Thank you, greenknight and pmanger for giving us helpful information without the arrogance to think everyone but you is ignorant. Windows XP shut down on me last night with a serious error, and I opened Firefox this morning to find a new look and no bookmarks. I did a complete search (I always have hidden and system folders displayed and selected in Explorer and the Search operation) and found only this morning's empty one, and the one from last August when I first imported my IE bookmarks. This is enough to send me back to IE, no joke, because I have made innumerable changes since then. I suppose it's better than having none of them, but this is a major bug to me and, apparently, hasn't been fixed yet.
Thanks for the link to the backup extension. I'm so glad I have it, now that the horse is out of the barn. At least now he might not get out again, if I ever use Firefox again.
For those of you novices who read these posts, I wondered what to do with that bookmarks.html file once I found it. Just open Firefox and click on Bookmarks, Manage Bookmarks, File, Import, select From File, click Next, find the file you discovered, select it and click Open, and your bookmarks will be imported.
Also, I had no idea what Mozilla's Profile Manager was because I had never had to use it, but found an article that told me to Run firefox.exe -profilemanager. This worked but didn't help me because I could not see a place to invoke a particular, older profile, just to create or delete one. I tried again just now to run it, but now it only opens Firefox, but does not run Profile Manager. So, truly, it's back to IE for me, low security or not. I have wasted too much time on this.
Thoughts on Missing Bookmarks
-
AnotherGuest.
- Posts: 2158
- Joined: December 22nd, 2004, 11:47 am
YrbkMgr wrote:I've had FF installed on countless user machines and have seen about every PBCAK error you can imagine (Problem Between Chair and Keyboard). I've heard my clients report that the bookmarks are missing, a boatload of times. In every instance I have personally been involved with, they haven't disappeared; the user simply couldn't find them.
Whatever happened to some individual file (Windows crashed, files lost, eaten by dog, etc.), YrbkMgr speaks from experience at always having been able to find files users thought were gone. For those of you who don't have YrbkMgr handy, you need to be aware that there may be more than one bookmarks.html file. This includes the default file that is supplied with Fx, that is virtually empty.
Maybe you folks are the elite, whose files really did disappear and cannot be recovered by file searching (but not quite elite enough to back up either your computer or the bookmark file). Maybe sometimes the file really does disappear. But on the basis of his experience I will bet on the BCAK error every time. If I can get enough takers for that bet, I can finally retire in style.
-
MarkBarnes
- Guest
Just to add my two cents worth. I've lost my bookmarks twice this week, after using Firefox quite happily for several months with no problems. However, I have an Undelete program on my machine. This is what I find in the \D&S\username\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\default.utt
bookmarks.bak (423 bytes)
bookmarks.html (ditto)
bookmarks.html.moztmp (113k, deleted, but with a modified timestamp 20 minutes earlier than those above)
All I did was exit Firefox. No error messages. No extra profiles. Firefox screwed up. Not me. Not windows. Just Firefox. Is that heresy? I'll live with it. And I'll install bookmark backup...
bookmarks.bak (423 bytes)
bookmarks.html (ditto)
bookmarks.html.moztmp (113k, deleted, but with a modified timestamp 20 minutes earlier than those above)
All I did was exit Firefox. No error messages. No extra profiles. Firefox screwed up. Not me. Not windows. Just Firefox. Is that heresy? I'll live with it. And I'll install bookmark backup...
-
AnotherGuest.
- Posts: 2158
- Joined: December 22nd, 2004, 11:47 am
It's getting to be quite a job to post instructions on how to back up and retrieve bookmarks files on all the many threads that are circulating simultaneously.
There is a very simple reason why many of you are not able to find bookmarks files that are still on your computer. The short answer is that Windows is playing a trick on you. I suspect that most of the time they are undeleted, and you can find them easily without recourse to attempting to recover deleted files -- although this could be required in certain cases.
I don't have time to do this right now, but in the next message I'll write simple instructions for saving a copy of your bookmarks, finding and retrieving them, and recovering old and lost copies. It's not at all difficult, and there's no reason you should ever lose your bookmarks again, even if your computer crashes.
