Tabs.do: Task-Centric Browser Tab Management
TLDRA Chrome extension called Tabs.do is introduced, which explores bringing a task-centric approach to the browser, helping users to group their tabs into tasks and then organize, prioritize, and switch between those tasks fluidly.

How do people cite this paper?
(generated 20 days ago)Tabs.do has informed subsequent research in several ways: its characterization of tab overload and the mismatch between browser interfaces and users' task mental models has been used to motivate new approaches to managing browsing complexity and web-based sensemaking tools; its ML-based tab grouping method has served as a comparative baseline for privacy-preserving task inference techniques; its task-centric design strategies—such as lightweight interactions for organizing information and context-aware suggestions—have influenced the design of systems for collecting and triaging web content, scrap management tools, and multi-page web exploration interfaces; and its field deployment methodology and observations about evolving browsing patterns have been referenced in work studying large-scale web usage behavior.
Mentions
- Mashable: Stop trying to work in multiple browser tabs. It's terrible for your focus. Tab hoarding gives the illusion that multitasking is possible, but it's not. — Rebecca Ruiz
- Fast Company: The twisted psychology of browser tabs—and why we can't get rid of them. New research proves that it's not just you: Browser tabs are scientifically terrible. — Mark Wilson
- Metro New UK: Suffer from 'tab overload'? Scientists study why we have so many open. — Katherine Hignett
- CMU News: Overcoming Tab Overload. CMU researchers develop tool to better manage browser tabs. — Aaron Aupperlee
- GeekWire: AI, the brain, and the crowd: Research explores new ways for humans and tech to work together — Todd Bishop
Talks and Demo Videos
30 Seconds Preview (UIST 2021)
Presentation (UIST 2021)