Why does FF keep asking what program to use for PDF?

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FrankSMS
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Joined: February 9th, 2017, 4:03 pm

Why does FF keep asking what program to use for PDF?

Post by FrankSMS »

I set the default program in Options already. I selected Foxit (great PDF reader) and it keeps on asking me if it should use Foxit. The box saying "Do this automatically for files like this from now on" is checked! I'm surprised they don't ask me if I'm sure 5 more times after I select OK! What is wrong with this picture? Is this really normal?
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Grumpus
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Re: Why does FF keep asking what program to use for PDF?

Post by Grumpus »

Have you restarted Firefox since you made the change?
Also have you looked in /Tools/Options/General and looked to see if Foxit is set as default or is Ask . . . still the default?
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costark
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Re: Why does FF keep asking what program to use for PDF?

Post by costark »

Are you at the [ Portable Document Format ] line when selecting?
The PDF File line a few spaces above Defaulted to Save File for me but Other shows PDF Readers you may have selected from.
Be sure it's the 2nd, longer worded line you're working with, and advise if THAT Line IS the line giving you problems.

Per the 2nd [ Portable Document Format ] line .... Does anyone know WHAT the earlier PDF File line is for?
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Gingerbread Man
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Re: Why does FF keep asking what program to use for PDF?

Post by Gingerbread Man »

moz2u wrote:The box saying "Do this automatically for files like this from now on" is checked!
That makes no difference when the server is sending Content-Disposition: attachment or an incorrect or generic MIME type.
The former is bug 453455 which people have been squabbling over for close to a decade, so give up hope of it being addressed and just install InlineDisposition. For the latter, I don't know any solution at the moment, since Display Inline would normally handle it, but its description says "broken at the moment".
To find out which situation you're in, you can use the web console to examine the server response header for the PDF link in question, or you can post it here and I'll do that for you.
FrankSMS
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Re: Why does FF keep asking what program to use for PDF?

Post by FrankSMS »

Grumpus wrote:Have you restarted Firefox since you made the change?
Also have you looked in /Tools/Options/General and looked to see if Foxit is set as default or is Ask . . . still the default?
Haven't made any changes. That was my point. I set this weeks ago. Every time I want to open a PDF it asks me if I want Foxit to open it. Its been set that way for weeks. Of course Foxit is set as default. Has been for weeks. That's what is so odd about this. Its not doing this with other programs it launches as I can recall.
FrankSMS
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Joined: February 9th, 2017, 4:03 pm

Re: Why does FF keep asking what program to use for PDF?

Post by FrankSMS »

Thank you Gingerbread Man. OK, its a glitch. That explains it. Just wanted to know. Thanks.

To others: Yes Foxit is set correctly on the correct line. :) (Didn't realize setting a default program entailed so much skill...lol.) Portable Document Format (PDF) set to Foxit. The automatic option below that is checked and has been checked for a long time.
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RobertJ
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Re: Why does FF keep asking what program to use for PDF?

Post by RobertJ »

.
Gingerbread Man wrote:the server is sending Content-Disposition: attachment or an incorrect or generic MIME type
It really isn't a glitch. If the server sends an incorrect MIME type Firefox has no idea what it is. The suffix (pdf) is not used to determine what to do with the file as per the official Internet Specification.
(IETF) wrote:The Multipurpose Internet Extensions (MIME) type is a standardized way to indicate the nature and format of a document. It is defined and standardized in IETF RFC 6838. The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) is the official body responsible to keeping track of all official MIME types, and you can find the most up-to-date and complete list at the Media Types page.

Browsers should use the MIME type (and not the file extension) to determine how it will process a document; it is therefore important that servers are set up correctly to attach the correct MIME type to the header of the response object.
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