Question

Exactly the same problem. Can't find the option to turn off FF messing with fonts.

I noticed if I turn off the hardware acceleration in tools-options-advanced the fonts goes back to ordinary....but I shouldn't have to turn it off, I have a good graphic card so I want to have this options on

Well disabling HW accel. helps, but only partially. Firefox itself looks good, but fonts on certain sites now looks even more unreadable for me than before.

I have no problems with the fonts within the web sites, it looks as good as it did with FF 16.0.2 but I hope there is a solution because it looks terrible with the Hw enabled

It's actually just one site with custom font that I'm on that looks bad. All other sites look like they should.

I went back to 16.0.2...couldn't stand it :(

Note that on the Windows platform such issues on a web page can also be caused by Firefox placing all members of a font family in one group and selecting a member in that group based on CSS font rules.

You can use this extension to see which fonts are used for text that is selected (right-click context menu: Show fonts in selection).

• fontinfo: https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/fontinfo/

You can do a font test to see if you can identify corrupted font(s).

• http://browserspy.dk/fonts-flash.php?detail=1

My big issue is that firefox fonts on menu, bookmark toolbar etc looks really bad not on the sites. It looks all compact, blurry and thick. As guniu explained it looks like clear type is enabled...

I have disabled all plugins and extensions even reinstalled graphic drivers but the only thing that helps is to disable the HW acc so I went back to ff 16 for now,

This is a big usability issue for me, since I do a great deal of reading in firefox and hardware acceleration resulting in blurry text makes reading for more than a few minutes induce a very high level of eye strain.

Of course, turning off hardware acceleration is a temporary workaround, but it is far from ideal.

Note that using hardware acceleration means that Firefox uses the GPU instead of the CPU to do some (image) manipulations and that you may not notice any effect in Firefox if you disable hardware acceleration. If the GPU is used then specific operations like scrolling and font rendering that are performed internally by the graphics display driver can take more time (the GPU needs to do more if HA is enabled) and thus the graphics display card can respond less smoothly. There shouldn't be any reason to revert to an older Firefox version because of issues with hardware acceleration that can be fixed by disabling this feature.

See also:

• https://hacks.mozilla.org/2010/09/hardware-acceleration/

But Cor-el, this is an issue that was introduced specifically in this update and did not exist with HW rendering prior, so that isn't really relevant here.

Why you moderators always respond like bots. Just read what we wrote, compare the screenshots I posted. There is something with font rendering in FF 17.0 that has changed since last version. And it looks like crap now.

Maybe source of this problem is hidden in this bug fix - https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=777089

I have this problem too. Hate cleartype, so went back to FF 16.02. I think it's major issue that need to be fixed asap. Also noticed that FF safe mode don't have this problem. All this on Radeon 6950 with latest official drivers for Windows 7 SP1 64bit

I too, have this problem, wasn't like it prior to the 17 update, I even went to extreme lengths of removing all add-ons and even reset FF back to default the result is the same, fonts look like cleartype is enabled - like others cleartype looks bad on my system. The fonts are as they should be if starting in safe mode or deselecting hardware acceleration.

For now I've turned off hardware acceleration, but I shouldn't have to.

Huge sense of disappointment when I upgraded to FF17 and this happened. It affected the Win7 PC I use at work but did not affect the XP SP3 PC at home - why would this be? I use "Classic" theme on the work PC and do not have Cleartype (aka. Fuzzytype) enabled.

Hoping someone will post a fix here - have bookmarked this topic for now!

I used the trick of unticking the hardware acceleration option for now - seems to do the trick. Am I fighting a losing battle in my preference for pin-sharp font rendering? We had to update to Office 2010 here recently and I spent time changing back from fonts like "Segoe" to something that didn't blur the edges...  :-(

I reckon people with poor eyesight probably prefer "Cleartype" rendering because it "bulks out" the characters. I try to focus on the unresolvable blur it generates and get a headache! I understand the rationale for "Cleartype" but it's not for me. PC power these days should mean everything is easily and quickly customisable to individual preference, IMO.

I have this problem too guys. I noticed this problem wouldn't happen in Win 7 and for me only on Win 8: could you confirm that?

