Greasemonkey (Chrome/Firefox/Opera/Safari/Android): The Windows download world is in a sad state. Lots of download sites, including popular ones like Sourceforge and Adobe, bundle extra crapware with their installers. AntiAdware is a simple script that blocks these, so you don't have to worry about getting tricked.

Last week at Google I/O, the company's social network received a facelift. In some ways, it looks great, but it also introduced a slew of new problems. Enter userscripts to clean things up.

Chrome/Firefox with Greasemonkey: If you like to watch YouTube videos without all the clutter of the side bars, userscript Resize YouTube Player can help by automatically stretching the video you're watching to fill the entire browser window. This script also automatically changes the video's resolution (where available) to a higher quality, depending on how large your window is.

If you aren't a fan of Google Reader's new interface, this add-on will take out all the clutter, giving you a pretty, readable version of the current article and nothing else.

Now that Gmail's rolled out its new look and you've learned your way around the changes, it's time to fix the little quirks and annoyances that remain. Here are a few of our favourite userstyles and userscripts for making the best of the Gmail redesign.

Chrome/Firefox (Greasemonkey): If you're not a fan of the Google+ integration in Google Reader or you simply wish you could still use the old sharing system, ReaderSharer is an extension that restores those functions.

Chrome/Firefox/Safari (User Script): If you're like me, you probably avoid most YouTube links because you don't know what's on the other end, and you don't want to waste time finding out. User script YouTube Link Title saves you from NSFW videos, rickrolls and things that just aren't worth your time by warning you what's on the other side.

Chrome/Firefox/Opera/Safari (Greasemonkey): If you're tired of plain text links that you have to copy and paste in your address bar, free Greasemonkey script Linkify Plus will turn all URLs and email addresses into clickable links.

Dear Lifehacker, I finally got invited to Google+, but now that I'm in everyone's talking about extensions and scripts and other tools I can use to change the way it looks and works. What are some of the best ones to help me get in and start using it?

Firefox/Chrome/Opera: Right before Google announced Google+ the company changed the bar across the top of all Google pages black. That bar now has links to your often-used Google services, and the Google+ Enhancer user script makes it more useful by adding unread item counts to the ones you use.

We all have a few favourite websites, even when they're not perfect. You don't necessarily have to live with those imperfections, however, as userscripts and userstyles provide you with the option to customise just about anything. Here's a look at how they work, how to use them, and even how to get started on making your own.

Most browsers: You're filling out your shipping address on Amazon, and you decide you want to continue shopping. You grab a few more items and—oh no!—now you're stuck filling out that form again. Avoid this annoyance with a simple userscript.

Chrome/Firefox/Opera (in Linux): Websites will often provide the apt-get command for installing a piece of software on Linux. This Greasemonkey script will turn those commands into clickable links, so you can install those apps with one click of the mouse.

Chrome: Chrome has some nice quick-access icons on its extension bar, but it only works if extensions put icons there. If you want to toggle other extensions on or off, these Chrome add-ons will help you do it from the address bar.

If you too easily ignore the tiny "low battery" warning on your Mac, weblog Mac OS X Hints shares a script to make it warn you repeatedly and out loud that your battery is getting low.

If you trade a USB thumb drive, hard drive or other portable storage between Mac and Windows systems, the .DS_Store, .Trashes, and other starts-with-a-dot files left behind by Macs can get annoying. This script automatically wipes away those left-behind files.

Firefox with Greasemonkey: We've shown you one way to display your Google Calendar in Firefox's sidebar, but it took a lot of work. Here's a user script that makes it a three step process.

Chrome/Firefox/Opera/Safari: Whether you're searching for videos, images or torrents on the net, sometimes the first search engine you try doesn't give the best results. Try This Search On lets quickly run your search terms through a number of similar engines.

Firefox/Chrome/Opera/Safari: Our favourite music streaming service Grooveshark has been running better than ever since it updated to a Flash-free interface, and now you can further improve your experience with this user script.