Default FF always opens same site

Because I've located my FF 2.0.0.4 program and profile folders in other-than-default locations, and because my profile is so highly customized, I also maintain a virgin installation of 2.0.0.4 (the folders are in their default locations, and there are no customizations) for comparison.

Running them separately has not been a problem, but one thing has me baffled ... whenever I start the default FF, even though I have it set to open with a blank page, it opens at www(dot)user(dot)com, the website for a company that, among other things, designs websites. Other than in Cookies, which I've cleared, I could find no reference, in either profile or program, to this website.

Any thoughts?

 

Jim,

Have you tried this:

First:
Clear the Home Page path, leaving it blank
In the dropdown menu, select: Blank page

This should work. If not then:
Go to about:config
Filter:
browser.startup.homepage
Right click and select: Modify
In the blank field type: about:blank

 

Ramona ...

I had already tried your first suggestion, as those are the settings I use for my customized FF (which also opens with a blank page).

I had duplicated the customized browser.startup entries in the default about:config, but the default FF continued to open with the unwanted page. Changing browser.startup.homepage to about:blank doesn't change anything ... default FF continues to open with the unwanted page.

I even assigned a specific page as "Home Page" and set default FF to open with the home page, and it still opens with the unwanted page. Truthfully, I don't really care what it opens with, but I'd really like to know why this is happening.

 

Problem Solved

Ramona ...

You should get a chuckle from this explanation, as it relates directly to a discussion you and I had a day or two ago. Hopefully, it may help others if they run into a similar problem.

In an effort to make my default FF installation as "normal" as possible, when I created the profile for it I accepted the default name, which is Default User. That, in turn, caused the profile folder to be named a1bcde2f.Default User.

When I created the shortcut for the default FF, I placed the command "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" -p a1bcde2f.Default User in the Target line.

Note: Windows requires that quotation marks enclose a command which includes spaces ... in this case those in the names of the folders Program Files and Mozilla Firefox.​

Unknown to me, FF read the profile as a1bcde2f.Default, followed by the instruction to open the website (www).User(.com).

It finally dawned on me that the requirement for quotation marks in command lines might also apply to command line switches (the profile name, in this case). Enclosing the profile name with them now made Windows recognize it properly as "a1bcde2f.Default User ", which solved the problem ... no more strange, unwanted page opening in default FF.

I can't believe the answer was so simple, but I think that's why I couldn't figure it out ... I was looking for something larger, or more insidious.

 

Jim,

The easiest is always the hardest to spot, as you said, we are usually look for something extremely complicated, perhaps requiring a hack! Glad you figured it out...

 

As I see it, the profile was Default User, with a space between the two words. DefaultUser should have been no problem. It goes back to the days when my ISP set up, god knows,which early Netscape, and I kept losing the profile.
The tech person made a point not to use default+something elsem with a space in between. It happened so many times that, I had beside default, default1, default2, etc. The first time I had it default 1, and Netscape read it as default.

 

Correct. Windows' command syntax requires that any command or switch including a space between words be enclosed in quotation marks. Unfortunately, that's the way the FF/TB Profile Manager presents the default name ... as two words. I'm sure most users personalize the profile name, but I was trying to keep it as pure as I could.

 

1. I think it may be "CASE" sensitive also - but i could be wrong...
2. Why did you include "a1bcde2f" in the properties.
I have a DT shortcut to FF = "E:\Program Files\FF_2.0.0.4\firefox.exe" -p FF_2004_Jim.
(no white space in profile name)
The actual folder in profiles is = ............\Profiles\c386hyr6.FF_2004_Jim\
If I change properties to = "E:\Program Files\FF_2.0.0.4\firefox.exe" -p ff_2004_Jim.(lower case)
No work - change to Upper case = "E:\Program Files\FF_2.0.0.4\firefox.exe" -p FF_2004_Jim.
it works
regards:captjlddavis

 

I'm beginning to think that it works differently on every system!

In a shortcut, the profile name is case sensitive. You can change part of the profile name in a shortcut from uppercase to lowercase, or you can change the name entirely. Because FF doesn't recognize it, it opens the Profile Manager, where you can select the correct profile.

I included "a1bcde2f" in the shortcut because I didn't know I didn't have to. I have never used the standard installation, and have never had either my FF and TB program folders or my profiles in the default location, or used the default names.

You've obviously assigned your "Program Files" folder to your E: drive, as have I, only I call mine "PROGRAMS" (I make all folder names uppercase to more easily differentiate them from lowercase file names). I suspect, though, that you've left your profile folder in the default location, or you wouldn't have "c386hyr6" preceding the profile name.

If you wanted to, you could place all of your various Mozilla, FF, TB, and SM program folders, along with their profile folders, in a single MOZILLA folder, giving them any names you please. You can see how mine are organized in the screenshot.

 

JSS,
Thanks, different strokes for different folks....

You have your reasons and I have mine....

Just wanted to get things straight in my own mind.

regards:captjlddavis