cannot change default search engine on the fly

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hazardass
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cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by hazardass »

Until recently I was using the Classic Theme Restorer extension, which enabled the old-style search bar, where I was able to change the default search engine on the fly. In Firefox 56 (or later) that extension will not work anymore.

The standard search bar is so dysfunctional. Here is why:

1. To change the default search engine I have to go into the settings, which makes the entire process tedious. I search many different sites in a short time, and it takes too many mouse clicks just to change the default search engine. This makes it practically impossible to use another related feature in Firefox - selecting text in a page, right-clicking and pressing "Search the default search engine". I used this A LOT. Also, I can no longer just type text in the search bar and press Enter. Instead, I have to type the text, reach for my mouse and click on a search icon. This is inefficient.

2. Search engine list only shows icons, not the full names as it did in the old search bar. This is bad because some sites don't even have custom icons, which makes it difficult to select the correct search engine. Also, if I have a long list of search sites, it becomes impossible to remember all the icons.

Does anyone know how to enable the old style search bar in FF 56, or any other way to make the search bar usable?
Thanks!
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DanRaisch
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by DanRaisch »

The old search bar functionality is still there in 56 in my installation. Just click on the magnifying glass at the left end of the field.
hazardass
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by hazardass »

DanRaisch wrote:The old search bar functionality is still there in 56 in my installation. Just click on the magnifying glass at the left end of the field.
I think you are confused, and/or didn't read most of my post. The default bar with the magnifying glass, which has been in FF since version 34, is the one that's unusable for the reasons I listed. The old style bar is the one in FF33 and earlier, which many users kept using with extensions such as CTR, or other hacks. If you still don't know what I'm talking about, refer to this https://www.maketecheasier.com/restore- ... i-firefox/
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mightyglydd
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by mightyglydd »

DanRaisch wrote:The old search bar functionality is still there in 56 in my installation.
Hmm, not here it isn't and I believe Aris removed the 'old look' option in CTR because it was 'unfixable'.
Edit: Just installed the latest CTR beta and the old search option is back ! Thanks Aris :)
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefo ... sions/beta
Last edited by mightyglydd on October 1st, 2017, 8:06 am, edited 1 time in total.
#KeepFightingMichael and Alex.
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DanRaisch
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by DanRaisch »

OK, apparently I didn't understand exactly what you were looking for.
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smsmith
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by smsmith »

This extension adds a menu item to the context menu. So if you highlight a piece of text, right click the page, you should see "Search for 'your highlighted text' >". When you hover that menu item, another pops up and you can search from any one of your installed engines.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefo ... xt-search/

If you are using the search bar, if you place your cursor over the engine icons after you have entered your search term, you should see the name of the engine. No extension needed for that. You can also put your cursor in the search bar, press the down arrow on your keyboard, and you can then pick the search engine of your choice. You should be taken to the search page, where you can then enter your search term.

You may also be interested in keyword searches: http://kb.mozillazine.org/Using_keyword_searches
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Brummelchen
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by Brummelchen »

i use keywords in adressbar (another tutorial)
https://www-archive.mozilla.org/docs/end-user/keywords.html

i dont have any longer the search bar visible as long i can not define it as i want to
(remember "organize search engine" from malte kraus)

advantage - i dont need to select and wait and i am not bound to pre-given keys, example

regular google search:
http://www.google.com/search?q=%s

regular google image search:
http://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&q=%s

or google maps
https://www.google.de/maps?q=%s
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jscher2000
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by jscher2000 »

hazardass wrote:1. To change the default search engine I have to go into the settings, which makes the entire process tedious.
You can right-click the icon and choose Set As Default Search Engine. You do have to open the drop-down first by clicking it magnifying glass icon or if there is text in the bar, clicking in the text.
hazardass wrote:2. Search engine list only shows icons, not the full names as it did in the old search bar.
The bar above the icons updates as you mouse over them, but if you have a lot, that may be annoying to do over and over. You can use a custom style rule in userChrome.css (or in Stylish for Firefox until the end of life of Firefox 56) to show the name next to the icon. For example:

https://userstyles.org/styles/122214/fi ... firefox-43

There is a bug related to the "Show CSS Code" button which makes it hard to extract for userChrome.css. I need to rehost it soon.

Meanwhile, if you use Greasemonkey or another "monkey" extension, I have a user script to work around that:

https://greasyfork.org/en/scripts/33405 ... styles-org
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mightyglydd
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by mightyglydd »

#KeepFightingMichael and Alex.
hazardass
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by hazardass »

Classic Theme Restorer restored the old search in FF 56, but that's moot at this point since CTR (and all other legacy extensions) will stop working in FF 57. I was looking for a long-term solution.
smsmith wrote:This extension adds a menu item to the context menu. So if you highlight a piece of text, right click the page, you should see "Search for 'your highlighted text' >". When you hover that menu item, another pops up and you can search from any one of your installed engines.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefo ... xt-search/
Another legacy extension that won't work in FF 57. THx anyway.
smsmith wrote: If you are using the search bar, if you place your cursor over the engine icons after you have entered your search term, you should see the name of the engine. No extension needed for that. You can also put your cursor in the search bar, press the down arrow on your keyboard, and you can then pick the search engine of your choice. You should be taken to the search page, where you can then enter your search term
Try hovering on over 100 search engines, many of which dont even have icons, to look at each name and find the one you need. Not practical. This is the main reason this search bar is atrocious.
smsmith wrote:
You may also be interested in keyword searches: http://kb.mozillazine.org/Using_keyword_searches
Keywords are way too impractical for anyone who uses more than a few search engines. Again, try defining keywords for over 100 search engines, and then remembering the keywords for all of them, and then having to type the keywords EVERY SINGLE TIME you do a search. Not practical.


Thank you all for the suggestions. At this point the only long term solution I've found is to use a different FF-based browser. I'm now using Waterfox, which will support legacy extensions like CTR.
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DanRaisch
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Re: cannot change default search engine on the fly

Post by DanRaisch »

Locking per the OP's last post.
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