[Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 6.1.0

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joeg
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by joeg »

Scarlettrunner20 wrote:Fx 40 is incompatible with Red Cats and is disabled by Mozilla before the upgrade finishes...
Someone in a later post mentioned "patching the install.rdf in the .xpi". This, in fact, should resolve this particular issue.

In case you don't know how to do it:
1. Close Fx.
2. Go into your profile and find Red Cats in the "extension" folder ({dd30bf68-268a-4815-ad48-8740b774c764}.xpi)
3. Open the .xpi file using WinZip or something similar.
4. Inside the xpi file you'll see "install.rdf"; open it with a text editor.

You'll see the following
---------------------------------------------------------
<?xml version="1.0"?>

<RDF xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#"
xmlns:em="http://www.mozilla.org/2004/em-rdf#">

<Description about="urn:mozilla:install-manifest">
<em:id>{dd30bf68-268a-4815-ad48-8740b774c764}</em:id>
<em:version>5.8.0</em:version>
<em:type>4</em:type>

<!-- Target Application this extension can install into,
with minimum and maximum supported versions. -->
<em:targetApplication>
<Description>
<em:id>{ec8030f7-c20a-464f-9b0e-13a3a9e97384}</em:id>
<em:minVersion>4.0</em:minVersion>
<em:maxVersion>49.*</em:maxVersion>
</Description>
</em:targetApplication>

<!-- Front End MetaData -->
<em:name>Red Cats (green flavor)</em:name>
<em:description>There can never be too many cats! :) Turn your Firefox into Firecat and enjoy browsing in the furry company. The theme is also available in blue flavor.</em:description>
<em:creator>Red_Fat_Lazy_Cat</em:creator>
<em:contributor>Karlchen (Windows/Linux beta test)</em:contributor>
<em:contributor>Nat Oldenburg (Windows/Linux beta test)</em:contributor>
<em:contributor>NeoLotus (Mac beta test)</em:contributor>
<em:contributor>Ritsuka (Windows beta test)</em:contributor>
<em:homepageURL>http://www.bluecatsgraphics.com/Firefox_Themes/</em:homepageURL>

<!-- Front End Integration Hooks (used by Theme Manager)-->
<em:internalName>RedCats_g</em:internalName>
</Description>

</RDF>
---------------------------------------------------------
5. In the line marked in red above, your file probably says "maxVersion>39.*", or something like this.
Change the number to 49.* (or, as the other poster did, to 99.*).
6. Save the file.

You should be good to go.

I hope this helps.
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mvdejong
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by mvdejong »

Just some explanation of what that setting in the "install.rdf" actually involves. The "em:minVersion" and "em:maxVersion" give the author of the theme the opportunity to specify in which range of major and minor versions of Firefox he or she is certain that the theme will work properly. Not to "work properly" can mean anything from exhibiting slightly irritating behaviour (as in my previous post about the disappearing minimize/maximize/close icons), to completely prevent Firefox from starting up, and requiring a lot of investigating and lowlevel hacking to get it to function again.

Thus, the author of our beloved Cats is quite correctly setting the maxVersion at the value he (or she ?) knows the theme to be working properly. However, this also requires the author to update the theme everytime a new version of Firefox is introduced, which happens so often that it is quite a job to keep up with it. Certainly because it should be tested on all platforms the theme may reasonably expected to be used on, thus multiple operating-systems and possibly even for every major update on those operating systems (such as service-packs for Windows). Not every theme-developer has the space, the money for hardware and operating-systems, and the time to perform a thorough test for every release of Firefox.

So, it is just like seatbelts in cars : while they may be a nuisance for 99-100% of Your time, these version-limits are there for a purpose and may just save Your day when something really goes awry. Realize, and accept, the consequences before You tamper with any safety-mechanism. They are there for a genuine purpose, not just to bug You.
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joeg
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by joeg »

mvdejong wrote:... They are there for a genuine purpose, not just to bug You.
In my posting, I wrote "You should be good to go". The operative phrase was "should be". Your mileage may vary.
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mvdejong
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by mvdejong »

joeg wrote:
mvdejong wrote:... They are there for a genuine purpose, not just to bug You.
In my posting, I wrote "You should be good to go". The operative phrase was "should be". Your mileage may vary.

Of course I wasn't critizing You, Your post was just what users need.

But I thought it useful to explain what the background to this issue was, because there seemed a lot of confusion about the origin of the problem the previous posts in this topic.
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joeg
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by joeg »

\:D/
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Scarlettrunner20
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by Scarlettrunner20 »

mvdejong wrote: After the version-hack it looked OK, until I wanted to minimize the Fx-window. The 3 buttons in the top-right for minimize, maximize and close just aren't there anymore. The do reappear when I switch back to the default theme.

I can live with it, and just use the icon on the taskbar to minimize it, but it does slow me down because my first reflex doesn't work.


Gee, I've had this same issue on Fx beginning with about version 38. I had no idea it might be Red Cats theme. I tried a zillion things (and discussed and discussed in Mozilla forum at dslreports) to bring back those Windows icons. Never thought about it being Red Cats. I decided it was due to removing the title bar at the top. I just got used to it but then I primarily use Pale Moon which doesn't have the problem. I can solve it by having Pale Moon open and not minimizing it and then clicking on the minimized Fx in the task bar and letting it open on top of Pale Moon. Then I have the Windows icons back in Fx as the Pale Moon ones show and work on Fx and don't bother Pale Moon underneath Fx.

I just upgraded to Fx 41 and it disabled Red Cats but I have an extension that overrides compatibility checking so I got Red Cats back but Fx 41 also has the missing upper right corner Windows icons. I didn't notice when Fx 41 first loaded with the default theme to see if the icons were there or not. I hadn't read your post yet and I was intent on getting Red Cats working.