There is a very simple reason why many of you are not able to find bookmarks files that are still on your computer. The short answer is that Windows is playing a trick on you. I suspect that most of the time they are undeleted, and you can find them easily without recourse to attempting to recover deleted files -- although this could be required in certain cases.
I don't have time to do this right now, but in the next message I'll write simple instructions for saving a copy of your bookmarks, finding and retrieving them, and recovering old and lost copies. It's not at all difficult, and there's no reason you should ever lose your bookmarks again, even if your computer crashes.
-
AnotherGuest.
- Posts: 2158
- Joined: December 22nd, 2004, 11:47 am
This looks long, but it's easier done than said. The good news is that you could be in luck. Your bookmarks may still be on the computer. In most cases they are easy to find, but they can also be tricky to find. Procedures presented here will help you find them if they are anywhere on the computer.
On the bright side, here's what one IT consultant has to say: "I've heard my clients report that the bookmarks are missing, a boatload of times. In every instance I have personally been involved with, they haven't disappeared; the user simply couldn't find them."
<b>IMPORTANT -- READ THIS FIRST</b>
If your bookmarks disappeared immediately after you were asked to create a new profile, you can go directly to "The Simple Method", below. <b>Otherwise, do not close or restart Firefox or make any changes in bookmarks until you have searched.</b> Go directly to "The Thorough Method" (below) and if necessary, "Using ChkDsk and Other File-Recovery Utilities" (below). <b>When Firefox saves bookmarks, and possibly when it exits or restarts, it overwrites the backup file, and that backup file is your parachute.</b> File recovery often works, so don't give up until you have tried that too. And do not stop until you have backed up your bookmarks!
<b>IF THERE IS A PROBLEM, PLEASE HELP FIX IT</b>
If your bookmarks files have been deleted or overwritten, if you are willing to spend a little time documenting the loss carefully, please consider posting the details <b>here.</b> Please read the guidelines for posting, and state as clearly as possible what happened and what you have done to find your bookmarks. These user reports are essential for finding and fixing bugs.
WHY DID MY BOOKMARKS DISAPPEAR?
The most common cause of misplaced bookmarks is a new profile. Fortunately, this is easy to correct. Firefox allows you to have more than one <b>profile,</b> each with its own set of <i>bookmarks,</i> extensions, and other user data. Under certain conditions you may create a new profile without realizing that you won't be able to use your bookmarks while using it. To solve this problem, see "The Simple Method", below.
Unfortunately, there are other possible causes. <b>You should consider whether you have used, or have installed on your computer, a "clean up" program that might delete bookmarks without your knowledge.</b> Note that some programs also erase your tracks on the Internet. To do this they have to erase files, possibly including your bookmarks. Some of them erase files very thoroughly. <b>If you have information on any such programs, please post</b> <b>here.</b>
There is also a known bug, which will be fixed in version 1.1. If Windows crashes, the bookmarks file sometimes becomes corrupted. Then, when chkdsk or scandisk runs on restarting the computer, it removes the file. Firefox creates a new file, and when users edit bookmarks, the backup file is overwritten.
<b>HOW TO FIND YOUR BOOKMARKS</b>
<b>The Simple Method</b>
This usually works.
Click here for a description for Windows XP, with screen shots.
This works with any operating system.
1. Close all Firefox windows.
2. Close any Firefox processes that may still be running. (On recent versions of Windows, you can run the Task Manager and look at the Processes tab. On any operating system, rebooting will always work.)
3. Run Firefox.exe -profilemanager
Click here for screen shots. This includes instructions for Mac.
4. You will be presented with a choice of one or more profiles. Try them all and see if your bookmarks are there.
5. When you have found them, import them into the Bookmarks Manager (Bookmarks/Manage Bookmarks, then File/Import...). See "BACKING UP BOOKMARKS AND MAKING COPIES" below.
<b>The Thorough Method</b>
This will find bookmarks anywhere on the computer, including any backup copies you may not know about.
