There is no preference in about:config that relates to the color of the tab bar or appearance of tabs. These details are set in style sheets compiled into the program.

My suggestion is to fight styles with styles. This can be done using either:

• a theme, if you didn't already have one, and can find one you like: https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/themes/
• custom style rule applied using either the Stylish extension or a userChrome.css file

For examples of custom style rules, you can check the styles I've posted here: http://userstyles.org/users/2029. None of them are as bright as the active tab, because it did not occur to me that anyone would want that, but maybe one of them is useful to you "as is" or will inspire some additional ideas.

Could you post a screen shot of what your tab bar looks like with the Nuvola theme? I'm not sure the screenshots on the add-ons site are for Firefox 29.

You can also look at the the Classic Theme Restorer extension

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

Thanks, but as i had said, i have a theme, Nuvola, and also that using Stylish is not the solution. That theme is not as compact as Nuvola, which is attached, along with a previous 20+ FF ver. shot with the NOIA4 theme

TabMixPlus already had the solution it seems the devs were aiming at, that of differentiating btwn active and inactive tabs, which was to make the active one have a certain color and font style, while still allowing the rest to be seen clearly. But except for the font posture, that option does not work anymore.

Classic theme restorer also enables changing the font color and attributes of the active tab, but the color of the active tab will not change, nor does that work with Colorful tabs though it enables different colors on tabs .

Often i am looking for a different tab to switch to, and now it is like having a certain shoe highlighted in a dim closest, but the rest are not as clearly seen as one would like.

This is not a big deal, but i use FF a lot, and keeping many tabs open and quickly accessible helps with speed. I had to make a userChrome.css file with a script the Nuvola theme dev provided to get rid of the default read heart on every tab that did not have its own favicon, and thought maybe there was a way to get my bright tabs back.

Thanks.

I have the Classic Theme Restorer extension but i do not see where that can get rid of the inactive tab dim.

I have Removed toolbar fog checked but it makes no differences, and while font attributes may be changed, the text shadow does not seem to do anything.

I'm confused by your two screen shots. Is either of those what you currently see right now?

Stylish and userChrome.css are alternate mechanisms to apply custom style rules to the UI. You can use either, but what I need to understand is what you see now that you want changed.

Sorry. The one on the left is the current one with Nuvola under FF 29, and the other one was with NOIA4 11-2013.

What i am looking for is what i could do before, that of having no dimming of inactive tabs, while also being able to make the active tab a distinctive color. I can no longer do that with TMP or others.

Since you have Colorful Tabs, I think maybe your problem of inactive tab visibility is solved? (It's hard to say because for me it's totally overwhelming.)

No, Colorful Tabs is a wonderful add on (i thank God for color in life, versus dull gray or something), but while it certainly makes FF more attractive and helps with visibility, it does not overcome the fog FF 29 placed inactive tabs.

Meanwhile i cannot make the active tab a distinctive color as before (see image under ver. 28), though that is not much of a big deal.

You can look at the Classic Theme Restorer extension to restore some functionality that was lost with the arrival of the Australis style in Firefox 29.

• Classic Theme Restorer: https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/classicthemerestorer/

• You can check out the settings of the CTR extension via its Options/Preferences button on the "Firefox/Tools > Add-ons > Extensions" page.
• You can find extra toolbar buttons and more toolbar settings in Customize (3-bar Firefox menu button > Customize)

See also:

• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/how-to-make-new-firefox-look-like-old-firefox

• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/common-questions-after-updating-to-new-firefox
• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/learn-more-about-the-design-of-new-firefox

• http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=2824649

Thanks. Classic Theme Restorer is a very good ext. and i was able to gain more visibility by choosing bold font. I think the problem is with the theme i am using. Let me experiment...

Maybe you can see the clear difference (expand image) btwn using the Classic Compact theme under Waterfox 28, but which theme will not work under FF 29, and Nuvola under Waterfox 28. Then see Nuvola under FF 29 with Classic Theme Restorer options enabled.

The difference is more stark in reality than as seen in the images, as the tabs (not just the font) are much brighter and clearer under Classic Compact in ver. 28. The dev. is working on making that compatible with FF 29. Meanwhile I can widen the width of the tabs using TabMixPlus if needed.

I did not mean for this to get into such an extended analysis as if it were critical, and thanks for the input.