Comments on: Want To Try Firefox 3.5 Beta 4 Without Installing It? http://www.pcmech.com/article/want-to-try-firefox-35-beta-4-without-installing-it/ Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:19:19 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Bryan Price http://www.pcmech.com/article/want-to-try-firefox-35-beta-4-without-installing-it/comment-page-1/#comment-25688 Bryan Price Sat, 06 Jun 2009 15:27:02 +0000 http://www.pcmech.com/article/want-to-try-firefox-35-beta-4-without-installing-it/#comment-25688 @True Falcon: You should have downloaded Nightly Tester as your first extension. Then you can force an install by a touch of a button. It won't let addons.mozilla.org let you install or download those extensions, but those sites that don't check work just fine. I've been installing a new desktop, and decided to go whole hog and installed beta for real. After running into addons.mozilla.org not allowing me access, I (foolishly) installed 3.0.10, not realizing that it got installed right over my 3.5b4. I then RE-installed 3.5b4 on top of that. After getting most of my extensions loaded, my Xmarks wasn't working, not even a little. It was DE-install 3.5b4, erase the program directory completely (there was a .dll left), erase the profile, then RE-install 3.5b4 (and I used the portable 3.0.10 to download the extensions I wanted, using Mr. Tech's extension to install them after that). I probably could have just used another computer to download the extensions, but I wasn't thinking that way. Everything is working fine on that system now. The reason why I installed it? You can't really make the portable version the default browser, because when Firefox runs without the surgery that the PortableFirefox.exe does to prepare it, it makes and uses a default profile where you don't have one. It works great as long as you've already loaded it. But for the first time? Yuch. @True Falcon: You should have downloaded Nightly Tester as your first extension. Then you can force an install by a touch of a button. It won’t let addons.mozilla.org let you install or download those extensions, but those sites that don’t check work just fine.

I’ve been installing a new desktop, and decided to go whole hog and installed beta for real. After running into addons.mozilla.org not allowing me access, I (foolishly) installed 3.0.10, not realizing that it got installed right over my 3.5b4. I then RE-installed 3.5b4 on top of that. After getting most of my extensions loaded, my Xmarks wasn’t working, not even a little. It was DE-install 3.5b4, erase the program directory completely (there was a .dll left), erase the profile, then RE-install 3.5b4 (and I used the portable 3.0.10 to download the extensions I wanted, using Mr. Tech’s extension to install them after that). I probably could have just used another computer to download the extensions, but I wasn’t thinking that way. Everything is working fine on that system now.

The reason why I installed it? You can’t really make the portable version the default browser, because when Firefox runs without the surgery that the PortableFirefox.exe does to prepare it, it makes and uses a default profile where you don’t have one. It works great as long as you’ve already loaded it. But for the first time? Yuch.

]]> By: True Falcon http://www.pcmech.com/article/want-to-try-firefox-35-beta-4-without-installing-it/comment-page-1/#comment-25680 True Falcon Sat, 06 Jun 2009 06:53:23 +0000 http://www.pcmech.com/article/want-to-try-firefox-35-beta-4-without-installing-it/#comment-25680 After imaging everything to dvd, I installed Ff3.5b4 as my main browser. I had to tweak 8 of my addons by opening the install.rdf and changing the max version to 4.0. They all installed and worked fine. To date, I have had zero problems with this version of Firefox. After imaging everything to dvd, I installed Ff3.5b4 as my main browser. I had to tweak 8 of my addons by opening the install.rdf and changing the max version to 4.0. They all installed and worked fine. To date, I have had zero problems with this version of Firefox.

]]> By: Bryan Price http://www.pcmech.com/article/want-to-try-firefox-35-beta-4-without-installing-it/comment-page-1/#comment-25664 Bryan Price Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:32:47 +0000 http://www.pcmech.com/article/want-to-try-firefox-35-beta-4-without-installing-it/#comment-25664 A) It doesn't have to be a flash stick. You can actually install it on your hard drive (like I do). I've got it under C:\FirefoxPortable\. Just attach a c: in front of the installation directory. :) B) If you create/modify your FirefoxPortable.ini file (see the readme.txt file, they've got on all ready for you to copy where it needs to be, where your firefoxportable.exe file goes), and add AllowMultipleInstances=true You can then run FF 3.5 and FF 3.0(.10) together. I do it all the time. You can also do things like turn the splash screen off. I actually took the FF 3.0.x portable version, installed the latest nightly over on top of that, and the new nightly installations update it just fine. The only problem I've ran into is that a couple of times, the update fails in some way, and when the portable app starts, it thinks it's using your 3.0 profile (and hilarity ensues!). Just exit Firefox (nothing will get changed UNLESS you change it!), and restart Firefoxportable.exe. Directions to do that installation are here: http://firefox-fangirl.livejournal.com/1977.html I'm really about to the point where I'm ready to make my 3.5 portable the default browser. Gmail under 3.0 feels like slush anymore. I'm running Xmarks to sync everything between computers and versions even. That's two desktops and one laptop, all running 3.0.10 and 3.5pre (It's not even marked beta in the nightly builds now). It was a bit much trying to make sure that everything was running the same extensions. It took awhile (and I only had two computers to deal with, the second desktop is a new install), but it's done. Once 3.5 comes out, after making an archival copy of my portable firefox, I'll be running 3.6alpha, just to play with. A) It doesn’t have to be a flash stick. You can actually install it on your hard drive (like I do). I’ve got it under C:\FirefoxPortable\. Just attach a c: in front of the installation directory. :)

B) If you create/modify your FirefoxPortable.ini file (see the readme.txt file, they’ve got on all ready for you to copy where it needs to be, where your firefoxportable.exe file goes), and add

AllowMultipleInstances=true

You can then run FF 3.5 and FF 3.0(.10) together. I do it all the time. You can also do things like turn the splash screen off.

I actually took the FF 3.0.x portable version, installed the latest nightly over on top of that, and the new nightly installations update it just fine. The only problem I’ve ran into is that a couple of times, the update fails in some way, and when the portable app starts, it thinks it’s using your 3.0 profile (and hilarity ensues!). Just exit Firefox (nothing will get changed UNLESS you change it!), and restart Firefoxportable.exe. Directions to do that installation are here:

http://firefox-fangirl.livejournal.com/1977.html

I’m really about to the point where I’m ready to make my 3.5 portable the default browser. Gmail under 3.0 feels like slush anymore. I’m running Xmarks to sync everything between computers and versions even. That’s two desktops and one laptop, all running 3.0.10 and 3.5pre (It’s not even marked beta in the nightly builds now). It was a bit much trying to make sure that everything was running the same extensions. It took awhile (and I only had two computers to deal with, the second desktop is a new install), but it’s done.

Once 3.5 comes out, after making an archival copy of my portable firefox, I’ll be running 3.6alpha, just to play with.

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