On about:config, changing gfx.direct2d.disabled to true, resolve the problem.

But in this way you disable the HA. I guess mozzilla should release an update for fix thsi problem

@ a587626

all that does is turn off hardware acceleration that we already have done in the settings.

I have selected ClearType to be disabled in my OS, and it works in Windows Explorer and all other applications etc. (all except Adobe Reader and Windows Internet Explorer, which is primarily why I use Firefox...)

Since Windows handles non-ClearType fonts with hardware acceleration, and Firefox <17 managed to handle it as well, I see no reason why disabling hardware accelerated graphics in Firefox 17 should be regarded a valid solution to the problem.

I have downgraded to Firefox 16.0.2 and will wait there until this is fixed.

Sweet!

Thanks member "a587626". Setting gfx.direct2d.disabled to true, then restarting Firefox 17 worked for me too.

Disabling hardware acceleration (setting gfx.direct2d.disabled to true) is only a partial solution, makes fonts looking thinner but it isn't the same look and quality of anty-aliasing as it was in previous (16.0.x) versions of FF. I want to get back fine looking fonts with hardware acceleration enabled.

That also disables HW acceleration, and as thus is not a true solution but a temporary workaround. Still, thanks.

Hi guys,

We are looking into this issue right now, but we need more information. Anyone will to work 1 on 1 with us to get this solved, please PM me. Also, if you could list your graphics cards and drivers in this thread that would help as well!

Windows 7/64, Nvidia driver ver. 296.10 (WHQL), GeForce GTS450.

Windows 7/64-bit, GeForce 8400GS (ASUS EN8400GS Silent), NVidia video driver 306.97 WHQL.

PM sent.

Nvidia GTX 560Ti, driver: 306.97 WHQL, Windows 7 SP1 64bit

Windows 7/64bit SP1, AMD Radeon 6950, AMD Catalyst 12.10 2D-driver version 8.01.01.1266, Windows ClearType disabled

Windows 7/32bit SP1, Nvidia 9600 GT, Driver: 9.18.13.0697 - nVIDIA Detonator 6.97

Thank you for submitting this ticket. I am using Firefox and Seamonkey, both got ugly after update. I downgraded FF to ver.16 and changed the hardware acceleration option in Seamonkey. I will see what is the best option.

I am disappointed in Firefox programmers, again...

Same problem for me. Disabling the hardware acceleration removes the much unwanted blur, but some fonts are still hinky, especially on this site.

Windows 7 X64 - NVidia GTX 670 driver version 301.42

Setting gfx.direct2d.disabled to true only partially helps. It's better but still bad, I'm going to have to revert versions.

It lost the boldness, but it's still "imprecise" for lack of better word. Almost as if there's a resolution mismatch type issue?

(Edit: I'm not sure if this was correct anymore, since I didn't restart after it. It may have fixed it entirely then, but I'm not sure.)

Again blurriness is back

Hi guys! Thanks for all the feedback. We've got a bug on file for this and several volunteers to help us get to the bottom of it. Hopefully we'll have some answers and a resolution very soon. Please be patient though as the Thanksgiving holiday in the US is this week.

Isn't this the same as disabling hw acceleration in the settings, but "another side"

PC #1:

• Intel HD 3000 (integrated 2nd-gen Core i3)
• Driver version 9.17.10.2875
• Windows 7 SP1 Pro 64-bit
• ClearType is disabled

PC #2:

• AMD Radeon HD 6950 w/ shaders unlocked, stock clocks
• Catalyst 12.10 driver
• Windows 7 SP1 Pro 64-bit
• ClearType is disabled

Nvidia Geforce GTX 670, Win 8 x64 Pro, driver version 310.61 beta

To (possibly) resolve this without disabling hardware acceleration/Direct2D, try changing the setting "gfx.content.azure.enabled" to false in about:config and then restarting the browser.

I've the same problem.

AMD ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4300 Driver 8.821-110126a-112965C-ATI

Thanks. gfx.content.azure.enabled = False worked for me (in place of disabling hardware acceleration).

@jfkthame, @ecarlson It isn't final remedy but only next temporary solution. This only disables 2D API named Azuro, where probably problem is hidden. It is only step on the way to identify and fix core of the problem.

