Firefox 1.01 Critical Updates

I was told about a week ago, on the Firefox forums, that I could wait for a patch for FF1.01. I have 1.0. Well, today I received a message and an arrow next to the throbber telling me that critical updates were now available. So I clicked on the arrow and went through the process and installed. My question is, I now have FF1.0 and FF1.01 in my add/remove programs. Should I remove FF1.0?

Thanks,
Jeane

 

Since patches are not used, but rather entire program, you should uninstall the old version first, and then install the new one. But after having two version installed, I would start uninstalling the 1.01. I think that it may do the job, since you may have ended up with one on top of the other. But, check the Add/Remove again.
You should treat the news version as an entirely different program. I suppose that it has been downloaded and stored somewhere.

 

Just curious. I am probably confused about this, but this is from the FF forums:

The new Firefox autoupdate should be available around March 7th. Firefox 1.0 users who aren't experienced in handling profiles during the uninstall/reinstall process may want to wait. Autoupdate will install the 1.0.1 patch automatically and preserve all current settings, without the need to uninstall/reinstall The Autoupdate feature should already be set on, as it is the default setting for Firefox 1.0. You can check for proper settings through: TOOLS ... OPTIONS ... ADVANCED ... SOFTWARE UPDATES ... check the boxes for "Periodically Check for Updates" for Firefox and My Extensions/Themes. Another setting to check is TOOLS ... OPTIONS ... WEB FEATURES ... CHECK "allow site to install software "

 

I have my settings to check, but I would never allow the install. Even if they use a patch, it does not remove the line in the Add/Remove. But, if this is the only problem, you should try to remove the, manually, as you, originally asked, but be careful what it says. I have run into some software like that, and windows told me that the reference to that software would be removed. I had already uninstalled the software, but the reference staid. But, if you select 1.0, and it tells that 1.01 will be removed, then the developers don't know what they are talking about.

 

Per the FF website, if I try to remove 1.0, FF will not run. In fact, a few people have done that and ran into all kinds of problems. It is a reported bug. I was just wondering, though, when the next upgrade comes out, will there be a problem updating for those of us who used the "patch" and have 2 versions on our computer?

 

Hi Jeane,

There's an easy way to take care of the problem of having two versions of Firefox listed in Add/Remove, and it's easier to do than it is to explain, so don't be disheartened by the seeming length of these instructions. I've tried to make them as clear as possible.

1. Download the latest zipped version of FF or, at least, the one you want to use. Also download RegSeeker, if you don't already have it. It doesn't need to be installed ... it runs from its own folder.

2. Delete your FF program folder, leaving your profile folder intact.

3. Open RegSeeker ...

a. click on "Find in registry "

b. check all boxes except "Match whole word"

c. type firefox in the search window

d. click on the Search button​

When RegSeeker finishes its search ...

a. click on "Select all" at the bottom of the page

b. right-click anywhere in the now highlighted search area, and click on "Delete selected items "

c. click on 'OK" and close RegSeeker​

If you like, you can open Add/Remove. You should find no Mozilla Firefox versions listed.

4. In Windows Explorer, unzip your new FF file to wherever your original FF folder was located. FF does NOT need to be installed.

5. Before opening FF, open the profile manager and see if your profile information is correct. If not, create a new profile using your old profile information/location.​

As I said, Firefox does NOT need to be installed, because simply opening it creates the necessary registry entries. Now, whenever you wish to upgrade, simply rename your FF program folder (I use XFirefox) and unzip the new version to the parent folder. When you're satisfied that the new version is working to your satisfaction, delete the older renamed folder.

HTH.

 

I work with the unzipped file any time when the program is in transition, or developing. The way things are working out now, Firefox should be downloaded and unzipped. There are are more changes in the horizon.
I don't bother with the registry when I use an unzipped file, and never ran into problems.

 

Westside ...

I wrote those instructions because Jeane was concerned about having two different versions of FF listed in her Add/Remove, not that it would hurt anything.

Besides, whenever I uninstall a program, there are invariably references to it left in the registry,and I always clean them out with RegSeeker.

Like you, I never use an installation version of either Firefox or Tbird. It's not necessary, it takes longer, and it doesn't install properly (even though I instruct the installation program not to put a folder in Start > Programs, it does it anyway).

