Setting "default browser" affects all users on Win

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travishume
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Joined: November 5th, 2002, 12:46 am

Setting "default browser" affects all users on Win

Post by travishume »

My wife and I share a Windows XP machine, each with our own respective user logins.

I only use Mozilla, my wife prefers IE (for now). When I set mozilla to be my default brower, it also changes my wife's default browser setting. Then she starts IE, it complains that it is no longer the default browser, she resets the setting to IE and my browser setting is also changed to IE!!!

Is this a Mozilla issue or a Windows issue? I searched through bugzilla, but didn't see anything specifically about this.
old jasonb
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Post by old jasonb »

This is a Windows issue.

I don't know, definitively, if it's possible for the default browser to be set on a per-user basis rather than a per-system basis. I know the system key in the registry responsible for the current default browser - but it's system wide, not per user. Theoretically, it could be deleted and separate keys put in place for each individual user - but I haven't experimented with that, nor would I recommend it unless you know exactly what you're doing and how to fix any ensuing problems.

On a related note (and I do know what I'm doing with respect to modifying the registry, etc.), for some reason when my wife executes an HTML file, Mozilla loads using her profile; yet when I execute an HTML file it loads and asks me which profile I want to use. (I'm not talking about seperate shortcuts but just double-clicking on an HTML file or a URL link inside an email message.) I have no idea how her Windows profile is doing this because, everything I know about Mozilla and Windows, tells me that this is impossible - if you launch "mozilla.exe" on a system with multiple profiles, without specifying a profile to use on the command line, the Profile Manager should come up and prompt you for which one you want to use. (There's still an open bug on setting a default profile - Bugzilla's down right now or else I'd post a link. Nor, when the bug is resolved, do I believe it will be setting a default profile on a per Windows user basis but rather for everybody.) So this behaviour is quite baffling to me. Not only would I like to know how this is working (against all reason) but, once determining that, apply it to my own login so that my profile becomes my default.

I know that none of above helps you in any way, but I'm hoping that somebody could shed some light on both of our questions.
old jasonb
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Post by old jasonb »

(Travis: I will more thoroughly investigate how to get IE vs. Mozilla working per-user once I've finish my sidetracked discussion.)

Interesting. When I run ProfileManager from my wife's login, her profile has the regular user icon but my profile is represented by an icon of two documents with a green arrow going from one to the other. (Looking at ProfileManager from my login both our profiles have the regular user icon.) Obviously, whatever that "document/arrow" icon represents makes the profile unavailable to her - so Mozilla "defaults" to using the only profile that isavailable to her - her own. I checked file permissions and I don't believe it's related to that.

If anybody can tell me what the document/arrow icon in ProfileManager means (and how to replicate it if it's not obvious from its nature) please let me know.
old jasonb
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Post by old jasonb »

More information: That folders/arrow icon, apparently, represents an old Netscape profile. (I discovered this by trying to rename it and being told this, and asked if I wanted to convert it.) Very strange. I don't know why my login would show both as being proper profiles, but her's would show mine as being old...
old jasonb
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Post by old jasonb »

Back to your problem, Travis.

Per user settings aside (I'm doubtful of those now), what you could do is create a batch file that first runs a command to change the default browser then runs that browser. You'd then create a shortcut to the batch file. This would limit the launching of the browser to double-clicking on the shortcut icon. (If you tried to double-click on an HTML file, for instance, whatever was the current default browser system-wide would load.) It's not perfect, but better than what you have now. I need to try to determine something that can be called from the command line that will change the system default browser for you...
old jasonb
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Post by old jasonb »

I'm an idiot!

(I have to say that this is the longest discussion I've carried on with myself in a while. <grin>)

Anyway - if all you want to do is click on Mozilla and not be told about the default browser, and have your wife do the same with IE, then simply uncheck the box that asks you if you want it to check if it's the default browser or not every time it's run. No need to do what I said in the posting immediately above this one.
old jasonb
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Post by old jasonb »

Aha!

And I solved the Mozilla profile / Windows login issue. In my wife's log in, I ran Profile Manager, renamed my profile directory, deleted my profile entry, and renamed my profile back. Then I did the equivalent from my login. Now, her Windows login sees only her Mozilla profile, and my Windows login sees only mine. No need to select the profile I want to use from the Profile Manager, nor a need to use a command line switch. Mozilla will simply run with the only profile it sees, based on who's logged in at the time.
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travishume
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Thanks for your time

Post by travishume »

JBassford wrote:I'm an idiot!

(I have to say that this is the longest discussion I've carried on with myself in a while. <grin>)

Anyway - if all you want to do is click on Mozilla and not be told about the default browser, and have your wife do the same with IE, then simply uncheck the box that asks you if you want it to check if it's the default browser or not every time it's run. No need to do what I said in the posting immediately above this one.


This is sort of where I've ended up. It still means last preferred browser wins, but I can work around that without her being affected. I cannot believe preferred browser is a system setting, not a user setting. I just need to get my wife on board with Linux full time I guess.

Thanks for you help and your time.
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travishume
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Joined: November 5th, 2002, 12:46 am

this looks like a promising solution for Windows XP at least

Post by travishume »

How to Register an Internet Browser or E-mail Client With the Windows XP Start Menu
http://support.microsoft.com/default.as ... -us;297878
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