To start using this convenient extension manager, visit the Chrome Web Store and download Extensity. After downloading, the Extensity icon should be visible on the add-on bar (top-right corner of the browser). Click on this and you are shown a list of extensions as well as web applications. By default, the items are categorized as either Extensions or Apps. Extensions are usually shown with icons in the add-on bar, while Apps appear as big icons when you open a new tab.
Find the extension or app that you wish to enable/disable. A grayed out extension means it’s disabled, and clicking on it once will re-enable it. Remember that this only works to enable or disable Chrome extensions. For Apps, clicking on an app name will launch that app, just like it does when you click on it from a new tab. So if you have Dropbox installed, it should bring you to your Dropbox web directory (if you’re logged in), or clicking on Feedly will open your RSS feeds in a new tab, and so on. If you want to remove a web app from Chrome, then you’ll have to do it as you would have without Extensity. The Extensity dialog box also provides a few shortcuts to Chrome’s extension manager menu. Click on the puzzle icon to open the menu in a new tab. This option is handy, especially if you want to delete an extension or allow it in Incognito mode – something which you can’t do with Extensity.
In addition to this shortcut, the next icon leads to Extensity’s own options, which aren’t much. One option shows the header at the top (where these shortcuts are shown) and the other whether or not to group Apps and Extensions together.
Not grouping Apps and Extensions together will show the extension/app list in alphabetical order.
The last two icons allow you to share Extensity in Twitter or rate it in the Web Store. I’ve been constantly looking for an easier and more appealing way to enable and disable Chrome extensions for a while now, and there did not seem to be a simple enough solution — until this extension. Now, I can simply click on an icon and view all extensions that I have installed, what’s enabled and disabled, and even launch web apps without having to open a new tab. For extension/app users, Extensity is the simplest way to keep track of all installations. Most importantly, it can be done in a clean and accessible interface that doesn’t require too much work. If you know of another way to manage Chrome extensions, let us know in the comments below.
