help firefox on windows 7

[karenanne]

I lurched forward from yes windows xp onto an android tablet only to find that several websites I use don't work fully on the android. So I found a windows 7 laptop and tried to get firefox running.

Yes, it runs, but I can hardly read the File Edit etc line as it looks like black type on a dark blue background. I can't even tell you its version as I can't find that.

So I am back on xp, hoping someone can tell me how to fix the windows 7 firefox colors so I can actually read things, also where is the version number hiding? I grubbed through everything I could find that was likely looking. And what I'd really like is an addon (plugin?) that made it look like firefox on xp.

I should add that I have the classic theme restorer running on the xp firefox but web searching leads me to believe that may no longer work on more recent versions.

Thanks for any help.

[jscher2000]

Classic Theme Restorer doesn't run in Firefox 57+, but its author makes its style rules available for newer versions here:

https://github.com/Aris-t2/CustomCSSforFx

Since you are configuring the features through editing a file instead of checking and unchecking boxes, it is a little harder to set up, but at least you are familiar with what all the options mean, unlike people who never used CTR (like me).

To find the version on your Windows 7, you can use this keyboard sequence to call up the Troubleshooting Information page:

Alt+H T

To change the theme

Ctrl+Shift+A

[karenanne]

Thanks!

[karenanne]

Is there some simpleminded way to change the File Edit etc banner so it is not black type on dark blue, so I can read it? The version is 94.0.1.

By the way I looked at addons themes info but I have no idea what the photos are trying to say. Also it looks like themes don't affect that banner.

[DanRaisch]

The default Firefox theme in 94.0.1 is black text over gray, not black over dark blue. Do you have some old theme installed or are you setting Firefox to use System Colors? Does it have the same appearance if you launch the application in Mozilla Trouble Shooting Mode? https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/di ... shoot-mode

[karenanne]

The default Firefox theme in 94.0.1 is black text over gray, not black over dark blue. Do you have some old theme installed or are you setting Firefox to use System Colors? Does it have the same appearance if you launch the application in Mozilla Trouble Shooting Mode? https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/di ... shoot-mode

I bought the laptop used from ebay, so it may well have been modified. Thanks for the suggestions, I will look at them tomorrow.

[therube]

You can easily set Win7 to look much like XP, if that works for you.
Classic theme.
Disabling (most) "effects" helps.
FF, the menus are normal. (The [blue] browser itself, that's a different story.)

SeaMonkey for comparison. (Excuse the pink. It was just something to [purposely] make a Private Browsing window stand out.)

https://i.postimg.cc/VfLHhqPW/Windows-7 ... -vs-SM.png
(If you copy/paste the above link, i.e. no referer, it will look much better.)

7+ Taskbar Tweaker helps to tame the Windows Taskbar.

[karenanne]

It was a big win to change about:config browser.proton.enabled to false. That made the bar with the url in it readable.

The previous owner did set Firefox to use the system colors, etc. (System theme auto) Is there a way I can disable that without setting another theme? I grubbed around among the other themes but nothing leapt out at me as Make firefox readable I assume I want to try going back to firefox defaults.

The tabs are still horribly unreadable compared to XP. With the Firefox on XP, I can immediately see what a tab is about - readable text against a white background in a tab. In whatever happened to this windows 7 firefox the tabs are just 4-5 charactrs long, medium blue on pale blue, unreadable. And no nice tab borders either.

The classic theme thing seems to be no more, and scripts are not anything I am knowledgeable about.

From looking on the web, it seems like some of this stuff like the tab unreadabiity may be firefox changes themselves, not user tinkering.

I will try the troubleshooting mode.

[DanRaisch]

Try menu path Tools->Settings->General->click on the "Colors" button and uncheck "Use system colors".

[karenanne]

Well, that's interesting. I started Firefox in troubleshooting mode and at first glance at what came up, without trying menus or such, it looks just the same as it usually does on windows 7 except the File Edit etc. bar was not there. The tabs still suck.

Update I cross posted with Dan I will try his idea.

[karenanne]

I went to the menu, Settings, General, Fonts and Colors, Colors, unchecked use system colors, no difference. However it says only with high contrast themes and gives me a choice of that or never. so I also tried never and also no difference.

Is there some evil genie living in this thing that prevents changes

[karenanne]

I will just pause here and mutter about spending 1-2 days trying to restore Windows 7 to XP usability. For example, heaven help the person who wants to search within files, they have to know to put content: in the search bar and they have no browse feature to set the place to search, instead they have to rummage around and bring up a folder. And if they try to drag and drop a file, a giant icon comes up hiding the destination.

[karenanne]

Is there any way to stop a big panel listing all the tabs from coming up when I go to firefox's icon in the task bar? All I want to do is click on it to bring it up, not obliterate half my screen.

[karenanne]

Well,, I learned something using Paint to save a how to fix, the tiny hard to read bad colors File Edit etc bar problem happens there also, so it is a Windows 7 problem, not a Firefox problem.

[karenanne]

Some progress, right clicking on the screen, personalize, classic fixes a lot of things, but not the firefox tabs. Maybe those are a lost cause.