Hey guys! Thanks to everyone who helped us in troubleshooting this. We are fairly certain it's an azure problem. There is a patch in the works and setting gfx.content.azure.enabled = False seems to work in the meantime. I don't know if the patch will be part of a chemspill or wait until 18. Thanks for your help and patience.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's serious? Wait Firefox 18? I'm not sure whether I should laugh or cry...

Same problem here, I have cleartype disabled in Win7.

"I don't know if the patch will be part of a chemspill or wait until 18."

- "It's serious? Wait Firefox 18? I'm not sure whether I should laugh or cry... "

I agree, but at least they're fixing it. :/

You guys realize you don't have to live with the text till then right? It was posted how to get it back to normal in the meantime:

1. Go to about:config
2. Find and set gfx.content.azure.enabled to false
3. Restart the browser

While I think many people underestimate how awful ClearType is for us who prefer pixel-perfect text, and it would be a smart move to push an update for publicity reasons, it sounds like some of you are worrying about having to deal with it for a long time. That just isn't the case.

I could never understand what's the point of ClearType. Font just looks awful with it. The blurriness and the reddish outline in some places, why would anyone want that? There must be something behind it, but I just don't see it.

Does setting "gfx.direct2d.disabled" to true actually disable hardware rendering?

I just am extremely disappointed that Firefox forces anti-aliasing on to their users every few versions, without asking us. Unacceptable!

You can set the gfx.content.azure.enabled pref to false or if this didn't help disable Direct2D by setting the gfx.direct2d.disabled pref to true on the about:config page and leave hardware acceleration otherwise enabled.

• http://kb.mozillazine.org/about:config

I have a font issue after upgrading to Firefox 17 on MacPro.

I don't have gfx.content.azure.enabled, gfx.direct2d.disabled in about:config.

See my screenshot.

A space appears where there isn't one. Example

Observed: "text1 text2"

Expected: "text1text2"

For Windows users, the blurry fonts issue will be fixed in Firefox 17.0.1, which should be released very soon (hopefully, tomorrow). More info here:

• http://www.ghacks.net/2012/11/24/firefox-17-0-1-to-fix-blurry-font-issue-in-the-browser/

Once for all, the final solution to the ClearShit

Simple add the following two lines in Pref.fs

/* Disable the putain de Cleartype in the webpages */ user_pref("gfx.downloadable_fonts.enabled", false);

Simple test page: http://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/796596

Technitronik

Updated to 17.0.1 didn't help....same shitty blurry fonts

Hm, it works for me. gfx.content.azure.enabled set to true and I don't have blurry fonts.

Firefox 17.0.1, cleartype off, gfx.content.azure.enabled set to true (default) and I always have blurry fonts.

And cleartype is definitely enabled on my firefox. Why firefox transgressing the user preferences? For IE9, it is understandable, but for firefox ... new policy?

They released 17.0.1 to fix the blurry fonts without have to go to the config and change the azure.

So the patch didn't worked....

Violon, forhike: could you post a screenshot of what you're seeing in FF 17.0.1 (with ClearType OFF), please? Does this affect ALL fonts, or only certain ones?

here is two screenshots on a webpage with cleartype off, the other one is with the setting azure.content false. Both is with ff 17.0.1

click on the image and then You have to right click and view image, otherwise you don't see the difference

In two first cases, cleartype is enabled in web pages, which is also wrong.

Please, look the uploaded images in full size.

Usually I use cleartype OFF and smooth edges of screen fonts OFF. And normally (with firefox 16 to 3) it looks what you see on the screenshot 2.

here is on the ff it self

Me too, 17.0.1, ClearType off. Here's how it looks fullscreen with azure on and off (seems to be all fonts).

Sorry, here's the same thing with the default font of Times New Roman rather than Verdana.

On the bug report they say the font bug is fixed but it's not so The only solution is to turn gfx.content.azure.enabled to false again or go back to 16.0.2

Did you already update to Firefox 17.0.1 that has just been released?

Yes, I took a chance and logged in to Mozillas Ftp server and found it so I grabbed it. I'm quick....:)

17.0.1 is still having the font problem for me too, so I set gfx.content.azure.enabled = False again, so I'm good until it is really fixed.

