How-To Geek
Access Your Bookmarks with a Toolbar Button in Google Chrome
Would you love to reduce the Bookmarks Toolbar to a single button in Chrome and have the extra screen real-estate? Now you can with the addition of a simple command line switch.
Before
There it is…the same old Bookmarks Toolbar that we have been looking at far too long. Time to do something about that and get that UI more streamlined!
Get Chrome Set Up for the Bookmarks Toolbar Button
You only need to do a little bit of prep work to get Chrome ready for your new beautiful Bookmarks Toolbar Button. Locate the shortcut(s) for Chrome and right click on them. Select “Properties”.
Once you have clicked through, you will see the “Properties” window with the “Shortcut” tab displayed.
In the address area for “Target:” you will need to add the following command to the end of the target path making certain to leave a single space in between the final quote mark and the bookmark menu command.
Here is an example of what the the target path should look like…
Or as an example, here is what your target path could look like if you happen to be adventurous and have enabled multiple command line switches like we have on our example system.
Once you have that finished, click “Apply”, then “OK”.
After
Look at that beautiful little button! Easy access to all of your bookmarks without a clunky toolbar in the way. Have fun with your new toolbar button!
Works On: Google Chrome versions 2.x – 4.x.
Installed On: Windows Vista (32 bit), Service Pack 2
Got Feedback? Join the discussion at discuss.howtogeek.com
Comments (17)
Akemi Iwaya (Asian Angel) is our very own Firefox Fangirl who enjoys working with multiple browsers and loves 'old school' role-playing games. Visit her on Twitter and Google+.
- Published 09/14/09
Thats an awesome gimmick – indeed! I do´n´t use Chrome, but SRWare Iron portable. This is my favorite, because you can it use without advertisement. Only the right adblock.ini is necessary.
And – it runs also! Thanks for that. Hugo from Germany
How did you change the background in your bookmarks tab?
@Alfredo – That came with the theme that I installed. ^__^ It has been my favourite so far. ~__^
Here is where you can get it (Water Theme):
http://www.chromeplugins.org/themes/water-theme-make-chrome-look-like-water/
So, I tried this to get rid of the toolbar, and I did get the cool little button, but the tool bar is still there. Any thoughts on what else I need to do, or did wrong, or should I open up a post in the forum instead? Thank You.
Never mind, I found it in the “Customize” button, and just ‘unchecked’, “Always show bookmarks bar”. Kind of like one of those “school kid” things LH was talking about! LOL
Hmm, that didn’t work for me target path is : C:\Users\Alex\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe –bookmark-menu
i’ve also tried it with
“C:\Users\Alex\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe” –bookmark-menu
that’s cool……now if you could only come up with an adblocker. :)
As one who has no computer skills, I followed your simple steps and installed the toolbar button.
Thanks
@Alex – Which version of Chrome are you using at the moment?
@Lee – There are ways to do that. ~__^ Think user scripts… ^__^
this didnt work for me. anyone know what to do?
figured it out…you need to drag a new shortcut to the desktop…the one in the start menu worked but the desktop shortcut didnt
It works great, thank you!
Im happy with the function, but sad with the way I came to it. there isnt any clue about such things on google chrome help pages. it leaves me with more questions than answers.
where did you found it? how did you know what commands to put there? why isnt such option in settings of GCh? why do I have to stumble on this jus only by accident when searching for help how to restore my bookmarks button after I managed to hide whole tab?
There is an extension called Awesome Bookmarks which, in my opinion, does the job better.
You can also type in the bar to search bookmarks.
COOL! Doesn’t work.
Didnt work for me either and although I added the quotation marks to the shortcut target they dissappeared the minute I pressed Enter.
My Chrome version is 13.0.761.0 if anyone has the answer.
@Nate & Alan – At this point in Chrome’s development it would be much more efficient to install an extension to add the functionality. ^_^ A lot has changed since the version of Chrome that this hack was written up for…