Yahoo announced today that it has launched a new version of the Yahoo Toolbar for web browsers. In addition to Firefox and Internet Explorer, for which Yahoo has offered a toolbar in the past, it is also now available for Chrome.
The update is only for U.S. users.
“The browser is your window to the world, and it’s your way of navigating the things that you do daily,” says senior product manager Umesh Joshi “The Yahoo! Toolbar helps you get to what matters the most to you – faster and easier.”
The company recently announced that it was shutting down its other browser/browser extension offering, Yahoo Axis. Axis was launched in the pre-Marissa Mayer Yahoo days, and quickly appeared on the chopping block about a month and a half ago, along with Alta Vista and a handful of other Yahoo offerings. With the new toolbar, Axis would be fairly redundant.
“Whether you want quick access to search, email, local weather, or world and financial news, the Toolbar gets you there, no matter where you are on the web,” says Joshi. “You can even check in on what your friends on social networks are doing with one simple click.”
The app provides easy access to your Facebook news feed and lets you leave status updates. You can add apps and subtract apps like those that will allow you to preview or subscribe to RSS feeds, and have easy access to bookmarks.
I’m not sure how much of the functionality isn’t available from other browser extensions, but some will no doubt find comfort in the Yahoo universe across the web.