City of Heroes: Live Forum Archive

Installing Firefox as CoH browser

Carnifax_NA

By Carnifax_NA,
Posted on: 2010-05-10 02:21 in Player Questions

 

Posted

New computer - W7 64bit Home.

Using IE as my default browser which says it is 64bit. It appears that I cannot install Adobe Flash player as it will only work in a 32bit browser. Following a friends advice I installed Firefox which apparently is a 32bit browser thus enabling me to use the Flash player.

Was very pleased with the result until I wanted to access forums, support etc from the COH updater icon on my desktop - the way I usually do it. I got pop-up asking me if I wanted to make IE as my default browser, I thought that now I had changed to Firefox it would have automatically been my default browser for COH. So..I uninstalled IE hoping that would solve the problem.

Sadly, it didnt as now it appears I can no longer access COH forums, support etc from the updater, which I was always able to do before I uninstalled IE. The only way I can access the forums etc now is by a long tedious route via the Firefox browser.

Has COH got a 'thing' against Firefox or am I being a tad paranoid? Is there a way round this problem or should I return to using IE as my default browser?

There is always a lot to be thankful for, if you take the time to look. For example, I'm sitting here thinking how nice it is that wrinkles don't hurt. ~Author Unknown

 

Posted

Quote:
So..I uninstalled IE hoping that would solve the problem.
Uninstalling Internet Explorer can have some interesting repercussions. It can affect your use of Windows Live sites and software for the most part, but Windows itself has been known to throw conniption fits when IE is no longer installed. I'd suggest putting it back in, but unless you choose not to keep Firefox, simply do not set it as the default browser.


Quote:
Sadly, it didnt as now it appears I can no longer access COH forums, support etc from the updater, which I was always able to do before I uninstalled IE. The only way I can access the forums etc now is by a long tedious route via the Firefox browser.

Has COH got a 'thing' against Firefox or am I being a tad paranoid? Is there a way round this problem or should I return to using IE as my default browser?
Long tedious route? Just bookmark the forums main page, Wiki and if you feel it necessary, the main CoH page. Then any one of those sites is one click away (three if you count launching Firefox, heh). As for CoH having issues with Firefox, I've yet to ever run into any myself and I can happily follow links from the client launcher using Firefox. In my case though I'm still running Win XP. On the other hand, my roommate has no problems using Firefox for the same things either, and he's running the 64-bit Win7 just as you are.

 

Posted

Many thanks for taking time to respond - and so quickly too. Also for your helpful suggestions Pyber.

I have reinstalled IE as you suggested. I am keeping Firefox as my default browser and have bookmarked CoH and am using that to access the forums etc, finding it's not as really tedious as I first thought and as yourself following the links is not a problem. I really think I went into some sort of panic not being able to use the CoH updater as I always had and was was having a bit of a hissy fit.

There is always a lot to be thankful for, if you take the time to look. For example, I'm sitting here thinking how nice it is that wrinkles don't hurt. ~Author Unknown

 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by Pyber View Post
As for CoH having issues with Firefox, I've yet to ever run into any myself and I can happily follow links from the client launcher using Firefox. In my case though I'm still running Win XP. On the other hand, my roommate has no problems using Firefox for the same things either, and he's running the 64-bit Win7 just as you are.
I also use Firefox for all my web browsing needs and it works just fine. However, the client links open IE. I've never seen or heard any way to change that.

To work around this, I simply have http://www.cityofheroes.com/updater/live.html set up as my Home Page so I can still easily access it from FireFox any time I want. lol

 

Posted

I like the speed of Google Chrome and have not yet seen any issues with the CoH website. It is installed on 6 PCs and laptops I use.

I've also kept IE8 on the PCs since, as Pyber said, it's not a recommended course of action due to its integration to Windows, and the reliance upon it that some third party app makers have.

The added bonus for Chrome (besides speed) is that it displays the last pages visited on a "home page" in a grid pattern, ready to satisfy your regular clicking needs in a hurry.

█ Players Guide to the Cities

 

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Originally Posted by Warbaby View Post
Has COH got a 'thing' against Firefox or am I being a tad paranoid?
I believe the explanation is that the updater window actually uses IE to render and is therefore hard-coded to use IE if you access the links in it. You can get to all those links using any browser you want - just not from the updater.

P.S. I don't like IE and don't use it. However, since some software REQUIRES it to be present to function correctly, I not only keep IE installed but make sure I update it when a new version is available.

Paragon City Search And Rescue
The Mentor Project

 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by Warbaby View Post
New computer - W7 64bit Home.

Using IE as my default browser which says it is 64bit. It appears that I cannot install Adobe Flash player as it will only work in a 32bit browser. Following a friends advice I installed Firefox which apparently is a 32bit browser thus enabling me to use the Flash player.
Okay, stop right there. Flash works fine with IE8 in 64 bit. I'm running that setup on this box (Google Chrome Beta is my default browser, IE8's still around) and I don't have any issue with Flash sites.

(((EDIT: This is NOT the case. I was using IE 32-bit for my testing last evening, not 64-bit.)))

