How to load an Extension into Thunderbird

What is an extension? Extensions are additional programs or features that can be added to programs like Thunderbird, Firefox and Mozilla. Many people write extensions to do a number of different tasks. For example. you can get an extension that adds a little weather forecast to the bottom of your Firefox window, another adds a calendar to Sunbird. There are hundreds of extensions around, Mozilla has a web site with links to many Mozilla Extensions.

For the example used on this page, we are going to add an extension into Thunderbird that allows you to have a number of different signatures for your emails. The extension is called 'Signature Switch' version 1.2.1 - webpage

- How to download an extension?

Go to Mozilla's web site (link above) and find the extension you want to use. Make sure that you are looking for an extension that works with Thunderbird. This is usually shown as having the Thunderbird icon and the version number. Below this icon, there is usually a green box with the words 'Install Now' along with some instructions below the box.

Extensions for Firefox can be installed by simply clicking on the 'Install Now' words but it's best to download the extension to your pc first (or your N: drive) and then install it. These extensions are very small in size, they won't take much room up at all. To download the extension, single right click the 'Install Now' words and choose 'Save the links as' or 'Save as'. Choose where you'd like to save the file and press OK.

- How do I now install the extension?

Once you've downloaded it you need to install it into the program you want the extension for. In our example, the extension we want to install is for Thunderbird so we start Thunderbird and from the Tools menu, choose Extensions. You'll see a window like below

You'll notice that there's already an extension installed, the Talkback extension. This comes with thunderbird as standard. You may see other extensions in the list, it depends how Thunderbird is installed as to what it may or may not come with. To add you new extension, click on the 'Install' button and navigate to where you downloaded the extension

Once you've selected the extension file (in our case it's called signature_switch-1.2.1-tb.xpi), press Open. Another little window will appear that loads the file. When the 'Install Now' button is available, press it.

The extension will now be installed and when it's finished, you'll see it listed in your extensions window. Note, as it says in the Extension window, the extension will only be working once you've restarted Thunderbird. This also applies when you install any Firefox extension. Close and restart Thunderbird/Firefox.

- Now what do I do once I've restarted?

Most, not all extension allow you to configure them in some way. For our example we can configure it by telling it what signature we want to use and when. To do this, from the Tools menu select Extensions. Highlight the extension you want to configure (single left click it) and then press the Options button. You'll then see what options there are for that given extension. If there are no options, the Options button will be grayed out.
 
In our example, our options are;

To add a signature, press the New button, give the signature a name (this will be used to select which signature you want to use latter on). Then specify the name of a file that contains the text that you want to use as your signature. If you've not created a file, open Notepad, type in what you want your signature to say and save the file in your N:\mail directory. Now go back to the extension options window and either type in the path name of the file (n:\mail\damtp.txt) or press the yellow folder icon and go and find the file. For the time being that will do, press OK. If you want to, create some more signatures just like you've just done and then press OK to accept all the options for that extension.

That's it. You've downloaded an extension. Installed it and configured it. Now you can use it :)

- So how do I use the Signature-swap extension?

We might as well finish off this page by explaining how to use the extension we've just installed and configured. When you create a new email and you want to add a signature, in the window that you're writing the email in, from the Options menu you'll see an item called 'Signature Switch'. When you hover over the signature switch text, you'll then see a little sub-menu appear that will show the signatures you configured earlier. Clicking on one of these signatures will cause it to be added to the email you're currently typing, easy.
You many notice that above the signature there will be two dashes '--'. These can't be removed, they are there for email reading programs to read and know that what follows below them is a signature. You can manually delete them but there is no way to remove them permanently.

If you want a signature to appear on every email, you need to make one of the defined signatures the default. To do this, single left click in the space next to the signature you want to use and below the word 'Default' (see below). A green tick will appear. Press OK to accept this.

If you want to switch signatures off all the time, either un-tick the default signature or if you want to leave one ticked as the default, select the option at the bottom of the Signature Switch options to 'Switch signatures off by default'