How to Make Your Own Google Buttons

Google allows you to make your own custom navigation buttons and add them to the Google toolbar. You'll be working with the Extensible Markup Language (XML), an advanced web programming language used extensively by Google in creating the toolbar. You can create and use custom Google buttons only if you have the Google toolbar installed on Internet Explorer; you cannot do so on other web browsers.

Things You'll Need

• Google Toolbar 5
• Internet Explorer

Instructions

1. Click "Start." Type "Notepad" in the Search box. Press "Enter."

2. Type the following XML code in the Notepad window:

   <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>

   <custombuttons xmlns="http://toolbar.google.com/custombuttons/">

   <button>

   <site>http://www.website_address.org</site>

   <title>website_name</title>

   <description>website_tile</description>

   </button>

   </custombuttons>

   Here, replace website_address with the address of the website on the Internet to which you want your Google button point (for example, ehow), website_name with the name of the website (for example, ehow) and website_title with the tile of the website (for example, How to Information).

3. Press "Ctrl + S." on your keyboard.

4. Navigate to the following location using the dialog box that opens: "drive_letter:\Documents and Settings\user_name\Local Settings\Application Data\Google\Custom Buttons\google_button_name.xml" and then click "Save." Replace drive_letter with letter of the drive on your computer in which Google Toolbar is installed (for example, D:), user_name with your Windows user name (for example, Peter) and google_button_name with a name for the button that you are creating (for example, ehowButton).

5. Click "Start." Type "Internet Explorer" in the Search box. Press "Enter." The button that you created will appear on the Google Toolbar with a question mark image.

References

• Google: Guide to Making Custom Buttons for Google Toolbar 5

Resources

• Microsoft: Google Toolbar