Also, it appears that my Windows 7 desktop is the only computer where I experience the problem: My Windows 7 laptop doesn't seem to have the problem (with 17.0), and my XP desktop doesn't have the problem (with 17.0).

Same problem here; installed 17.0.1, problem still persists

OK, so it looks to me like there are two issues here, and only one of them is fixed in the 17.0.1 update. Here's what I think is going on, and why some people are reporting it's "fixed", and others "still bad".

There are two separate (but related) Windows options involved here, and these lead to three distinct scenarios: (A) Smooth Edges of Screen Fonts option, found in the System / Advanced Settings / Performance Options panel. (B) ClearType (subpixel antialiasing, which gives colored fringes on the glyphs), which is enabled/disabled using the ClearType Text Tuner (accessed through the Adjust ClearType Text option in the Display control panel).

(1) If you have both Smoothing (A) and ClearType (B) enabled (which is the Windows default), there's no issue; it all works as intended. But some people dislike the result. (Note that the ClearType Text Tuner may be able to improve things, if the default settings aren't good for your graphics system.)

(2) If you have Smoothing (A) enabled but ClearType (B) disabled, you should get text that uses grayscale-only antialiasing, so there's a "smoothing" effect but without the colored fringing that ClearType can give. This configuration was broken in Azure in Firefox 17.0 - it used subpixel rendering, although it shouldn't have - and fixed in 17.0.1. So the people reporting that things are now fixed are the people who have Font Smoothing enabled, but ClearType disabled.

(3) Finally, if you have both (A) and (B) disabled, meaning you want no font smoothing AT ALL, things are still broken. These settings should give completely "un-smoothed" glyphs, with crisp edges (but jagged curves) everywhere. However, this fails badly under Azure, and you actually get poorly subpixel-rendered text. (Looking at the screenshots, it seems to be WORSE than the default where (A) and (B) are both enabled.) And 17.0.1 did not address this problem.

So I believe the people who have turned off both (A) and (B) are the ones reporting that 17.0.1 is still broken.

As far as I can tell, scenario (3) is fixed in Firefox 18 (currently in Beta), so those experiencing this issue might like to try that version (see http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/beta/) - and please provide feedback, with details of your configuration, if you DO still see problems.

Hi guys. I've cloned the original bug so that we can continue to investigate the scenario that's been reported to still be causing the issue. Our QA team has tried to reproduce it and is failing to do so. I'm wondering it may be a hardware issue?

The new bug is 818164. Please do not post to this bug unless you can add clarity or provide more details on how to reproduce. If you are experiencing the issue but do not have any additional information, please add your "me too" vote to this thread.

FF 17.0.1 shows fine fonts now on my computer with any azure setting.

For me, the font issue wasn't tied to version 17 of Firefox - the same (un)smoothing font problem existed even when I tried 16.0.0.2 and the newest 18 beta.

The issue arose when I did a Reset Firefox while using version 17 - after that the fonts in the tabs, address bar, bookmarks and FF dialogs looked screwed up.

I tried the tips offered in this thread (changes in the config), but none of them seemed to work, not even disabling the azure setting. At that point I checked again the Graphics section of the Troubleshooting Information page, and I noticed that both Direct2D enabled and GPU Accelerated Windows showed that they were 'disabled for this driver version'.

I was using AMD Catalyst 12.8 which I then updated to 12.10. After this, I re-enabled Direct2D and set content.azure to false, and lo and behold, the fonts looked legible again.

So in my case, the problem was a combination of old(?) graphics drivers and the azure functionality.

Sigh... Same problem here...

And, about:config, changing gfx.direct2d.disabled to true, did NOT resolve the problem.

It's fixed now in FF 18.....at least for me

Geeze... Sorry 'bout that!

Was focused on "Font is messed up on Firefox" ~~ Not "17" in the title of this topic.

The problem began when I updated from FF17 to FF18.

Been researching and testing this-n-that for past two days to no avail and truly don't know what to look for to fix the problem that ONLY occurs in FF18, not IE9 both running on a new clean custom installation build of Win7-64.

The problem exists mostly on the curved elements in text characters. It seems as if the vertically straight text element characters are much sharper and crisper. Go figure...