<b>1.</b> I strongly recommend searching <i>everywhere</i> for all files with 'bookmarks' in the name.
Here's how to search in Windows XP
(Some Windows versions are less elaborate, but you must search explicitly for hidden files on all local drives. Check the search options carefully. For Windows XP, make sure you follow this procedure <i>exactly.</i>)
=================
Start (Windows Start menu)
Search
For Files or Folders...
What do you want to search for?
All files and folders
All or part of the file name:
<b>bookmark*</b>
Look in:
Local Hard Drives
When was it modified?
Don't remember
What size is it?
Don't remember
More advanced options:
Search system folders
Search hidden files and folders
Search subfolders
===================
How to make sure the search succeeded (any OS)
Search for file 'profiles.ini', using EXACTLY the same procedure except for the file name. If you cannot, check your search procedure again.
NOTE: You may <i>think</i> you are searching in hidden folders, but <i>the Windows Search utility hides them by default even if Windows Explorer does not. It is very easy to be tricked by this. Look carefully at the options on the Search box.</i></b>
This procedure should even find files in the Recycle Bin (i.e. garbage can). Under certain circumstances you may have files named 'bookmarks.bak', 'bookmarks-1.html' or 'bookmarks.html.moztmp', which you would not find if you were searching only for 'bookmarks.html'. That's why I urge you to search for <b>bookmarks*</b> (the asterisk applies to Windows, Linux, or UNIX.) <b>If the file is still on the computer, this procedure WILL find it.</b>
<b>2.</b> If you are lucky, you will find several files and one will be the right one. The one you want is likely to be the one that has been modified most recently. The largest file has the most bookmarks, and is therefore also likely to be the most complete.
<b>3.</b> To view these files, just open them and view them with Fx or any browser.
<b>4.</b> Once you have found the file, open the Bookmarks Manager and import the file (File/Import...). This will add the retrieved bookmarks to the one you already have. This is safe, but you may find that you have duplicate bookmarks.
<b>5.</b> Alternatively, you can copy the bookmarks directly into your profile directory. Close Fx. Then open the profile directory, rename 'bookmarks.html' 'bookmarks.html.sav', and now copy your backup file into the profile directory and rename it 'bookmarks.html'. This may be a little more dangerous, depending on your skill. Remember, never copy one bookmarks file over another unless you are certain you know what you are doing.
<b>6.</b> <i>If you have some but not all of your bookmarks, you are probably looking at an older copy.</i>
<b>Using ChkDsk and Other File-Recovery Utilities
Try this too. It often works.</b>
1. A damaged bookmarks file could be recoverable by Scandisk or Chkdsk, or the non-Windows equivalent. First, check any existing Scandisk or Chkdisk logs for bookmarks. Look for file names like 'file0001.chk', 'file0002.chk', etc. In Windows, search for 'file*.chk'. Or possibly file*.001, file*.002, etc. If you don't find it, you can then run Scandisk or Chkdsk and see if it finds any lost cluster. You can view these files with Fx. See #3 above.
For more information, there is a short writeup <b>here.</b>
2. You should also check the Recycle Bin and if necessary, try an Undelete utility. Not all computers have this. Do this as soon as possible, before the file is overwritten (then it's REALLY gone). Here'sa link to an undelete utility (I haven't tried it).
3. Don't forget to check your latest computer backup. <b>If you don't have one, make one now. You have a lot more at risk than your bookmarks.</b>
<b>BACKING UP BOOKMARKS AND MAKING COPIES
Read this section so you don't get caught again.</b> Hint: also use this method to copy and move bookmarks.
1. With Fx running, open the Bookmarks Manager. Go to File/Export... and you can save a copy anywhere. Put it in a safe place. (Now you know how to find it when you lose it again. But don't lose it.)
2. To import the file see #4 above.
3. Alternatively, get the Bookmarks Backup extension.
4. Back them up whenever you back up your other data. <b>If you have any important data, please back it up regularly. This includes bookmarks.</b>
Thanks to YrbkMgr for pointing out some of the hiding places for bookmarks, and for suggesting searching for 'profiles.ini' as a test of the search procedure.
