159.0 - Calendar is blanked post-update, & my Advanced Settings screens don't match what's described in the support article here. CAUSE: cardbook add-on (bug2086508)

I just tried disabling "Cardbook" and it restored my calendar. So now how do we go about fixing Cardbook??

And that's...fascinating.

Disabling Cardbook does indeed restore the calendar, data fully intact, and that's excellent.

That does, however, raise a couple of other questions - neither as immediately pressing, but which the code-wranglers (and documentation folk) among us may want to address in the near term.

First, I'm also using an add-on/extension from Thunderbird Services called "Add-on compatibility check", which "Checks all installed add-ons for compatibility with Thunderbird ESR (yearly updates) and Thunderbird Release (monthly updates)."...and which currently still shows CardBook as compatible with both 153 (ESR) and 159 (Release). This is not *entirely* surprising...if I read the tea leaves correctly, the update that killed CardBook's compatibility went live just within the last couple of days, and the compatibility extension may itself need an update in order to catch the specific bug. [I note here that it has one other extension I'd installed marked as incompatible with 159 and disabled - PrintingTools NG - but I don't recall that one having caused anything like the catastrophic failure CardBook seems to have produced.]

Second, and possibly more significant:

Disabling CardBook does seem to have slightly tweaked the interface of the Advanced Settings dialog/screen when I go back and look - but that screen still does *not* fully match the description given in the support article I found on my first pass through Mozilla Support and discussed above. There's still nothing on that screen labeled Config Editor, and without poking closely I don't see anywhere for a Reset toggle to live. That suggests to me that changes have been made in the Advanced Settings interface since that article was written (or last updated), and if that's the case then the support article should be updated to reflect those changes.

The interesting thing about that support article, though, is that it describes what happened to me (and to LouH) so very closely - and that disabling CardBook worked so very efficiently as to produce exactly the effect the article describes. *That* suggests to me that whatever is presently wrong with CardBook has something to do with precisely whatever it is that the line of settings information in the support article was designed to control. And in turn, that the CardBook programmers should therefore be looking at that article and the relevant line of code as they attempt to stamp out the present bug.

All add-ons are the responsibility of the author. On the addon download page, there are some people reporting an issue in version 159.

You will also find that webpage offers links to the addon Support Site and there is also an email address mentioned on reporting a problem. https://reviewers.addons.thunderbird.net/En-gb/thunderbird/addon/cardbook/

It's likely the author is already aware of the situation as the following link mentions the problem.

Info: https://gitlab.com/CardBook/CardBook/-/work_items

Absolutely understood with respect to the bug itself (and thanks for the additional links; I should indeed have a look at those). I have a tendency to come at this kind of situation from an all-sides-at-once perspective, and thus to consolidate comments rather than leaving trails of electronic footprints all over cyberspace.

That being said - is there a more appropriate place to leave a note regarding the particular Mozilla Support article ([https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/.../calendar-updates-issues-thunderbird]) with which I had issues? I do note on revisiting it that its last reported revision was way back in 2018, and that that article is so specifically on point that it's probably getting a fair number of views from other CardBook users right now....

....... That being said - is there a more appropriate place to leave a note regarding the particular Mozilla Support article https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/calendar-updates-issues-thunderbird with which I had issues? I do note on revisiting it that its last reported revision was way back in 2018, and that that article is so specifically on point that it's probably getting a fair number of views from other CardBook users right now....

It is out of date. The Calendar used to be an addon called Lightning, but that is no longer the case. The Calendar is now an integral part of Thunderbird. The language used throughout the article is obviously out of date.

But your issue is not due to a bug specifically in the Thunderbird Calendar which would need fixing by Thunderbird developers due to a bug, it's caused by an add-on called Cardbook which is inserting it's own bits of code. When Thunderbird makes an update, the authors of add-ons are having to check their add-on continues to function, so they are always in catch up mode. Those authors do not get any monies from Thunderbird, they rely on people donating monies to support the add-on they use, thus enabling the authors to have time to do the necessary code changes and tests. You would be surprised how many people use add-ons expect them to keep up to date but do not contribute to their upkeep. In the past, I've known many authors just stop updating add-ons, Sometimes they do not have the time to learn new code or the time to work on the constant updates or they lose interest. It takes a lot of time and effort.

You may be aware that unpaid volunteers offer their time to help people in this Support Forum and a similar case occurs with all Help Articles. It relies on people having the time to update them. In recent years there has been so many changes that it's not been possible to keep up. I know I decided not to do some because I was waiting for all changes to occur otherwise I would be editing on a constant basis.

If anyone ever has an issue and they use any add-on, the first thing they should try is using Troubleshoot mode or manually disable all add-ons. I think you would probably find that in thousands of comments posted because it is used as a basic test and starting point to track down or rule out potential causes.

In Thunderbird

• Help > Troubleshoot mode
• click on Restart and then select 'Continue in Troubleshoot Mode'

If you use add-ons, I suggest you do not use the Auto update option.

• Settings > General
• scroll to Updates section
• Select 'Check for updates, but let me choose whether to install them'

That means when you check 'Help' > 'About Thunderbird', it will tell you if another version is available. That then gives you time to check all the add-ons you use. Look on the download page for that add-on and see what comments have been posted. Some add-ons also have links to their own Support page where you may find info. Basically, it gives you a bit of breathing space to check things out and delay the update if required.

Best advise I can offer is if you use Add-ons, use the ESR version of Thunderbird as it gets major updates on a less frequent basis. So, in theory, issues with add-ons would have been previously noted and fixed before you use the version where they would have failed. But it always says 'May not work with all add-ons'.

Info shown on the download webpage. The official Thunderbird Release channel. This release is intended for users who want all available new features and bug fixes on a monthly basis. May not work with all add-ons.

The official Extended Support Release channel. This release is intended for users who want all available new features on an annual basis and stability/security fixes on a monthly basis. May not work with all add-ons.