You do realize (at least for me) the buttons are still there. You just can't see them but you can click on any of the three just by paying attention on another browser exactly where they are there...or just blindly click in the area and see if you clicked on the minimize one or one of the others.
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Scarlettrunner20
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by Scarlettrunner20 »

joeg wrote:
Scarlettrunner20 wrote:Fx 40 is incompatible with Red Cats and is disabled by Mozilla before the upgrade finishes...
Someone in a later post mentioned "patching the install.rdf in the .xpi". This, in fact, should resolve this particular issue.

You should be good to go.

I hope this helps.


Thank you. I do know how to do it but haven't in awhile so that is a nice refresher.

I should do it as I just upgraded to Fx 41 and the installer disabled Red Cats. I have CheckCompatibility extension which lets me disable compatibility checking so all I needed to do was enable Red Cats. But it would be more elegant to patch the install.rdf. However, there is the legit point that that our wonderful Red Cats dev wants us to know that the theme may not work perfectly with Fx 40 and 41. So, maybe it is better to do what I do with the extension to over ride checking compatibility as this way when I look at Addons I see a warning that Red Cats is incompatible with Fx 41 and that reminds me that I am forcing it and might have a problem or two because I am doing this.

This makes me think...are the full themes going to be butchered along with most extensions in a future version of Fx? Is this going to be my last version of Fx? I don't want anything to do with the Chrome extensions and all the changes that will happen to Fx as Mozilla implements that.
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by joeg »

So far, RedCats works fine with the latest Nightly (Fx 44). Beyond that, as the late, great Yogi Berra said, "It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future."

Don't quote me on this, but barring some major change concept in the UI that's escaped my notice (not difficult), the next giant challenge to third-party themes, and all add-ons for that matter, will come some time next year(?). That's when the devs allegedly plan to kill Fx as we know it.
https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2015/08/21/the-future-of-developing-firefox-add-ons/
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by NotarySojac »

Has anyone else seen the problem where Red Cats makes the scrollbars in Firefox unusably thin? Removing RC returns the scrollbars to their normal width.
We've had this for the past few versions of RC and the past ten or so revs of Firefox. This is on both MccOS 10.8 and 10.10.
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Scarlettrunner20
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by Scarlettrunner20 »

NotarySojac wrote:Has anyone else seen the problem where Red Cats makes the scrollbars in Firefox unusably thin? Removing RC returns the scrollbars to their normal width.
We've had this for the past few versions of RC and the past ten or so revs of Firefox. This is on both MccOS 10.8 and 10.10.


I've had this problem for the past few versions Fx but I didn't realize it might be Red Cats so I didn't disable the theme to see if that fixed it. It doesn't happen frequently and only at a few sites. I can use the extremely narrow scrollbar if I have to but it is frustrating.
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by NotarySojac »

Scarlettrunner20 wrote:
NotarySojac wrote:Has anyone else seen the problem where Red Cats makes the scrollbars in Firefox unusably thin? Removing RC returns the scrollbars to their normal width.
We've had this for the past few versions of RC and the past ten or so revs of Firefox. This is on both MccOS 10.8 and 10.10.


I've had this problem for the past few versions Fx but I didn't realize it might be Red Cats so I didn't disable the theme to see if that fixed it. It doesn't happen frequently and only at a few sites. I can use the extremely narrow scrollbar if I have to but it is frustrating.


We're seeing it on all sites. It's worse within Firefox - no scrollbars at all in the Bookmarks, History, etc. If you don't have a physical trackpad or a mouse with a scroll-wheel you're hosed.
It also only happens in the newer versions of MacOS X (can verify in 10.8 on up) - RC & Fx still play nicely in older versions of the System like Snow Leopard (10.6.8).
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by roving3 »

I just updated the theme for myself to work on Firefox 40.0.1 by changing the expiration version in the RDF file, so the "fix" still works. (I used 99 as my value to save headaches.) :P

Using Windows Vista Home Edition, 32 bit if that helps.
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by mvdejong »

Scarlettrunner20 wrote:
mvdejong wrote:You do realize (at least for me) the buttons are still there. You just can't see them but you can click on any of the three just by paying attention on another browser exactly where they are there...or just blindly click in the area and see if you clicked on the minimize one or one of the others.


No, for me the buttons really are totally absent. I did try to click blindly, but the only thing that works is a double-click to maximize/un-maximize; that is just a fuction of the title-bar, not of any button.
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by joeg »

Starting with the Nightly of 18 Oct, there are "muted" vertical stripes in the interface.

Please look my post in the Builds forum.
viewtopic.php?f=23&t=2968697&p=14371733#p14371733
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Re: [Theme] Red Cats (green/blue flavor) 5.8.0

Post by Red_Fat_Lazy_Cat »

I'm back. Sorry for my disappearance and the lack of updates guys! :oops: Not much time so I have to be brief:


joeg wrote:Starting with the Nightly of 18 Oct, there are "muted" vertical stripes in the interface.

Please look my post in the Builds forum.
viewtopic.php?f=23&t=2968697&p=14371733#p14371733

Those stripes are the result of bug 1211363 having been fixed. As anyone can see, the fix is worse than the problem. ](*,) Really, with all the news about XUL being abandoned in a year or so, I'm seriously starting to think they're doing it on purpose...
Some people say that cats are sneaky, evil, and cruel. True, and they have many other fine qualities as well. -- Missy Dizick

My Firefox themes: Red Cats (blue & green flavor), Curacao
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