On the bright side, here's what one IT consultant has to say: "I've heard my clients report that the bookmarks are missing, a boatload of times. In every instance I have personally been involved with, they haven't disappeared; the user simply couldn't find them."
<b>IMPORTANT -- READ THIS FIRST</b>
If your bookmarks disappeared immediately after you were asked to create a new profile, you can go directly to "The Simple Method", below. <b>Otherwise, do not close or restart Firefox or make any changes in bookmarks until you have searched.</b> Go directly to "The Thorough Method" (below) and if necessary, "Using ChkDsk and Other File-Recovery Utilities" (below). <b>When Firefox saves bookmarks, and possibly when it exits or restarts, it overwrites the backup file, and that backup file is your parachute.</b> File recovery often works, so don't give up until you have tried that too. And do not stop until you have backed up your bookmarks!
<b>IF THERE IS A PROBLEM, PLEASE HELP FIX IT</b>
If your bookmarks files have been deleted or overwritten, if you are willing to spend a little time documenting the loss carefully, please consider posting the details <b>here.</b> Please read the guidelines for posting, and state as clearly as possible what happened and what you have done to find your bookmarks. These user reports are essential for finding and fixing bugs.
WHY DID MY BOOKMARKS DISAPPEAR?
The most common cause of misplaced bookmarks is a new profile. Fortunately, this is easy to correct. Firefox allows you to have more than one <b>profile,</b> each with its own set of <i>bookmarks,</i> extensions, and other user data. Under certain conditions you may create a new profile without realizing that you won't be able to use your bookmarks while using it. To solve this problem, see "The Simple Method", below.
Unfortunately, there are other possible causes. <b>You should consider whether you have used, or have installed on your computer, a "clean up" program that might delete bookmarks without your knowledge.</b> Note that some programs also erase your tracks on the Internet. To do this they have to erase files, possibly including your bookmarks. Some of them erase files very thoroughly. <b>If you have information on any such programs, please post</b> <b>here.</b>
There is also a known bug, which will be fixed in version 1.1. If Windows crashes, the bookmarks file sometimes becomes corrupted. Then, when chkdsk or scandisk runs on restarting the computer, it removes the file. Firefox creates a new file, and when users edit bookmarks, the backup file is overwritten.
<b>HOW TO FIND YOUR BOOKMARKS</b>
<b>The Simple Method</b>
This usually works.
Click here for a description for Windows XP, with screen shots.
This works with any operating system.
1. Close all Firefox windows.
2. Close any Firefox processes that may still be running. (On recent versions of Windows, you can run the Task Manager and look at the Processes tab. On any operating system, rebooting will always work.)
3. Run Firefox.exe -profilemanager
Click here for screen shots. This includes instructions for Mac.
4. You will be presented with a choice of one or more profiles. Try them all and see if your bookmarks are there.
5. When you have found them, import them into the Bookmarks Manager (Bookmarks/Manage Bookmarks, then File/Import...). See "BACKING UP BOOKMARKS AND MAKING COPIES" below.
<b>The Thorough Method</b>
This will find bookmarks anywhere on the computer, including any backup copies you may not know about.
<b>1.</b> I strongly recommend searching <i>everywhere</i> for all files with 'bookmarks' in the name.
Here's how to search in Windows XP
(Some Windows versions are less elaborate, but you must search explicitly for hidden files on all local drives. Check the search options carefully. For Windows XP, make sure you follow this procedure <i>exactly.</i>)
=================
Start (Windows Start menu)
Search
For Files or Folders...
What do you want to search for?
All files and folders
All or part of the file name:
<b>bookmark*</b>
Look in:
Local Hard Drives
When was it modified?
Don't remember
What size is it?
Don't remember
More advanced options:
Search system folders
Search hidden files and folders
Search subfolders
===================
How to make sure the search succeeded (any OS)
Search for file 'profiles.ini', using EXACTLY the same procedure except for the file name. If you cannot, check your search procedure again.
