Ubiquity is an experiment in connecting the Web with language. The problem with the Web is that services and locations and data are disconnected. You want to send a link to a map, translate a Web page, convert things to PDF, add a review for a restaurant—all of these things you want to do right now, but you have to trundle around the Web to do it. Ubiquity is instant access to services through language.
It's awesome, I already can't live without it. To start the command window, press alt + space
# add-to-calendar Adds an event to your calendar.
Currently, only works with Google Calendar, so you'll need a Google account to use it. Try issuing "add lunch with dan tomorrow".
# amazon-search Searches Amazon for books matching your words.
# answers-search Searches Answers.com for the given words.
# ask-search Searches Ask.com for the given words.
# bold If you're in a rich-text-edit area, makes the selected text bold.
# bugzilla Searches Bugzilla for Mozilla bugs matching the given words.
# calculate Calculates the value of a mathematical expression.
Try it out: issue "calc 22/7 - 1".
# check-calendar Checks what events are on your calendar for a given date.
Currently, only works with Google Calendar, so you'll need a Google account to use it. Try issuing "check thursday".
# close-related-tabs Closes all open tabs that have the given word in common.
# close-tab Closes the tab that matches the given name.
# command-editor Takes you to the Ubiquity command editor page.
# command-list Takes you to the page you're on right now.
# convert Converts a selection to a PDF, to rich text, or to html.
# define Gives the meaning of a word.
Try issuing "define aglet"
# delete Deletes the selected chunk of HTML from the page.
# digg If not yet submitted, submits the page to Digg. Otherwise, it takes you to the story's Digg page.
by Sandro Della Giustina - licensed as MPL,GPL
View more information at
http://www.gialloporpora.netsons.org.
# ebay-search Searches EBay for auctions matching the given words.
# edit-page Puts the web page into a mode where you can edit the contents.
In edit mode, you can edit the page like any document: Select text, delete it, add to it, copy and paste it. Issue 'bold', 'italic', or 'underline' commands to add formatting. Issue the 'save' command to save your changes so they persist even when you reload the page. Issue 'stop-editing-page' when you're done to go back to the normal page viewing mode.
# email Begins composing an email to a person from your contact list.
Currently only works with Google Mail, so you'll need a GMail account to use it. Try selecting part of a web page (including links, images, etc) and then issuing "email this". You can also specify the recipient of the email using the word "to" and the name of someone from your contact list. For example, try issuing "email hello to jono" (assuming you have a friend named "jono").
# escape-html-entities Replaces html entities (<, >, and &) with their escape sequences.
# flickr Searches Flickr for pictures matching your words.
# get-email-address Looks up the email address of a person from your contacts list given their name.
# google Searches Google for your words.
# help Takes you to the Ubiquity main help page.
# highlight Highlights your current selection, like this.
# imdb Searches the Internet Movie Database for your words.
# italic If you're in a rich-text-edit area, makes the selected text italic.
# last-email Displays your most recent incoming email. Requires a Google Mail account.
# link-to-wikipedia Turns a selected phrase into a link to the matching Wikipedia article.
Can only be used in a rich text-editing field.
# map Turns an address or location name into a Google Map.
Try issuing "map kalamazoo". You can click on the map in the preview pane to get a larger, interactive map that you can zoom and pan around. You can then click the "insert map in page" (if you're in an editable text area) to insert the map. So you can, for example, type an address in an email, select it, issue "map", click on the preview, and then insert the map.
# map-these Maps multiple selected addresses or links onto a single Google Map. (Experimental!)
# msn-search Searches MSN for the given words.
# redo Redoes your latest style/formatting or page-editing changes.
# remove-annotations Resets any annotation changes you've made to this page.
# save Saves edits you've made to this page in an annotation.
# stop-editing-page If you used the 'edit page' command to put the page into editable mode, use this command to end that mode and go back to normal page viewing.
# syntax-highlight Treats your selection as program source code, guesses its language, and colors it based on syntax.
# tab Switches to the tab that matches the given name.
# tag Adds a tag to describe the current page
by Dietrich Ayala - licensed as MPL/GPL/LGPL
View more information at
http://autonome.wordpress.com/.
# tinyurl Replaces the selected URL with a TinyUrl
# translate Translates from one language to another.
You can specify the language to translate to, and the language to translate from. For example, try issuing "translate mother from english to chinese". If you leave out the the languages, Ubiquity will try to guess what you want. It works on selected text in any web page, but there's a limit to how much it can translate at once (a couple of paragraphs.)
# twitter Sets your Twitter status to a message of at most 160 characters.
You'll need a Twitter account, obviously. If you're not already logged in you'll be asked to log in.
# undelete Restores the HTML deleted by the delete command.
# underline If you're in a rich-text-edit area, underlines the selected text.
# undo Undoes your latest style/formatting or page-editing changes.
# view-source Shows you the source-code of the web page you're looking at.
# weather Checks the weather for a given location.
Try issuing "weather chicago". It works with zip-codes, too.
# wikipedia Searches Wikipedia for your words.
by Blair McBride - licensed as MPL
View more information at
http://theunfocused.net/moz/ubiquity/verbs/.
# word-count Displays the number of words in a selection.
# yahoo-search Searches Yahoo for pages matching your words.
# yelp Searches Yelp for restaurants matching your words.
You can search for restaurants near a certain location using the near modifier. For example, try "yelp pizza near boston".
# youtube Searches YouTube for videos matching your words.
# zoom Zooms the Firefox window in or out.
Let's see how microsoft match this one. Darn those Mozilla peep are crazy awesome.