If you’re a big Firefox fan, you probably noticed that whenever you open a new tab by clicking on the + icon or by press Ctrl + T, the page is always completely blank. There is absolutely nothing in the new tab!

Previously, I wrote about how you can fill that empty space in Firefox with the Speed Dial add-on, which is designed to let you access your favorite websites quickly. It gives you a grid layout similar to how Google Chrome shows you the most popular sites you visit in a new tab.

Another great add-on that makes use of all that empty space is NewTabURL (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/2221). It’s specifically designed to set a default URL when new tabs are opened. So instead of a blank page, you can display a web page.

Once you download and install the add-on, restart Firefox. Now go to Tools and then Add-ons.

Now scroll down until you see NewTabURL and click on it. Then click on the Options button.

Here you can set the options for the new tab. You can choose from Blank page, Home page, Current page, or a custom URL.

What’s really cool about this add-on, however, is the fact that you can open a URL if it’s been copied to the clipboard. So let’s say you are in a Word document and there is a web link. Just copy it and then open a new tab in Firefox! It will open that URL.

If you are browsing the web, you can just right-click on a link and choose Copy link address. Then just open a new tab in Firefox. This is not that fabulous because you could just right-click and choose Open in new tab, but it’s still useful.

There are not any other options for this add-on, but if you want to use your new tab page to be something other than blank, this is a good option!