NOTE: You may <i>think</i> you are searching in hidden folders, but <i>the Windows Search utility hides them by default even if Windows Explorer does not. It is very easy to be tricked by this. Look carefully at the options on the Search box.</i></b>
This procedure should even find files in the Recycle Bin (i.e. garbage can). Under certain circumstances you may have files named 'bookmarks.bak', 'bookmarks-1.html' or 'bookmarks.html.moztmp', which you would not find if you were searching only for 'bookmarks.html'. That's why I urge you to search for <b>bookmarks*</b> (the asterisk applies to Windows, Linux, or UNIX.) <b>If the file is still on the computer, this procedure WILL find it.</b>
<b>2.</b> If you are lucky, you will find several files and one will be the right one. The one you want is likely to be the one that has been modified most recently. The largest file has the most bookmarks, and is therefore also likely to be the most complete.
<b>3.</b> To view these files, just open them and view them with Fx or any browser.
<b>4.</b> Once you have found the file, open the Bookmarks Manager and import the file (File/Import...). This will add the retrieved bookmarks to the one you already have. This is safe, but you may find that you have duplicate bookmarks.
<b>5.</b> Alternatively, you can copy the bookmarks directly into your profile directory. Close Fx. Then open the profile directory, rename 'bookmarks.html' 'bookmarks.html.sav', and now copy your backup file into the profile directory and rename it 'bookmarks.html'. This may be a little more dangerous, depending on your skill. Remember, never copy one bookmarks file over another unless you are certain you know what you are doing.
<b>6.</b> <i>If you have some but not all of your bookmarks, you are probably looking at an older copy.</i>
<b>Using ChkDsk and Other File-Recovery Utilities
Try this too. It often works.</b>
1. A damaged bookmarks file could be recoverable by Scandisk or Chkdsk, or the non-Windows equivalent. First, check any existing Scandisk or Chkdisk logs for bookmarks. Look for file names like 'file0001.chk', 'file0002.chk', etc. In Windows, search for 'file*.chk'. Or possibly file*.001, file*.002, etc. If you don't find it, you can then run Scandisk or Chkdsk and see if it finds any lost cluster. You can view these files with Fx. See #3 above.
For more information, there is a short writeup <b>here.</b>
2. You should also check the Recycle Bin and if necessary, try an Undelete utility. Not all computers have this. Do this as soon as possible, before the file is overwritten (then it's REALLY gone). Here'sa link to an undelete utility (I haven't tried it).
3. Don't forget to check your latest computer backup. <b>If you don't have one, make one now. You have a lot more at risk than your bookmarks.</b>
<b>BACKING UP BOOKMARKS AND MAKING COPIES
Read this section so you don't get caught again.</b> Hint: also use this method to copy and move bookmarks.
1. With Fx running, open the Bookmarks Manager. Go to File/Export... and you can save a copy anywhere. Put it in a safe place. (Now you know how to find it when you lose it again. But don't lose it.)
2. To import the file see #4 above.
3. Alternatively, get the Bookmarks Backup extension.
4. Back them up whenever you back up your other data. <b>If you have any important data, please back it up regularly. This includes bookmarks.</b>
Thanks to YrbkMgr for pointing out some of the hiding places for bookmarks, and for suggesting searching for 'profiles.ini' as a test of the search procedure.
Last edited by AnotherGuest. on August 22nd, 2005, 9:07 am, edited 41 times in total.
-
greenknight
- Posts: 6187
- Joined: December 13th, 2004, 2:28 am
- Location: In the shadow of Mount St. Helens
Firefox must be completely closed before you can open the profile manager. If you can't open the profile manager, open the task manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del), under "Processes" close any instances of firefox.exe that are running. You should then be able to open the profile manager. To switch profiles, simply highlight the profile you want to use and click "Start Firefox".Abbott wrote:
Also, I had no idea what Mozilla's Profile Manager was because I had never had to use it, but found an article that told me to Run firefox.exe -profilemanager. This worked but didn't help me because I could not see a place to invoke a particular, older profile, just to create or delete one. I tried again just now to run it, but now it only opens Firefox, but does not run Profile Manager. So, truly, it's back to IE for me, low security or not. I have wasted too much time on this.
