PDA

View Full Version : Updating to Firefox 3 - problems



Bill D (wwh)
22nd May 2009, 11:21 PM
I'm using Firefox 2.0.0.20. Recently I updated to version 3, and about two thirds of my bookmarks and two thirds of my stored passwords disappeared.

I keep written records of passwords, so that was just an inconvenience, but losing two thirds of my bookmarks was a big issue, as I have a lot of them, and many are sites that I only use very infrequently but when I do they're indispensible.

My temporary fix was to reinstall v2 over v3, which brought everything back, but as v2 is no longer supported I do want to update.

I'm sure it's possible to update without losing all those passwords and bookmarks, but I've no idea how. Can anyone help with this?

Edit to add: I'm using Win XP Pro, in case that's relevant.

Bear and Ragged
22nd May 2009, 11:48 PM
It's been awhile...
I think that your bookmarks are saved somewhere...
Don't ask where, I can't remember!

add.
If you can find it, copy it to your desk top, install FF3, then copy back into new folder.

11011100
23rd May 2009, 08:17 AM
Bill

There are quite a few people experiencing similar problems according to their forums here. (http://support.mozilla.com/tiki-newsearch.php?locale=en-US&q=bookmarks+disappear+on+v3&sa=)

There are a few tips that might work here (http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Lost+Bookmarks)

Good luck!

martybartfast
23rd May 2009, 09:02 AM
Your bookmarks are kept in a starightforward html file, it will be somewhere like:

C:/Documents and Settings/username/Application Data/Mozilla/Firefox/???????.default/bookmarks.html

where ?????? is a random looking string and username is your user name.

Just try searching for a file named bookmarks.html but remember to search hidden and system files. you can copy it away, upgrade, and copy it back and everything should be OK.

Djinnsplace
24th May 2009, 11:46 AM
As far as I can remember -bookmarks, organise bookmarks, export html - will save a web page with all your links.
In FF3 it would be -bookmarks, organise bookmarks, Import and Backup,export html.

Bill D (wwh)
24th May 2009, 10:02 PM
Thanks, folks, for all the suggestions! :cheers:

I got there in the end, but it took an age... My bookmarks ended up in a new folder inside my bookmarks folder, but I can move those to get them all into my huge dropdown list.

I found an Add-on to export and import passwords, and though a few seem to have got missed somehow, I've got most of them back again and things in v3 are now pretty well how they should be. :)

The Hornet
25th May 2009, 07:37 AM
Glad you got it sorted Bill. You might want to have a look at the Firefox Add-in Xmarks (http://www.xmarks.com/). It's free and keeps a copy of your bookmarks online. If you use more than one PC it will keep the bookmarks synchronised between them. It's really useful if/when you have to reinstall stuff on a broken PC :eek:!!

Bill D (wwh)
25th May 2009, 11:57 AM
Glad you got it sorted Bill. You might want to have a look at the Firefox Add-in Xmarks (http://www.xmarks.com/). It's free and keeps a copy of your bookmarks online. If you use more than one PC it will keep the bookmarks synchronised between them. It's really useful if/when you have to reinstall stuff on a broken PC :eek:!!
Thanks for the link, Peter! I only use one pc at home, but I often use friends' computers when I'm away and that will save me a lot of searches! And as you say, it'll potentially be very useful for reinstalling, God forbid...!

Bill D (wwh)
26th May 2009, 01:10 PM
Hmm, I've now gone back to v2...

V3 was sooooooo slow... Pages took an age to even begin loading, and my CPU was running at 100% pretty well all the time I was using v3. And worse, it seemed to slow down everything else on my computer too.

It seems these are common problems - Mozilla's forums are awash with posts from people who've experienced them, and Mozilla recognise that but don't seem able to help. I tried all the suggestions in their knowledgebase, and they either didn't help at all or exacerbated the problem.

Versions 1 and 2 were great, but I'm afraid version 3, for me and a substantial minority of other users, is a massive PITA. As v2 is no longer supported and is probably going to become rather dodgy security-wise I'm now looking around for another browser.