The COH/IE linking off the updater is baked in and AFAIK unchangeable. However, the COH site works with FF, IE, Chrome, and various mobile media browsers (iPhone, Palm Pre, etc).

So just getting to the root of your issue, ARE you updating Flash from www.adobe.com's website in IE8 under Win7, 64 bit?

 

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Turgenev View Post
Okay, stop right there. Flash works fine with IE8 in 64 bit. I'm running that setup on this box (Google Chrome Beta is my default browser, IE8's still around) and I don't have any issue with Flash sites.

The COH/IE linking off the updater is baked in and AFAIK unchangeable. However, the COH site works with FF, IE, Chrome, and various mobile media browsers (iPhone, Palm Pre, etc).

So just getting to the root of your issue, ARE you updating Flash from www.adobe.com's website in IE8 under Win7, 64 bit?
Not updating no, I have installed it and there is a proviso there that it won't work with in a 64bit browser, apparently there is a 64bit beta version that you can download but I am always a bit of a wuss using beta stuff. I did have the flash player installed on my previous old computer and never had any probs, so naturally I wanted it when I upgraded earlier this month. Anyhow, following the advice in this forum has enabled me to use flash as I wanted keep Firefox as my default browser and leave IE to do it's own thing and not having any probs with CoH either.

@everybody, thanks so much for going out of you way to help and advise, it is much appreciated.

There is always a lot to be thankful for, if you take the time to look. For example, I'm sitting here thinking how nice it is that wrinkles don't hurt. ~Author Unknown

 

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Originally Posted by Ironblade View Post
I believe the explanation is that the updater window actually uses IE to render and is therefore hard-coded to use IE if you access the links in it.
I asked about this some time ago (when they updated the web site) and was informed by Lighthouse that it is indeed hard-coded.

Kosmos

Global: @Calorie
MA Arcs in 4-star purgatory: Four in a Row (#2198) - Hostile Takeover (#69714) - Red Harvest (#268305)

 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by Turgenev View Post
Okay, stop right there. Flash works fine with IE8 in 64 bit. I'm running that setup on this box (Google Chrome Beta is my default browser, IE8's still around) and I don't have any issue with Flash sites.
Really? Using the 64 bit BROWSER, not just Windows 7 (or Vista) 64 bit?

From Adobe's own site:

Quote:
Flash Player support on 64-bit operating systems

Note: Visit the Adobe Flash Player Help and Support page for help with top issues.

ISSUE

Adobe Flash Player is not supported for playback in 64-bit browsers. Flash Player will, however, run in a 32-bit browser, running on a 64-bit operating system.

Note: a pre-release version of Flash Player 10 for 64-bit Linux is available from Adobe Labs.

Adobe is working on Flash Player support for 64-bit platforms as part of our ongoing commitment to the cross-platform compatibility of Flash Player. We expect to provide native support for 64-bit platforms in an upcoming release of Flash Player following the release of Flash Player 10.1.

To participate in pre-release testing of 64-bit Flash Players, visit Adobe Labs.
(underline mine.)

Wanted: Origin centric story arcs.
If you've only played an AT once (one set combo) and "hate" it - don't give up. Roll a different combo. It may just be those sets not clicking for you.

 

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Originally Posted by Stormbird View Post
Really? Using the 64 bit BROWSER, not just Windows 7 (or Vista) 64 bit?

From Adobe's own site:



(underline mine.)
Srsly, I'm using IE8 64-bit with full Flash support on my Win7 box. I'll throw out a few Flash-intensive sites and see what comes up (I honestly use Chrome for most everything), but I doublechecked it last night quickly before going to bed. Interesting.

(((EDIT: This is NOT the case. I was using IE 32-bit for my testing last evening, not 64-bit.)))

@Warbaby:
Quote:
Anyhow, following the advice in this forum has enabled me to use flash as I wanted keep Firefox as my default browser and leave IE to do it's own thing and not having any probs with CoH either.
Yeah, that's how most people roll these days. IE for stuff Microsoft/vendors insist on, but for preferred browsing, your flavor of choice. Glad it got resolved.

(Going to look into this 64 bit browser/Flash question now...)

 

Posted

@ Stormbird and Turg:

It might be possible that Adobe is simply providing a disclaimer that it's not supported because there are apparently some compatibility that has not been tested by them, but that it may still work... similar to how CoH "did not support" Windows Vista/7 for a long time, yet we had thousands of people using it.

In this case, even if Turg's works, does not necessarily mean that Warbaby's should... at least not without some detailed instruction.

 

Posted

For you Firefox users who (like me) hate having to switch to IE for sites that require it, I highly recommend a Firefox addon called Coral IE Tab. What this does is renders a page with the IE rendering engine...in Firefox. It puts a little icon in the browser status bar and clickong it will switch the rendering engine on the fly. Here's the link:

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/10909

I also recommend:

AdBlock Plus (blocks all ads on websites) - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1865

NoScript (blocks all scripts on websites, unless you specifically allow them) - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/722

 

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stalemate View Post
I like the speed of Google Chrome and have not yet seen any issues with the CoH website. It is installed on 6 PCs and laptops I use.

