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I can view pdfs in Firefox, but downloads are unreadable and come with a folder of error files. Recent problem.

  • 2 replies
  • 1 has this problem
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  • Last reply by doj19

doj19
doj19
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pdfs appear to download, but Adobe Reader cannot read them. The file has a .pdf extension but does not have an Adobe icon. The associated folder contains 5 files, 4 of which have JavaScript icons and contain error messages.

I have seen recent updates in firefox and adobe, and suspect the problem to have begun after these. I have installed latest version of Adobe Reader.

Pdf downloads are normal in Google Chrome

Have used Firefox for years, and never encountered this problem before a few days ago. Have tried most of the suggestions on the help pages related to application settings, but none have worked.

pdfs appear to download, but Adobe Reader cannot read them. The file has a .pdf extension but does not have an Adobe icon. The associated folder contains 5 files, 4 of which have JavaScript icons and contain error messages. I have seen recent updates in firefox and adobe, and suspect the problem to have begun after these. I have installed latest version of Adobe Reader. Pdf downloads are normal in Google Chrome Have used Firefox for years, and never encountered this problem before a few days ago. Have tried most of the suggestions on the help pages related to application settings, but none have worked.

All Replies (2)

cor-el
cor-el
  • Moderator
  • Top 10 Contributor
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That is a known problem with the integrated PDF Viewer.

You can change the action for Portable Document Format (PDF) from Preview in Firefox to use the Adobe Reader or set to Always Ask in "Firefox > Options > Applications".

You can set the pdfjs.disabled pref to true on the about:config page to disable the build-in PDF viewer and use the Adobe Reader instead.

See also:

  • bug 738952 - "Save as..." File menu entry or Ctrl+S produces unexpected results when having a PDF file opened within PDF Viewer

(please do not comment in bug reports: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/page.cgi?id=etiquette.html)

doj19
doj19 Question owner
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Brilliant, Cor-el. Set to 'ask' then using the viewer 'save' button, solved the problem.

Note, though that, using the conventional file|save or ctrl-s (which I so familiar with that I use without thinking) does not call an 'ask' dialogue and still produces the problem.