Maybe I should start a new topic or go look for an existing general topic on POOR text font rendering.

Thoughts? Thanks so much.

Here are two images: IE9 and FF18.

Take note of the "curved elements" in text characters to see how fuzzy they are in FF18 compared to IE9.

1) Left: Firefox_v18_PoorFontTextRendering_FromStratMan55_20130111__Using-FF18-WithFuzzyProblem.jpg

2) Right: Firefox_v18_PoorFontTextRendering_FromStratMan55_20130111__Using-IE9-NoProblem.jpg

Thanks.

QUOTE: AliceWyman Top 25 Contributor Moderator 123 solutions Posted 11/29/12 6:44 PM: For Windows users, the blurry fonts issue will be fixed in Firefox 17.0.1, which should be released very soon (hopefully, tomorrow). More info here:

http://www.ghacks.net/2012/11/24/firefox-17-0-1-to-fix-blurry-font-issue-in-the-browser/

===========================================

Unfortunately, the problem has resurfaced in FF18. :(

Thoughts? Thanks.

I just upgraded to v18. Never had this issue before with v17... now the fonts are giving me eye strain, because they look very blurry. This is really bad. I tried the azure/direct2d/acceleration fixes, but none of them worked.

I simply cannot continue using Firefox if it gives me headaches within 10 minutes of reading... I'm downgrading to v17 until this is fixed. Hopefully soon.

Vadauco, thanks for the validating reply as I totally agree on the blurry text eye strain BUG in FF18 as show in my two screen shots at the bottom of Page 4.

FF-DevTeam, like other users have posted above, please know that I, too, have:

1) Disabled the Win7 ClearType feature when the OS was first installed the other week prior to upgrading from FF17 to FF18;

2) Have set gfx.content.azure.enabled = False; and,

3) Have set gfx.direct2d.disabled = True.

Unfortunately, none of those ideas resolved the issue that did not exist in FF17 prior to updating the other day.

Therefore, I just finished restoring the pre-FF18 Acronis backup image with FF17.0.1 to the disk and this FF18 fuzzy text display bug NO longer exists. :)

Like Vadauco, I'm gonna stick with FF17 until this ongoing bug issue is resolved, once and for all.

Sure would appreciate your reply back on this. Thanks so very much.

Bill, Database Software Engineer... Without much HTML / CSS expertise. :)

Fellow Users and FF-DevTeam:

Please keep in mind that I do not have much HTML~CSS nor hardware expertise as I'm a software database tech and am a 2-week old FF rookie.

In follow up to my previous posts and restoring the disk back to the Jan 8th image in order to "rollback" to FF17, I just stumbled into a possible cause of this fuzzy text display "bug" while confirming all prior FF17 User Preference Settings in this new Win7-64 custom installation build on an Intel i7 Chip & MBoard that was not "seen" before herein nor was it known to look for...

In the Tools / Options / Advanced / General Tab, it was noticed that the FF17 install had the "Use Hardware Acceleration When Available" box checked, which was not recalled being checked when configuring FF18 yesterday. For grins, I unchecked the box, stopped and restarted FF17 and, sure enough, the blasted fuzzy text problem instantly returned. Upon rechecking that config setting box and restarting FF17, the fuzzy text issue went away.

Until FF-DevTeam and/or other users please kindly confirm this finding, FF17 will continue to be used just in case something else is going on "under the hood."

Hope this helps and sure would appreciate your feedback on this.

Thanks so much.

i'm finding this issue in Linux Mint: FF 18.0 Linux Mint 12 ATI HD4870, proprietary drivers

Disabling hardware acceleration doesn't fix the problem

I'm having the problem too. Didn't exist on FF17. I had hardware acceleration disabled, but I tried enabling it and it didn't make a difference. I'm back to using it disabled and still the same thing. I'm using XP on a laptop with Intel X3100 integrated graphics.

Just upgraded from FF esr 10 to esr 17 and got the same problem.

I am on w7 64 with an ATI Radeon HD2400 Pro.

Setting gfx.direct2d.disabled = True brought some relief but the font still is not as good as it was with esr 10.

