edvakf

You Can Use Google Web History with Opera

Saturday, 5. January 2008, 19:24:28

It was long thought that Google's another killer web service Google Web History cannot be used in Opera.

If you go to their page you will find that to enable Google Web History you have to install Google Toolbar, which means, like many other Google services, only IE and Firefox users are able to access this service. But it was not the case. Google Web History stores the websites you visited according to the request for Google PageRank. So even if you don't have Google Toolbar installed on your Firefox, you can get Google Web History with an extension like PageRank Checker.

It's a good news. You didn't need Google Toolbar at all to use Google Web History. All you have to do is to send a request to get Google PageRank for every page you open. In fact, you don't even need to display the PageRank on a page.

Here is a UserJS to enable Google Web History in Opera, written by mallowlabs (his blog entry in Japanese). He says it's distributed under public domain, so I copy and paste it here.

enablegooglewebhistory.user.js

// ==UserScript==
// @name EnableGoogleWebHistory
// @author mallowlabs
// @namespace http://mallowlabs.s206.xrea.com/
// @version 0.0.2
// @license public domain
// @description : Enable Google Web History
// @published 2007-01-05
// @modified 2006-01-05
// @include *
// ==/UserScript==

// see also
// http://www.scss.com.au/family/andrew/opera/panels/pagerank/
// http://d.hatena.ne.jp/amatanoyo/20080104/1199450996
// =========================================
(function(){

    // avoid frame
    if (window.self != window.parent) return;

    var r=function(x,y){
        return Math.floor((x/y-Math.floor(x/y))*y+.1);
    },
    ch=function(url){
        url='info:'+url;
        var c=[0x9E3779B9,0x9E3779B9,0xE6359A60],i,j,k=0,l,f=Math.floor,
        m=function(c){
            var i,j,s=[13,8,13,12,16,5,3,10,15];
            for(i=0;i<9;i+=1){
                j=c[r(i+2,3)];
                c[r(i,3)]=(c[r(i,3)]-c[r(i+1,3)]-j)^(r(i,3)==1?j<<s[i]:j>>>s[i]);
            }
        };
        for(l=url.length;l>=12;l-=12){
            for(i=0;i<16;i+=1){
                j=k+i;c[f(i/4)]+=url.charCodeAt(j)<<(r(j,4)*8);
            }
            m(c);
            k+=12;
        }
        c[2]+=url.length;
        for(i=l;i>0;i--)
            c[f((i-1)/4)]+=url.charCodeAt(k+i-1)<<(r(i-1,4)+(i>8?1:0))*8;
        m(c);
        return'6'+c[2];
    };
    var url=document.location;

    /* create image element */
    new Image().src = 'http://www.google.com/search?client=navclient-auto&ch='+ch(url)+'&features=Rank&q=info:'+escape(url);
})();

(Thanks to Google PageRank Button for the request URL computation)

All you need to do is install the above, go to Google Web History, login and enable it! Enjoy web browsing 10 times more!

Having used Google Web History myself for a day now, I think it's awesome! I was using Opera9.50beta's Search History for a while, but it's search function is pretty poor so far. I couldn't even do an AND search. I also like the fact that Google stores my web history forever, not only up to the limit of my browser cache.

Added 2008-1-10

This entry was featured in Use Google Web History Without Installing Google Toolbar. Thanks for visiting!

The original creater has put the script up to UserScript.org. To keep up with current version, please go there (although I don't think there will be further updates).

Dump your tab bar away!!! -- Really cool opera customizeEnhanced Copy for Opera - Copy URL, Title & Selection

Comments

saito # 7. January 2008, 03:44

Opera 斉藤（賞品発送担当）です。川柳コンテストの賞品をお送りしたいので、連絡フォームから東京オフィスまで送付先を教えていただきますようお願いします。

deadHarlequin # 11. January 2008, 01:53

Great Work!

opera should have done these type of things by itself already, instead of filing complaints. Team up with someone or die.

Anonymous # 11. January 2008, 02:48

CarlosPC writes:

Oh my God!

I stopped using Opera last year just because of the lack of support for the Google Web History feature.

I came back to Opera and I am happy!

edvakf # 11. January 2008, 04:03

>deadHarleguin
I think Google should have offered an alternative method for non IE/Firefox users. They are so cunning that we didn't get to know about it till now.

>CarlosPC
I nearly made a switch too. Now I'm addicted to Google Web History. I can't browse the web without it!

