Hi everyone, I have Windows XP Home. I was using Netscape and started having lots of problems. I got rid of it and downloaded Firefox. I love it! But lately I am starting to have one of the problems I had in Netscape. Okay, sometimes I find a website that my computer doesn't like. It will hang. After waiting for an eternity, I will click off of it. Sometimes it will work okay but sometimes the site and Firefox will clicl off. I wait a few and click back on Firefox. Sometimes it comes back up, but sometimes a little box will pop up, and inside the box it says, Default User. On the right side it has Rename, Create New User and Delete. I click the Start Firefox box and it says it is already in use! I can't do anything. I have to reboot my computer to restore it. In Netscape, that didn't work. I lost everything. All my favorites and it was like I had just downloaded it for the first time. A box would pop up and say thank you for downloading Netscape. I don't want to lose my Firefox stuff. Any suggestings about how to fix this will be very very welcomed! Thanks!

Hi Tammy,

Not sure if this will solve the problem (I use Crazy Browser instead of IE) but you may try a tip that fixes a Firefox error message when opening an URL shortcut:

- Open Explorer
- Select Tools and then Folder Options
- Select the File Types tab
- Select Extension: (NONE), File Type: HyperText Transfer Protocol
- Click Advanced toward the bottom of the window
- In the Edit File Type window, select open and click Edit
- Clear the DDE message box (which should contain "%1")
- Click OK, Click OK
- Repeat for File Type: HyperText Transfer Protocol with Privacy

Hope this will help

Chris

Thanks Chris, I hope it helps too. I can't afford to lose everything again. I can't understand why it happens. When the box pops up, I can't do anything. It is like I have just downloaded it and yet it says it is still in use! On Netscape, rebooting wouldn't work. I had to start over with a new Netscape. Then it happened again.

Maybe it's not a browser problem... have you checked your system for spywares/malwares and viruses ?

Malware was my first thought.

Are you running an anti-virus program with updated definitions? Let us know. Even if the answer is yes, try Houscall (trend micros online scan). See link below.

Download, install, update and run both Adaware and Spybot (one at a time) from the links below. If They find spyware, let them delete it. If spyware is found, download HijackThis and post the log in a response below.

Oh yes, I ran virus scan, adaware, spybot, Spy Blaster, CWShredder, AOL Spyware and was tempted to buy a voodoo doll! I don't know what it is. I am almost afraid to surf. Oh yea, IE is messing up now too. When someone send me an ecard, some wont load. Neither will some pages. I use Firefox but once in a blue moon I use AOL for something other than email. A box pops up saying an IE error has occured. I click off and bring it back up and it usually loads fine. Sometimes it takes two times. My computer hates me doesn't it.

Have you tried system restore ? If you have some restore point, it may fix this for a while... if not, can you try a repair install ?

Chris

I'm a Firefox fanatic.

The issue you're having is a somewhat common one. Its the profile manager coming up when you start Firefox, and it doing so because it is still running. Right click on your clock, anywhere on your taskbar will do I just say the clock to be easy, and choose Task Manager, select the Processes tab, and find the running process firefox.exe, then click End Process. This will completely shut down all running firefox processes. Now opening Firefox will launch it using the default profile.

On another note, and if this doesn't work, there are two ways to back up all your bookmarks.

In Firefox, click Bookmarks along the top menu, then Manage Bookmarks, a new window opens with the bookmark manager, on this window click File along the top menu, then Export, and save the bookmarks.html file to your hard disk. This is your bookmarks backup file. I back them up regulary, overwriting the existing backup file. If you lose all your bookmarks and have to start anew, you simply repeat the above process and instead of clicking Export, you choose Import, and import the bookmarks.html file. Walaa all your bookmarks are back.

The second way, manual way, if you can't backup your bookmarks because you can't get into Firefox using your default profile which has them, is to use Windows Explorer, and navigate to the folder :
C:\Documents and Settings\Mike\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\4lixlgcz.default
C is the drive your Windows is installed on, Mike is my Windows user account name yours will be whatever yours is, Application Data is a hidden folder and will not be visible without turning on veiw hidden folders, click Tools on top of Windows Explorer, then Folder Options, then click the View tab on the folder options panel that opens, and there at the eighth one down you will see the option to 'Show hidden files and folders', select this and apply, the Application Data folder will now be visible. The 4lixlgcz.default folder is a random folder name, is just what it happens to be on mine right now, and will have a differant random name on every Firefox install. In this folder you will see a bookmarks.html file, this is your bookmarks, copying this file to another location on the disk is the same thing as exporting the backup file like above, its just doing it manually.

If killing the firefox.exe process does not help fix your problem, I suggest backing up your bookmarks using one of the two ways above, then uninstalling Firefox, THEN, deleting the Mozilla folder inside the Application Data folder, which completely wipes all Firefox profiles in case one is corrupt being the problem, then reinstall Firefox. Run Firefox at least once for it to create the default profile folders insde Application Data. You will have your bookmarks backed up and can easily import them, or manually copy the bookmarks backup file and pasting it into the profile folder, overwriting the existing one.

I am so so sorry I haven't responded to you. We had a family emergency and I have been away. Thank you so much for telling me how to back up my favorites! That is so cool! So do I do the registry thing when the problem occurs or do it now? I really don't understand things about the registry much. I am still learning. The registry scares me. I am afraid I will mess something up. The problem was real bad when I used Netscape. That is why I went to Firefox. Now it is doing it but not so often. It happens when a site hangs. I have noticed that when a site is using Java, it takes forever to load and sometimes freezes. When I click on Firefox, it comes up without a box. The box only happens after a site freezes and it shuts down Firefox itself or when I do it. But now at least I have my favorites. Thank you!!!

If its only doing it when a site causes Firefox to freeze and close, then an easy solution would be, when that happens, Firefox freezes and closes, do the task manager, processes tab, trick to make sure it really has closed. If Firefox is closed, and firefox.exe is still listed in task manager, then it is still running, jus select it and click end process.

Example : As long as Firefox is running, it will have a process listed here.


You also said it only happens on sites using Java. Make sure your installed Java is the latest version, as updates fix bugs and such. Just go to Java.com to download the latest Sun Java, which right now is version 1.5.0 update 4. Firefox uses Sun Java, Microsoft Virtual Machine Java, which has actually been discontinued, will not work correctly with Firefox.

Thanks Chris, I will try. Sites that use Java are the main ones but it has happened with others as well. I will remember your solution and give it a try next time it happens. I love this site. You guys are great! Like I said, I am learning on my own here. I know people with computers but they are either too busy to help me or have no clue. I am learning a lot here. Thanks to all!

Uh...before I go and do the Jave thingy, I took a peek at my Add/Remove. I have four Java thingys.

Java 2 Runtime Environment, SE v1.4.2
Java 2 Runtime Environment, SE v1.4.2_03
Java 2 Runtime Environment, SE v1.4.2_04
Java 2 Runtime Environment, SE v 1.4.2_06


First, is that good or bad. Second, do I need a newer one, and third, do I remove all or some before I download? Eek!

Thats because Sun Java has a kind of annoying update system, installing newer one without removing or even updating older one, so you get 4 of them all installed at once.

I'd reccomend uninstalling them, all of them, then getting the latest from Java.com and installing it. That way you will only have 1 installed as it should be,and it will probly work alot better too.

Thank you! I was afraid to touch them. I will do that now. Have a great Fourth everyone!