Frequently Asked Questions

What is plob?

A page of big picture tiles, where one click takes you to the site you want: no pop-ups, no logins and no adverts. You choose which tiles are on your page and what order they are in.

More: About plob · The homepage in Help

What does "plob" mean?

Something that uses very few words and is picture-driven, with icon-like images.

Do I need an account, and does it cost anything?

No account, no password and nothing to pay. Plob remembers your page with a cookie in your browser, and Your Plob link (below) takes that page to any other device. Plob doesn't advertise: it spreads by word of mouth, so tell your friends.

Does plob work on a phone or tablet?

Yes. It works the same way on a phone or tablet as on a computer, and you can reorder tiles by pressing and holding them. On an iPhone or iPad you can also add plob to your home screen.

More: Reordering tiles · Setting plob as your homepage in Help

Can I add, remove, or reorder the tiles?

Yes - that's what plob is all about. Drag any tile wherever you want it, and use the search box to add tiles to your page or remove them.

More: Adding and removing tiles · Reordering tiles in Help

How do I move tiles on a phone or tablet?

Press and hold a tile for about a second, until it lifts (and your phone gives a short buzz), then drag it to where you want it. Plob waits for the hold so tiles never move by accident while you scroll.

More: Reordering tiles in Help

Why can't I move the tiles on the News, Shopping or Top 100 pages?

Only your own Plob page is yours to arrange. The sections along the top, Top 100, Latest and Kids are shared pages that look the same for everyone. To put one of their tiles on your page, find it with the search box and press Add.

More: Sections and the More menu in Help

A tile appeared on my homepage that I didn't add - why?

As plob evolves, so does the default homepage. If something new appears, it's been added to the shared default set because it's popular - try it, or just remove it if it's not for you.

A tile I used to have has gone - why?

Tiles are sometimes retired, for example when a website has closed or moved, and a retired tile is hidden from every page, yours included. Search for the site: if it is still on plob, or has a replacement, press Add.

More: Adding and removing tiles in Help

What is "Plob Default" at the bottom of the page?

It shows the default homepage that new visitors see. It's only a look: opening it doesn't change your own page. Click Plob on the section bar, or Your Plob at the bottom, to go back to your page.

More: The links at the bottom in Help

How do I set plob.uk as my homepage?

Set your Plob link as your browser's homepage, so you always land on your own page. The steps depend on your browser: Help covers Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari and phones.

More: Setting plob as your homepage in Help

Can I use the same plob page on another computer, tablet or phone?

Yes. Go to Help and press Copy to copy your personal plob link (or click Your Plob at the bottom of any page to show it in the address bar). Open that link, or set it as the homepage, on any other device and you'll see the same layout everywhere, and a change on one device appears on the others.

More: Using your page on another device in Help

I cleared my cookies, or changed browser, and my page has gone. Can I get it back?

If you saved your Plob link (as a bookmark, or in an email to yourself), open it and your page is back. Plob has no accounts, so without the link it has no way of knowing which page was yours.

More: Your Plob link in Help

Is my Plob link private?

Treat it like a key. Anyone who has the link can see your page and change its tiles, so only share it with someone you trust, and don't post it on a public website.

How does the search box work?

Type at least two letters and matching tiles appear. You can type several words in any order - maps google finds Google Maps - and plob shows up to 40 results, best matches first. Hover over a result to see its category and web address.

More: Adding and removing tiles in Help

What are Most used, Personal and Global?

Most used lists the tiles that get clicked most. Personal is your own most clicked tiles and Global is the most clicked by everyone. Tiles you don't have yet have an Add to homepage button.

More: Most used in Help

What are the sections along the top, and the More menu?

They split plob's tiles into topics, such as News, Shopping and Games. Plob is your own page; the others are shared catalogues with the most popular tiles first. The topics that don't fit on the bar are under More.

More: Sections and the More menu in Help

What are Top 100 and Latest?

Top 100 shows the 100 most-clicked tiles on the whole site, for all time or for a single year. Latest shows the 60 newest tiles added to plob, newest first.

More: Top 100 · Latest in Help

What is Plob Kids?

A page of tiles chosen for children, reached from Kids on the section bar. It has its own logo and is the same for everyone, with no search box.

More: Plob Kids in Help

A site I use isn't on plob. Can I ask for it to be added?

Yes: use Suggest at the bottom of the page. Give the website address and a name, and optionally the section it belongs in.

More: Suggesting a tile in Help

I can't see a Suggest link.

The link only appears once you have used plob before, meaning plob has already given your browser a page of its own. Open the homepage, then look at the bottom of the page again.

Will I hear back about my suggestion?

No. Plob doesn't ask for your email address, so it can't reply. Suggestions are reviewed by a person and new tiles are added by hand; if yours is added, you'll find it in the search box and in Latest.

What does plob remember about me?

A random visitor number, kept in a cookie for a year, and your page: the tiles you have added or removed and their order. When you click a tile, plob also records which tile it was, when, and your visitor number and IP address; that is what makes Most used, Top 100 and plob's own statistics work. A suggestion is stored with your visitor number and IP address too, to help tell real suggestions from spam. There are no adverts.

Where does the weather come from?

When you load the homepage, plob uses your IP address to guess your town with the free service ipwho.is, then asks Open-Meteo for the temperature there. The result is kept for 30 minutes so repeat visits don't ask again. If the town can't be worked out, no weather shows.

Hold the mouse over the weather for more: today's high and low, what it feels like, humidity, wind, chance of rain, UV, sunrise and sunset, and the next 24 hours in 3-hour steps, with arrows to step through the next few days. That fuller forecast is only fetched when you do this, for the same town, from Open-Meteo. On a touch screen, tap the weather instead.

If the guess is wrong, press the little pin button beside the weather (top right), type your town into the box that opens and pick it from the list. Your search is sent to plob, which looks the place up with Open-Meteo's free place search; nothing else about you is sent. The place you pick is remembered in this browser only, and the pin's box has a link to go back to the automatic guess. The pin isn't shown on a phone-sized screen, which has no weather either.