Anonymous # 27. February 2008, 02:27

jc writes:

i am with carlos. i was on firefox coz of google web history, but now am back to opera!!!

Anonymous # 2. June 2008, 05:45

Anonymous writes:

@ edvakf .. exactly! And that, in turn, is a major functional attraction to noobs who for the first time are considering making the *Big Switch* from IE to FF ~ that in FF with GMail, you can right click on any web page you want to copy and GMail it to yourself ~ a single click does it all ~ presto magic .. lol! It arrives in your inbox in an impressive "carbon copy" of the page you want to save.

And thank you so much for this post! I'd used it as my alternate to Netscape (back in Netscape days!) for two years and loved it.

I'm convinced that of the four *major default browsers* (IE, FF, Safari, Opera) Opera's the most secure. My husband's in that field and showed me exactly what he meant in a way I could understand ~ and from my intro to Opera in 1999/2000, I've been a believer on the exceptional security benefits of the formidable Opera browser.

We stopped using Opera at home two years ago on our Windows stations (and would never use Safari for Windows ~ we have enough Safari on our Mac's lol). My husband and I went on a "spring cleaning" in 2006 and got rid of software we didn't use enough. We considered more Windows browsers than two (IE and FF in our case) to be overdoing it.

The reason I was willing was because performing 3D web design / animation / development et al is far easier for me on FF ~ the best and most widely used program we use in my field of 3D content creation is Autodesk's MAYA http://www.autodesk.com/maya; MAYA only renders in IE/FF/Safari and doesn't support Opera, much like similar other programs in my field.

It's a security trade-off which Nvidia cryptically refers to as "performance versus quality" lol. Before Nvidia told us that, I had always thought that good performance represents good quality.

I'd love to use Opera again if it only supported the cutting edge 3D software used in the Gaming and Entertainment field.

boogabug # 14. June 2008, 22:11

Can I use this script with another js script (I use another one for my ad element hider).

deadHarlequin # 14. June 2008, 22:18

Yes, of course you can.

I think it's broken thought lately or its just me?

boogabug # 20. June 2008, 05:37

How do I use 2 scripts at once? Just paste the 2 texts into one file?

SarahSummer # 26. March 2009, 18:45

thanks for the wonderful tip
I am a webmaster and this trick will definitely help me in many ways!!!

edvakf # 26. March 2009, 19:04

My pleasure!

dapxin # 26. April 2009, 03:08

do you still need to install this ? I think google history now works with opera, out of the box. try it.

edit - woooooooooooha! I missed it, never realised the difference between
google history
&
google web history.

I take it back. This is awesome but certainly not for privacy n00bs.

deadHarlequin # 26. April 2009, 16:32

How could this happen?
you mean search history...

edvakf # 26. April 2009, 17:14

For the "Web History" (not "Search History") you need to hit a URL for each page you open, it should not work without installing anything. (Otherwise it's very scary)

Anonymous # 9. June 2009, 18:10

Nikhil_07n writes:

Wow!

Now.. I don't need Firefox.

Anonymous # 7. July 2009, 09:53

Anonymous writes:

How can I get this to work in IE8? I have .Net installed, Trixie, and I cannot get it to work.

dapxin # 7. July 2009, 10:20

@You install google toolbar

Anonymous # 7. July 2009, 13:33

David writes:

@dapxin So this script doesn't work in ie8? Is there any way to change it to work, or is IE8 different in some way?

dapxin # 7. July 2009, 14:05

well, this http://www.ie7pro.com/user-script.html used to let you run userscript on IE. I have not used it in a long time now, but it was pretty decent then.

Why not just grab Opera?

Anonymous # 5. November 2009, 05:35

Anonymous writes:

Doesn't work on Wikipedia?

edvakf # 5. November 2009, 08:50

Actually, I don't think this script is working any more. Google has probably changed their API or something.

Anonymous # 5. November 2009, 19:21

Anonymous writes:

It does work for most pages. I've just started using it, and it definitely works, but Wikipedia pages don't show up unless I go to them through Google search. Everything else works fine (that I've checked for; it's possible some other pages aren't working and I haven't noticed).

edvakf # 7. November 2009, 07:41

Good to know that it still works. Maybe it wasn't working for me because of some other problem then...
The error I had was that the requests to Google was always failing (I saw it on Opera Dragonfly).

I stopped using it then, so I'm not really willing to debug for Wikipedia. Sorry.