Improve Firefox with Menu Icons

The Firefox web browser is using icons sparingly in its interface. Most elements in the super menu, context menu or main menu bar do not use icons at all.

It is not really clear why only some menu items have icons while the majority of menu items have not. Icons serve two purposes: first, they add a visual distinction to menu items which may make it easier for users to find the right action based on the icon alone. At the very least, it may assist users in distinguishing menu items from each other. The second purpose is purely aesthetic.

Menu Icons Plus is a Firefox extension that adds icons to the majority of menus and items listed in those menus. While it won't add icons to every single item in Firefox, it adds them to the majority of items.

When you open the Firefox menu after installation, you will for instance notice that every item listed in the menu is now depicted by a custom icon.

The same is true for the right-click context menu on websites and the menu bar if you prefer to display it instead of the single Firefox button in the interface.

Some actions do not have an icon associated with them. This is usually the case when they have been added by extensions or when they are relatively new.

The extension ships with several sets of icons that you can switch between easily in the preferences. Here you can also configure if you want to use the default Firefox checkmarks and radio buttons, or if you want to use the ones that are included in the icon set that you have selected. It may take some experimenting to find the right setting here, especially since it may be necessary to restart the web browser before some of the changes become visible in the interface.

If you are using custom themes or extensions that modify Firefox menus, you may run into incompatibilities using the extension.

Menu Icons Plus may be interesting to users who prefer the display of icons and text in menus, and users who like to make cosmetic changes to the browser.

Advertisement