 

Jim,

Very good info to know. I'm new, and therefore not as confident, to doing things such as you described, but I will print and explore further. Seems like the smart thing to do. You and others on the board have expanded my knowledge greatly. I did have one more question for you. Could you please explain further about parent folder:

Thanks again,

Jeane

 

Hi Jeane,

Glad to. In the Windows "tree ", you'll find lots of nested folders. For instance, the path to your Firefox profile is something similar to C:\Documents and Settings\<Username>\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\. Each, except C:\, is a directory, or in Windows parlance, a "folder ". Mozilla is the parent folder for Firefox which, in turn, is the parent folder for Profiles.

On my system, the Firefox Program folder (not to be confused with the Profiles folder) is D:\Internet\Firefox. When I want to upgrade to a new version, or build, I rename Firefox to XFirefox because that allows me to retain a good working build with a minimum of fuss and effort. Because the downloaded zip file already contains a folder named Firefox, I simply unzip the file to the Internet (parent) folder. When I'm satisfied that the new build works properly, I delete the XFirefox folder.

If, for some reason, the new build doesn't meet my expectations, I simply delete the new Firefox folder, rename XFirefox to Firefox, and I'm back where I was originally.

I hope you find this explanation satisfactory. As I said in my earlier post, the whole business is a lot easier to do than it is to explain.

 

Jim,
excellent explanation, which is simplified, in my case, perhaps, by the fact that I have only one hard drive.

 

Westside ...

I use two hard drives, at present, but the second is used only to back up the primary, which is partitioned C:, D:, E:, and F:.

 

Using zip filess!!!!

JSS3rd - Jim
I just read your post re: using winzip, assuming, to USE ff and tb??
Now, If someone could explain HOW to use winzip!!!? I really would appreciate it..
I've never been able to USE winzip effectively!! Simply dosen't work for me.
I have version 8.1 SR-1. Their help files are unuseable. I've tried many, many times to use winzip, files go no where, are undetectable, and never, never can be found. I'm running win xp home on a Dell...

Sounds like a good way to run programs that don't need installing by windows, This is "another" wrinkle I've yet to learn!!!! <g>
Thanks,
John in Dallas

 

Hi John,

I've been using WinZip for nearly eight years ... I think it was at about version 5.x back then, and it's at 9.0 SR-1 (build 6224) now. I have to say that I've had few, if any, problems with it.

I use WinZip's Classic interface, rather than the Wizards, because that's the way I learned to use it, and I like the interface better. You need to configure the program properly, and the "Explorer Enhancements " tab probably contains the most important settings, particularly the checkboxes in the "General" section at the top left, and those in the "Context menu commands" window on the right. The latter are largely a matter of personal taste, but the screenshot shows the ones that I've found work best for me.

I don't know why you're having problems with WinZip, but this is how I use it ...

UNZIPPING ...

1. Always download files to a designated downloads folder, rather than to the Desktop. I have a partition on my hard drive with folders that are reserved for downloads, workspace, and temporary storage. I've named them Downloads (duh!), Purgatory, Quarantine, and Temporary.

2. In Windows Explorer, navigate to your downloads folder and open it, so you can see your downloaded files in Explorer's right pane.

3. Right-click on the *.zip file you wish to unzip and, while holding down the right mouse button, drag the file to a temporary folder (I'd use Purgatory or Quarantine) in Explorer's left pane, highlighting that folder. When you release the right mouse button a context menu will open. If you've configured WinZip as shown in the screenshot, sliding your mouse pointer over "WinZip" will open a submenu. Select "Extract to here ".

4. When WinZip has done its thing, open the folder you've unzipped your files into to see what you've got.

Note that double-clicking on a *.zip file will (or should) show you everything the file contains and, theoretically, you should be able to install programs and read help files from within the WinZip window. I just prefer to do it the way I've outlined above.​

ZIPPING ...

1. Again, I prefer to work within Windows Explorer. Highlight the files you wish to zip. Right-click on them and select "WinZip > Add to Zip file..." from the context menu and submenu. The WinZip window will open, with an "Add" window in the foreground.

2. Click on the "New" button. A "New Archive" window will open. Type the name for your new zip file in the "File name:" window and click on "OK ", closing the "New Archive" window and returning you to the "Add" window.

3. Click on the "Add" button, which closes the "Add" window, returning you to the WinZip window. The files you've just zipped will be displayed. Close the window. Your new *.zip file is complete.

Note that while you're in the "Add" window, you can set the amount of compression you want WinZip to use.​

This is the way I use WinZip, but I'm sure that other users use it completely differently. Hopefully, you'll get some more responses.

HTH