I'm glad I found the fix though because without it the blurry font I got with direct2d enabled would have made me revert to esr 10.

I wonder why even after more than 2 months since this font problem has been reported there is still no real fix for it.

I am using Firefox 18 on an HP (Pavilion dv6) laptop, on Windows 7 Professional. This DEGRADED FONT issue is NOT resolved by ANY of the "fixes" offered above. I have tried them all: changing gfx.direct2d.disabled to true; turning off hardware acceleration; ETC. This is an issue that should be DEFINITIVELY DEALT WITH by the Mozilla development team. leaving this to "...try this, try that.." approach is unacceptable. This is an issue that affects millions of users. "Trying" to fix the problem by changing some about:config settings is not the answer. If someone has a DEFINITIVE, TESTED SOLUTION, I'd sure like to know what it is.

Hey dude, can't say it's really a fix, but I started using Pale Moon and things just got a lot better. Firefox is becoming all messed up.

02/16/2013 at 12:30 PM: alulaq2 said:

"This DEGRADED FONT issue is NOT resolved by ANY of the "fixes" offered above. I have tried them all: changing gfx.direct2d.disabled to true; turning off hardware acceleration; ETC. This is an issue that should be DEFINITIVELY DEALT WITH by the Mozilla development team. leaving this to "...try this, try that.." approach is unacceptable. This is an issue that affects millions of users. "Trying" to fix the problem by changing some about:config settings is not the answer. If someone has a DEFINITIVE, TESTED SOLUTION, I'd sure like to know what it is."

TOTALLY AGREE! This topic is now on page 5 going back to November 2012. Many users have contributed excellent comments on what they have tried to do to resolve this... TO NO AVAIL!

Frankly, the failure of the Mozilla DevTeam to resolve this bug for over 3.5 months does not align with Mozilla's outstanding, worldwide browser reputation.

What's up with that?

Why won't you respond back to your dedicated users who have taken the time to assist you with your "offsite, QA testing?"

Respectfully,

Bill, CRM/ERP Database Engineer

Resetting Firefox seems to have fixed the issue for me. Note, I experienced the issue even in FF19 (at least until i reset Firefox).

To reset Firefox go to Help -> Troubleshooting Information -> Reset Firefox.

Prior to resetting Firefox the issue appeared to be triggered on my system from version 17 when:

1) hardware acceleration was enabled; and, 2) the bookmarks side bar was open.

Is this the same issue as what I'm experiencing? I get pixelated text when I visit a page or scroll around. Hovering over links or scrolling content out of view fixes it temporarily.

It seemed to happen after I updated my Windows 7 recently. Turning off hardware acceleration in Firefox makes it stop, but I want it on.

Firefox 19 and Windows 7 x64 SP1

Yes this sounds like the same issue I experienced. Resetting Firefox seemed to rid this problem mostly for me. It has occurred again once on a particular random web that I visited.

The other web pages that I frequented regularly that were problematic seem to be ok after resetting Firefox for me.

I had a similar problem and using this settings i fixed it:

• gfx.downloadable_fonts.enabled = false
• gfx.direct2d.disabled = true

You can set this values in "about:config" page

@denbkh - gfx.downloadable_fonts.enabled = false - this solved the fonts problem in my case. thx

Does gfx.downloadable_fonts.enabled deal with @font-face? Are web fonts the cause of the pixelation?

There is usually no need to disable downloadable fonts by setting gfx.downloadable_fonts.enabled=false and disable fonts downloaded via @font-face rules.

You can try to set the gfx.content.azure.enabled pref to false or if this didn't help disable Direct2D by setting the gfx.direct2d.disabled pref to true on the about:config page and leave hardware acceleration otherwise enabled.

The direct2d setting made all my fonts in firefox crappy (before it was just in webpages and afterwards even the font in the tabs was bad)...

But I'm kinda unsure about it all, because I do have NoScript installed and this can block fonts as well... So I guess there ain't one right solution for everyone. Just for me the downloadable_fonts switch was doing the trick.

@gavisu: And yes it seems to deal with @font-face, because after i disabled it in mozilla, NoScript didn't have to block it anymore -> @font-face was previously blocked my firefox (at least imho).

I replied in another thread but this might be more active for responses.

