulfill your needs? Like maybe this? https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/bookmarks-x-tags/
1) Are you saying that you have so many tags that you can't just use the bookmarks menu > show all bookmarks, then in the library window select the tags view and start walking through them?
2) once you have the tags view open as above if you click on a tag you get a list of the links that have that tag. Is that what you are trying to do?
3) when I select a tag in the left pane and then edit the name of the tag on the bottom of the right pane it changed the tag in the bookmark that I tried it on. This was just a test so I don't know if that works on a larger scale.
4) I don't know but I suspect that will require manual effort or the use of some add-in.
5) In the library view create folders then in the unsorted bookmarks drag and drop them to folders.
the-edmeister - thanks. I hadn't thought of using primarily the folder system instead of tags by themselves. That helps a lot for the future bookmarks. Thank you.
arbalest - yep, I have too many tags to just walk through. You can change the tag on an link as you described in 3, but not the name of the tag itself that I've found. I can get a list of links in a tag, but I want to search my tags for the tagname that I used, since I don't remember them. Yes, I'll have to do 4 &5 to create smaller organized tags, but that's a massive effort... I suspect I'm using tags very differently than other people and that's why it's a mess. I need to figure out how other people are using them, since that will probably work fine, if I can figure out how. Thanks for the ideas!
If there are more ideas, I'll love to hear them. I'm marking it solved, so it doesn't hang out unsolved for all eternity and because the answer helped a lot.
curls said
I hadn't thought of using primarily the folder system instead of tags by themselves.
You marked this as a solution but I don't recommend this. The problem is that a link can only be in one folder but it can have multiple tags. So if a link is relevant to work, sports and bicycles what folder would you put it in? Just assign the 3 tags and you are set.
In any organization system where tags are available it is the more powerful way to organize your information. gMail uses tags instead of folders, Evernote, iTunes and many others offer tags.
curls said
You can change the tag on an link as you described in 3, but not the name of the tag itself that I've found.
Not true. Bookmarks > Show all Bookmarks. Then in the library window that opens select All Tags. If you select a given tab on the left you get the links on the right pane. On the BOTTOM of the right pane is another small pane containing the name of the tag. You can edit the tag name there. All of the book marks get updated at the same time.
curls said
I can get a list of links in a tag, but I want to search my tags for the tagname that I used, since I don't remember them.
After clicking All Tags as described above you they are all there for you to see.