StumbleUpon is a website that offers a browser toolbar to allow you to note your favorite and not so favorite web sites as you are browsing. Instead of making it a point to add them to your bookmarks on your local machine, your results are categorized in the website database to share with others.
By “stumbling” a website, you are letting people know what you think of it. It is a great tool for people who visit a web site with the intention of coming back to it another time, but who usually forget to bookmark it and forget the URL.
As you “stumble” websites, StumbleUpon will provide you with more customized results based on your interest from the sites you are voting for. To vote for a website, simply click “like it” or “don’t like it” and browse the web as you normally would. When you choose th
is option, you will prompted to put a reason in for why you like it, and cateorgize it based on its topic.
You will have to enter a captcha to send the results in. The more you do this, the more personalized your results will become.
The toolbar also comes with many customizations, which you can access by clicking the "Tools" button, and choosing "Toolbar Options."
So, how do you get those results? The StumbleUpon toolbar also comes with a “Stumble” button which will load a new website each time you click it. You can even search for websites that match your interests.
Now that you know what it does and how to use it, let’s talk about how to actually get it. First, visit the StumbleUpon website. Click “Join Now” and fill in the required information on the next screen. All you have to do is choose a username, enter your email address, your birthday and the captcha.
Then, you’ll decide whether or not to let your friends find you with your email address, and whether or not to show a site’s rating with it in the results. Click “Join and Download Now” to download the toolbar. Run the file. When it completes downloading, and restart your browser.
You’ll have to login so it can track your stumbles, so it will prompt you to login without having to visit the site. The first time you login, you'll have to tell StumbleUpon the things you are interested in and the kinds of sites you most frequently visit, and after clicking "Save My Settings" you'll be able to stumble your heart out.
StumbleUpon works with Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. If you are using Opera or Safari, you can still get the benefits of StumbleUpon with the virtual toolbar by Digital Inspiration.
Use it to let everyone know about your favorite sites and sites you think people should stay away from, and you may even earn some traffic to your sites through it. You'll also be able to build a network of friends (with the friends button) with the StumbleUpon network.