I have a win7, i7 first gen on an HP and this blurry font issue started about a ten days or so ago when I let Firefox auto update me to v 19.0.2.

So far it has only happened on Google sites, especially google news. The fonts load clear, but when I (edit) mouse over a news story the text blurs. Selecting the text in the news stories temporarily fixes the blurred fonts, but the blurring starts up again as I mouse over any stories again.

As I mentioned in the other thread, I installed a new Epson printer about the same time this blurred font issue popped up and thought maybe some of the OCR or other software installed with the printer caused the problem. But these forums indicate it is widespread, so it may not be the Epson software after all.

I have only seen this on Google sites, and it will do it every time on the Google news page.

Updated: I tried to use the snipping tool to post a picture here, but I have discovered that activating the snipping tools fixes the blurred fonts much like selecting the text does!!!! For the attached image of the blurred fonts I had to use the print screen method to capture the image.

Note that I did not mouse over the first two stories in the image and the fonts are clear, but the others blurred when I moved the cursor over them!

ricktay's screen shot sums it up. Firefox font rendering is completely broken, making the browser completely unusable.

https://support.cdn.mozilla.net/media/uploads/images/2013-03-09-19-04-19-408a7f.png

Set gfx.content.azure.enabled to false in about:config

The problem has yet to resurface for me.

....did u upgrade your ms office before this problem?

...have you upgraded your ms office anytime before this?

Thanks for the solution, seems to have solved the problem.

For the record my installation is a clean install OS on a SSD W7 ultimate and Office 2013. Only really noticed the problem on Facebook but was evident on other pages to a lesser degree. Definately didn't have the problem before the install.

Hi Yes I upgraded to office 2013 roughly around the same time this issue started to occur 21/01/2013. I wouldn't have thought the two are linked but this didn't cross my mind at the time I was experiencing the issue.

Mainly because the issue appeared sporadic on my machine. Some webpages affected but others not.

Additional potentially relevant symptoms:

I did not notice the symptom until after I had installed an update from Microsoft that claimed to update the drivers for Direct3D and DirectX. (This could just be coincidental, but it does seem like it might be potentially related.)

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. GPU: ATI Radeon HD 4290

I do not see the problem when a page first loads. The fonts get messed when I scroll with the mouse or the scroll bar. It does not happen when I page up and down. I can fix the problem by changing the font size (e.g., up and back) or by paging.

Thats interesting and would fit with my clean install and the combination of the installation of Office 2013 and having windows auto-update.

After applying the gfx.content.azure.enabled to false fix, the issue had mainly dissapeared for me, but not completely. I still get coloured shadows behind letters, but this is on individual letters and not groups if letters as before. The colour caste has also changed from a blue to red, Or I may be just getting paranoid about it all!!

As a matter of interest I to am using a Radeon GPU (4800) and Windows 7 Ultimate.

Would be interested to hear what the updates were (KBxxxxxx) so i could back out of them and experiment and also if this occurs with other GPUs other than ATI radeon

The *EXACT* same thing happened to me after I allowed Windows Updater to do identically what you did!

I'm also running Windows 7 - 64bit (Ultimate) the same as you. With an ATI - Radeon 4800 HD card as well.

It's terrible and I don't know what to do. So very annoying that when you scroll down especially the letters towards the top of your screen (That you pass while scrolling down) become blurred and unreadable. What I've had to do is highlight the words/letters that blur and try my best *not* to scroll until I absolutely have to...

I must find a way to fix this issue as it makes web browsing extremely annoying, tedious, and should not be an issue. I guess uninstalling the windows updates that I installed that day starting with the one you cite are my only options at this point.

It seems strange to me the coincidence of us all having a version of Windows 7 that worked fine until recently using Windows Update accompanied with an ATI Radeon HD card. It's very hard to deny the obvious possibility of this combination being the heart of creating this problem...

There is a work-round for this error as posted earlier in this thread. The steps are: 1 In the address bar type "about:config" 2 Accept the warning 3 Scroll down to the line

        gfx.content.azure.enabled;true

4 Highlight the line with a left click , then right click and select "Toggle" 5 This will change the state from true to false. 6 Restart Firefox

Should sort it.

Hope this helps