Other Browsers Need to Steal Opera’s Multitasking Sidebar
I’m running full screen apps on my Mac. I like to send each application to a separate workspace and switch between them to use the one I need. When I’m writing, it helps me focus on the task at hand, and it’s easy to swipe three or four fingers on the trackpad to jump to other productivity apps as needed. However, messaging apps like WhatsApp and Slack are the exception. I need to be able to check them at any time, for example when I use the browser in full screen mode. Luckily, this is where Opera’s sidebar comes in. This handy tool contains social media apps, instant messengers, and even some streaming services, keeping them from getting lost in separate tabs and allowing me to easily glance at them while I’m working on something else. This is a lifesaver and other browsers desperately need to use it.
What is Opera’s sidebar?
You can think of Opera’s sidebar as a way to bookmark important services in the left pane of the Opera browser. By default, only the icons are shown, but clicking one of them will open the bookmarked tool in a small pop-up tab. This is ideal for tasks you want to work on without losing focus on the currently active tab. While I usually find myself navigating to a secondary tab to search the web or switch to another app to respond to texts, this sidebar allows me to stay on the current tab, quickly perform other tasks, and then get right back to work.
How to customize Opera’s sidebar
The sidebar is enabled by default, but you should take the time to customize it to display your favorite services. Just click the three-dot button in the lower left corner of the Opera window and the sidebar settings panel will open. Go through the sections of AI services, instant messengers and special features. Simply check the box next to the services you want to use and disable the ones you don’t need. Your selections will then appear in the left panel, and you can click them to use them in the sidebar.
Unfortunately, you can’t add any random app to your sidebar, but you do have a fairly extensive list from which to choose. You can choose artificial intelligence services such as ChatGPT, instant messengers (WhatsApp, Slack, etc.) or social networking sites (Instagram, Bluesky, etc.). The most recent additions are Bluesky, Discord and Slack, so at least Opera is always adding more features. The sidebar also supports music streaming services such as Apple Music, Spotify, and YouTube Music.
Why I prefer Opera’s sidebar to tabs
I’ll admit it: I have a problem with opening too many tabs and then losing them. I’ve been guilty of opening the same website in multiple tabs, or sometimes even running the same search query in multiple tabs. Using the sidebar I found a solution to these problems. When I need to reply to a message, I can open the messaging app from the sidebar and close it once I’m done. And if I need access to it for a longer period of time, I can pin the app, which will display it in a neat split screen. This allows me to work faster than when I have multiple tabs open or when I need to switch between applications.
While the Mac makes it easy to place two apps side by side, the browser’s sidebar feature allows me to quickly swap out new apps as needed. This is a level of flexibility that is otherwise difficult to find. It’s also worth noting that Opera isn’t the only browser to offer a sidebar, but it is one of the few that runs your browser extensions inside the sidebar. If my favorite browsers – Safari and Firefox – supported this feature, I would even have to remove the official applications for some of these services.
I don’t think I’ll be able to use Opera as my primary browser because I’m drawn to the unique privacy benefits of Safari and Firefox , but the company has done some interesting things lately. It’s created a browser that can break your scrolling habit , and its Aria artificial intelligence is actually quite useful . Other companies would do well to keep up.