I'd like to make an informed decision on extensions I install. Usually I read about people caring about browser extensions. I install extensions in vscode, in zed, gnome, kde and probably in a lot of other tools like bash as well.

Usually, I do not think much about security/ privacy. I only install what I want/ need and delete what I do not need.

How can I judge which extension to install and which not? There are extensions releasing builds regularly but the last release of public code on github was years ago. Downloads and stars give a hint on popularity. With popularity the people who will look into the code increases but if there's no code, there's nothing to look into. And just because it's not popular, it doesn't necessarily mean it's bad software.

How do you judge which extension to install?

I’m starting as data analyst (roughly bachelor level). My responsibility will be to analyze time series data and classify agents and write reports. I won’t be responsible for the database management. It’s likely that I have to use R because my colleagues use R. I guess I may use python if it’s more appropriate.

Which books and other things can you guys recommend? What should I avoid?