-
manc39
- Moderator
- Posts: 2037
- Joined: June 17th, 2004, 8:34 am
- Location: Manchester, England
- Contact:
Not sure if this has been mentioned before, I don't think it has.
After an upgrade prefs.js can become corrupt. When the browser is next loaded the bookmarks are gone, but everything else, including extensions, are still in place. The bookmarks appear in the Bookmarks Manager but not in the Bookmarks menu or toolbar folder. Deleting prefs.js puts the bookmarks back.
After an upgrade prefs.js can become corrupt. When the browser is next loaded the bookmarks are gone, but everything else, including extensions, are still in place. The bookmarks appear in the Bookmarks Manager but not in the Bookmarks menu or toolbar folder. Deleting prefs.js puts the bookmarks back.
Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.8.1b1) Gecko/20060712 BonEcho/2.0b1
-
AnotherGuest.
- Posts: 2158
- Joined: December 22nd, 2004, 11:47 am
-
manc39
- Moderator
- Posts: 2037
- Joined: June 17th, 2004, 8:34 am
- Location: Manchester, England
- Contact:
No, it just happened to me roughly an hour ago!
Upgrading from 20050514 trunk to 20050520. Newer build installed in separate folder and opened. No bookmarks, but everything else worked. Messed around with the profiles for a while; deleting, creating new, restoring backups and eventually discovered it was prefs.js that caused the problem. I'm now back on 20050514 with its original profile. I'm willing to experiment with the problem causing build if anyone has any ideas on what may have caused the prefs.js corruption?
Upgrading from 20050514 trunk to 20050520. Newer build installed in separate folder and opened. No bookmarks, but everything else worked. Messed around with the profiles for a while; deleting, creating new, restoring backups and eventually discovered it was prefs.js that caused the problem. I'm now back on 20050514 with its original profile. I'm willing to experiment with the problem causing build if anyone has any ideas on what may have caused the prefs.js corruption?
Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.8.1b1) Gecko/20060712 BonEcho/2.0b1
-
venus_de_mpls
- Posts: 1059
- Joined: December 23rd, 2004, 3:43 pm
- Location: Minneapolis, MN, USA, Earth
rtmjr50 wrote:the solution is for firefox to stop creating new profiles and when it does .. explain to the user what is happening ... ask to copy user settings to new profile would be a great help .... and of course come up with a better fix for more than one copy of firefox.exe running (parent.lock) so that the default profile can still be used ..
later, Richard
I agree, excepting that the parent.lock is there to actually protect users from losing data in the first place. I know this is a difficult concept for new users, seeing as they usually don't have "Show Hidden Files" set before a new profile is created - (don't let me get started on what I perceive as total OS arrogance on that score).
I am one who believes in the clean, stripped version of Firefox as the default download, but I think for first-time users, it should come with Bookmark Backup installed. Heresy, I know.
Win XP Pro SP1
Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.8.1.4) Gecko/20070515 Firefox/2.0.0.4
Thunderbird version 2.0.0.0 (20070326)
Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.8.1.4) Gecko/20070515 Firefox/2.0.0.4
Thunderbird version 2.0.0.0 (20070326)
-
manc39
- Moderator
- Posts: 2037
- Joined: June 17th, 2004, 8:34 am
- Location: Manchester, England
- Contact:
manc39 wrote:No, it just happened to me roughly an hour ago!
Upgrading from 20050514 trunk to 20050520. Newer build installed in separate folder and opened. No bookmarks, but everything else worked. Messed around with the profiles for a while; deleting, creating new, restoring backups and eventually discovered it was prefs.js that caused the problem. I'm now back on 20050514 with its original profile. I'm willing to experiment with the problem causing build if anyone has any ideas on what may have caused the prefs.js corruption?
https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=294933
False alarm? Never mind.
We could do with a test case who's not on the trunk.
Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.8.1b1) Gecko/20060712 BonEcho/2.0b1
-
craigevil
- Posts: 3103
- Joined: February 20th, 2005, 2:12 pm
- Location: OZ
- Contact:
You can also sync Firefox's bookmarks with your other browser you may have installed including IE,Netscape, and Opera by using Synchronize bookmarks between Browsers .
Never had the problem myself,but I do backup all of my Firefox files including hostperm.1, cookies.txt, signons.txt, key3.db, and my bookmarks using the Bookmark Backup extension. I also store weekly updates in my Yahoo Briefcase, plus I keep a copy on a USB flash drive that way I have them where ever I go.
If you have Windows the Yahoo toolbar is a good way to use and store bookmarks.
AnotherGuest Great HowTo!
Never had the problem myself,but I do backup all of my Firefox files including hostperm.1, cookies.txt, signons.txt, key3.db, and my bookmarks using the Bookmark Backup extension. I also store weekly updates in my Yahoo Briefcase, plus I keep a copy on a USB flash drive that way I have them where ever I go.
If you have Windows the Yahoo toolbar is a good way to use and store bookmarks.
AnotherGuest Great HowTo!
Raspberry PI 400 Distro: Raspberry Pi OS Base: Debian Sid Kernel: 5.15.26-v8+ aarch64 DE: MATE Ram 4GB
Debian - "If you can't apt install something, it isn't useful or doesn't exist"
My Giant Sources.list
Debian - "If you can't apt install something, it isn't useful or doesn't exist"
My Giant Sources.list
-
AnotherGuest.
- Posts: 2158
- Joined: December 22nd, 2004, 11:47 am
manc39, if you use a nightly build, you should also keep the official release installed. Just use a separate profile for each, and be sure not to get them mixed up.
Clearly your bookmarks files were still there, since you could still view them with the Bookmarks Manager. They were simply not displayed in the menu. This doesn't seem to be a bookmarks problem so much as an interesting menu problem.
You should be able to catch the bad prefs.js and find the problem with it. It's just a short text file, and you can compare it with the correct one.
Clearly your bookmarks files were still there, since you could still view them with the Bookmarks Manager. They were simply not displayed in the menu. This doesn't seem to be a bookmarks problem so much as an interesting menu problem.
You should be able to catch the bad prefs.js and find the problem with it. It's just a short text file, and you can compare it with the correct one.
-
yebaws
- Posts: 23
- Joined: November 24th, 2004, 4:26 am
No need for all of this snooty "novices don't know stuff". I've been using Firefox for over a year with no problems. Downloaded 1.0.4 recently and a few days later my XP crashed whist firefox was open (can't always close all applications before shutting down when you get a BSOD...). On restarting all of my bookmarks were gone. I searched for bookmarks.html and found the file, but it had been overwritten with the default bookmarks that ship with firefox. DEFINATELY NONE OF MY OLD BOOKMARKS ANYWHERE AND I KNOW HOW TO SEARCH FOR A FILE. Fortunately I back up all of my windows shell settings to a seperate HD each time I shut down, so I could recover the old bookmarks.html. Losing years of accummulated bookmarks would have been a major disater for me. I would call this a *major* bug in this build. Wait till it happens to you all you "they don't know what they're doing guys".
-
AnotherGuest.
- Posts: 2158
- Joined: December 22nd, 2004, 11:47 am
yebaws,
Can you please supply the creation dates and file sizes of all copies of "bookmarks.html" and "bookmarks.bak" on your computer? (Right click on file, select "Properties".) Also the creation dates of all profile directories and file "profiles.ini"? Please use <b>this</b> procedure for finding them. Also, please consider posting documentation of your loss <b>here,</b> after reading the guidelines.
Can you please supply the creation dates and file sizes of all copies of "bookmarks.html" and "bookmarks.bak" on your computer? (Right click on file, select "Properties".) Also the creation dates of all profile directories and file "profiles.ini"? Please use <b>this</b> procedure for finding them. Also, please consider posting documentation of your loss <b>here,</b> after reading the guidelines.
Last edited by AnotherGuest. on May 23rd, 2005, 9:40 am, edited 3 times in total.