
Even with YouTube Flash HTML5, Flash Video Player, Flash Control, can't watch youtubes, vid.me. Give up. Love my FF but back to Chrome.
No need to answer. Thanks.
Chosen solution
All Replies (2)
Chosen Solution
This is a support forum, so like a dying patient who tells the ER intake staff they just came in to die, we're going to assume an implicit plea for help. Or something like that.
Should you or anyone reading this thread want some help diagnosing video problems:
Extension Conflict?
If you have more than one extension related to video -- either modifying how sites work or recording/downloading -- you run the risk of a "battle of the extensions" where they step on one another. You may need to disable all but one at a time to see whether you can find a working combination.
Built-in HTML5 Player
(1) Check your codec/format support
YouTube prefers to serve HTML5 video, and has a page to test whether your browser supports their formats:
Normally only the last box is red (and it might not even be red), except on Windows XP -- Firefox on Windows XP does not have the Microsoft components it needs to decode MP4/H.264 video.
If you have other red boxes and run Windows, see: Fix video and audio problems on Firefox for Windows N editions.
If that doesn't help or you don't run Windows, we'll ask you to check some settings to see whether support for HTML5 video features has been turned off somehow (possibly by an extension).
(2) Error message?
If your Firefox supports the common formats, do you get an error message in the video player area?
If it just stays black, we'll suggest testing in Firefox's Safe Mode (steps at the end).
Flash Video
(1) Check the player type
Usually you can tell whether a site is using a Flash-based player because when you right-click that area, you get a distinctive short context menu mentioning Flash. If you do not get such a menu, either the page doesn't use a Flash-based player, or it hasn't loaded for some reason.
(2) Plugin notification icon
When you visit a site that wants to use Flash, you should see a notification icon toward the left end of in the address bar -- it typically looks like a small, dark gray Lego block. (When the page wants to use a blocked plugin, the icon turns red to alert you to the concern.)
If you have Flash set to "Ask to Activate" you might also see one of the following: a link in a dark gray rectangle in the page or an infobar sliding down between the toolbar area and the page, inviting you to activate Flash on the site.
You can click the plugin notification icon to check the site's permission to use Flash and, if it seems trustworthy, to allow Flash either for the time being or permanently.
If the icon never appears, either the page doesn't want to use Flash, or something is blocking it.
When a site is generally known to work in Firefox, and particularly if it used to work for you before, these are general suggestions to try when it stops working:
Cache and Cookies: When you have a problem with one particular site, a good "first thing to try" is clearing your Firefox cache and deleting your saved cookies for the site.
(1) Clear Firefox's Cache
See: How to clear the Firefox cache
If you have a large hard drive, this might take a few minutes. If you do not see the number going down on the page, you can reload it using Ctrl+r to check progress.
(2) Remove the site's cookies (save any pending work first). While viewing a page on the site, try either:
- right-click (on Mac Ctrl+click) a blank area of the page and choose View Page Info > Security > "View Cookies"
- (menu bar) Tools > Page Info > Security > "View Cookies"
- click the padlock or "i" icon in the address bar, then the ">" button, then More Information, and finally the "View Cookies" button
In the dialog that opens, the current site should be pre-filled in the search box at the top of the dialog so you can remove that site's cookies individually.
Then try reloading the page. Does that help?
Testing in Firefox's Safe Mode: In Safe Mode, Firefox temporarily deactivates extensions, hardware acceleration, and some other advanced features to help you assess whether these are causing the problem.
If Firefox is not running: Hold down the Shift key when starting Firefox.
If Firefox is running: You can restart Firefox in Safe Mode using either:
- "3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Restart with Add-ons Disabled
- Help menu > Restart with Add-ons Disabled
and OK the restart.
Both scenarios: A small dialog should appear. Click "Start in Safe Mode" (not Refresh).
Any improvement? (More info: Diagnose Firefox issues using Troubleshoot Mode)
Modified