I've also kept IE8 on the PCs since, as Pyber said, it's not a recommended course of action due to its integration to Windows, and the reliance upon it that some third party app makers have.

The added bonus for Chrome (besides speed) is that it displays the last pages visited on a "home page" in a grid pattern, ready to satisfy your regular clicking needs in a hurry.

I'm very impressed with Chrome. It's my second choice as Browser nowadays.


Opera is, as always, my first choice (Fastest Browser on Earth!). It uses a similiar Grid system (where do you think Chrome got the idea from ) but they are Favourite Pages rather than History based ones.

 

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Originally Posted by Master-Blade View Post
@ Stormbird and Turg:

It might be possible that Adobe is simply providing a disclaimer that it's not supported because there are apparently some compatibility that has not been tested by them, but that it may still work... similar to how CoH "did not support" Windows Vista/7 for a long time, yet we had thousands of people using it.

In this case, even if Turg's works, does not necessarily mean that Warbaby's should... at least not without some detailed instruction.
I'd like to know how, if that's the case. Adobe's page that was linked doesn't appear to be a disclaimer. Just fired up IE8x64, a few flash sites (that tried to install flash) - nada. (And it's actually relevant to *me* at work, since it affects some of our interactions with customers. Nobody using a 64 bit browser sees the Flash stuff, and they get the same "no version available" Stormbird linked to.)

I know they said they were working on a 64 bit compatible version, but it's still broken here.

Turg, throw out some of those sites. I'm curious. And curious to see how you have it working.

 

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Memphis_Bill View Post
I'd like to know how, if that's the case. Adobe's page that was linked doesn't appear to be a disclaimer.
Mind you, it was just a theory. The site doesn't say it wont run. It just says it's not supported. That's all I meant by a disclaimer. They just want to make it clear that if you are having problems with it, that they told you so and you are on your own finding a way to make it work (if possible).

I'm still on WinXP 32-bit here and have no way to test it one way or the other. I don't know if Turg's is really working or not. I decided to take his word for it for the sake of throwing a theory out there and to let Turg know that just because IF it turns out that it does work for him, it does not necessarily mean it should be working for everybody else too, especially since the company claims it does not.

 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by Memphis_Bill View Post
Turg, throw out some of those sites. I'm curious. And curious to see how you have it working.
UGH. Short form: I'm an idiot. Browser's 32-bit.

Long form: I recently migrated to Win7 from Dell, so I get a nice little docking bar that I moved my shortcuts to. I copied the 32-bit version only to that dock, not the 64 bit. So, this was all in my head. Sorry, guys. Show's over.

 

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Turgenev View Post
I'm an idiot.
And I defended you!


*hit's Turg with a Trout. lol

 

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Turgenev View Post
UGH. Short form: I'm an idiot. Browser's 32-bit.

Long form: I recently migrated to Win7 from Dell, so I get a nice little docking bar that I moved my shortcuts to. I copied the 32-bit version only to that dock, not the 64 bit. So, this was all in my head. Sorry, guys. Show's over.
Gah. Was hoping you'd found a way around it, a beta, or some way of getting flashed via open source or some such.

 

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Originally Posted by Pyber View Post
Uninstalling Internet Explorer can have some interesting repercussions.
Not in W7, which the OP is using. Internet Explorer is pretty much snared into previous Windows operating systems, but W7 made it independent.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Turgenev View Post
The COH/IE linking off the updater is baked in and AFAIK unchangeable.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kosmos View Post
I asked about this some time ago (when they updated the web site) and was informed by Lighthouse that it is indeed hard-coded.
Unless the entire web renderer in the updater was written from scratch (which is hard to believe, considering the vast availability of pre-canned HTML renderers), it's an issue of not catching link events and passing the call up to Windows itself to figure out how to deal with it.

You can open up your command prompt right now and enter:
rundll32 url.dll,FileProtocolHandler http://google.com
Your default browser will open up. Depending on your settings, you may have your existing open browser simply open a new tab.

Of course, most languages would place at least one layer of abstraction between that and the programmer. For example, C/++ would let you do this:
Code:
#include <windows.h>

void main() {
    ShellExecute(NULL, "open", "http://google.com", NULL, NULL, SW_SHOWNORMAL);
}
Assuming you link in the Windows Shell API (or your compiler knows to do it for you), that'll do the same as the above call to rundll32.

Of course, things would be different outside of Windows, but I'm pretty sure most Mac users don't have IE, anyway.

http://www.fimfiction.net/story/36641/My-Little-Exalt

 

Posted

Quote:
Not in W7, which the OP is using. Internet Explorer is pretty much snared into previous Windows operating systems, but W7 made it independent.
Well that's something I wasn't aware of. I've not looked at Win7 since very early beta and didn't dabble much with it even then, heh. Nice to see that Microsoft finally came to their senses and removed the Windows reliance on IE. Come to think of it, weren't they ordered to do so years ago? Or am I recalling incorrectly...