Hello,

Some problems with Flash video playback can be resolved by disabling hardware acceleration in your Flash Player settings. (See this article for more information on using the Flash plugin in Firefox).

To disable hardware acceleration in Flash Player:

1. Go to this Adobe Flash Player Help page.
2. Right-click on the Flash Player logo on that page.
3. Click on Settings in the context menu. The Adobe Flash Player Settings screen will open.
4. Click on the icon at the bottom-left of the Adobe Flash Player Settings window to open the Display panel.
   
   The image "fpSettings1.PNG" does not exist.
   
5. Remove the check mark from Enable hardware acceleration.
6. Click Close to close the Adobe Flash Player Settings Window.
7. Restart Firefox.

This Flash Player Help - Display Settings page has more information on Flash Player hardware acceleration, if you're interested.

Does this solve the problem? Let us know.

Hi,

I can't get that far! All I see is a white square and clicking on it doesn't work.

Thanx anyway!

Steve J

You could try Firefox Safe Mode to see if the problem goes away. Firefox Safe Mode is a troubleshooting mode that temporarily turns off hardware acceleration, resets some settings, and disables add-ons (extensions and themes).

If Firefox is open, you can restart in Firefox Safe Mode from the Help menu:

• Click the menu button , click Help and select Restart with Add-ons Disabled.

If Firefox is not running, you can start Firefox in Safe Mode as follows:

• On Windows: Hold the Shift key when you open the Firefox desktop or Start menu shortcut.

When the Firefox Safe Mode window appears, select "Start in Safe Mode".

If the issue is not present in Firefox Safe Mode, your problem is probably caused by an extension, theme, or hardware acceleration. Please follow the steps in the Troubleshoot extensions, themes and hardware acceleration issues to solve common Firefox problems article to find the cause.

To exit Firefox Safe Mode, just close Firefox and wait a few seconds before opening Firefox for normal use again.

When you figure out what's causing your issues, please let us know. It might help others with the same problem.

Start Firefox in Safe Mode {web Link} by holding down the <Shift (Mac Options) > key, and then starting Firefox.

Now try the above.

This add-on can give you some help by stopping flash until you want it.

Flash block {web link} Never be annoyed by a Flash animation again! Blocks Flash so it won't get in your way, but if you want to see it, just click on it

OK, I'll give this a try...

Steve J.

Alice,

I know that the Adobe Flash Player is the problem so starting in Safe Mode isn't a real solution. In the meantime, I have disabled the player.

Steve Jandreau

AliceWyman said

You could try Firefox Safe Mode to see if the problem goes away. Firefox Safe Mode is a troubleshooting mode that temporarily turns off hardware acceleration, resets some settings, and disables add-ons (extensions and themes). If Firefox is open, you can restart in Firefox Safe Mode from the Help menu:

• Click the menu button , click Help and select Restart with Add-ons Disabled.

If Firefox is not running, you can start Firefox in Safe Mode as follows:

• On Windows: Hold the Shift key when you open the Firefox desktop or Start menu shortcut.

When the Firefox Safe Mode window appears, select "Start in Safe Mode".

If the issue is not present in Firefox Safe Mode, your problem is probably caused by an extension, theme, or hardware acceleration. Please follow the steps in the Troubleshoot extensions, themes and hardware acceleration issues to solve common Firefox problems article to find the cause. To exit Firefox Safe Mode, just close Firefox and wait a few seconds before opening Firefox for normal use again. When you figure out what's causing your issues, please let us know. It might help others with the same problem.

piniella said

Alice, I know that the Adobe Flash Player is the problem so starting in Safe Mode isn't a real solution. In the meantime, I have disabled the player.

It's not a permanent fix, its a toubleshooting step so you should try it.

Plugins like Flash are NOT disabled in Firefox Safe Mode, but add-on extensions ARE, and so is hardware acceleration. See http://kb.mozillazine.org/Safe_Mode

Who knows, maybe you won't see the hangs when Hardware Acceleration is disabled in Firefox ... or when your Nielsen NetSight extension is disabled (whatever that is) .

For other possible solutions, see the Troubleshooting section of Troubleshoot issues with plugins like Flash or Java to fix common Firefox problems. See also: Fix common audio and video issues

piniella said

In the meantime, I have disabled the player.

Before trying Firefox Safe Mode, re-enable the Flash plugin. If the problem still exists and you can't find another solution, you can set the Flash plugin to "Ask to Activate" in the Add-ons manager, which lets you decide on a case-by-case basis whether to allow Flash content (you'll see an "Activate Adobe Flash" image where the Flash content should be, as shown HERE).

P.S. I see that, in addition to the Nielsen NetSight extension, you also have the "Nielsen FirefoxTracker Plug-in" installed. This might be contributing to your problem so disable the plugin as well as the extension. This software can cause Firefox problems - see /en-US/questions/1036378#answer-664933

I have the exact same problem

Using Win 7, Firefox 35.01 and flash 16.0.0.296

Been for afew weeks now. Had to revert to an old version of flash player but now since firefox keeps warning me that the old one needs updating have tried it again and it does exactly as pinella describes

Loading youtube and the spot where the video would display is white, the mouse cursor flickers and firefox becomes very unresponsive. Any flash testing site etc do not work.

I can use 3rd party plugins for flash and they work fine....

I have also just updated my nvidia drivers and still no difference.

werdy666 said

I have the exact same problem Using Win 7, Firefox 35.01 and flash 16.0.0.296 <snip>

To werdy666: Please ask a new question since this thread is for helping piniella and your issue may be different. See Mozilla Support rules and guidelines and Get community support. When you ask your question, post it using Firefox and use the "Share Data" button, so that we can see details about your setup.

Alice,

The problem is with Firefox & Adobe Flash Player. The Player works fine when I use Internet Explorer 11 or Chrome. The Player also doesn't start (All I see is a white rectangle) so I can't choose to deselect Hardware Acceleration.

Steve Jandreau

AliceWyman said

P.S. I see that, in addition to the Nielsen NetSight extension, you also have the "Nielsen FirefoxTracker Plug-in" installed. This might be contributing to your problem so disable the plugin as well as the extension. This software can cause Firefox problems - see /en-US/questions/1036378#answer-664933

Wendy,

Which 3rd part plug-ins do you use?

Steve Jandreau

werdy666 said

I have the exact same problem Using Win 7, Firefox 35.01 and flash 16.0.0.296 Been for afew weeks now. Had to revert to an old version of flash player but now since firefox keeps warning me that the old one needs updating have tried it again and it does exactly as pinella describes Loading youtube and the spot where the video would display is white, the mouse cursor flickers and firefox becomes very unresponsive. Any flash testing site etc do not work. I can use 3rd party plugins for flash and they work fine.... I have also just updated my nvidia drivers and still no difference.

UPDATE: I just downloaded the Flash Player again and (drum roll) it doesn't crash FF. Of course, it doesn't play the video but this is still a big improvement. I could also turn off "hardware acceleration" but that didn't help.

Steve J

piniella said

I am using Firefox 35.0.1 and I have installed Shockwave Flash 16.0.0.296. As soon as Flash starts, Firefox freezes and unfreezes until it can't be used at all. I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling the flash player and I have also used Firefox's Refresh option. This problem started a couple of days ago & I don't know what else I can do.

UPDATE 2: Now the Flash Player does work on some sites & when it doesn't work, it doesn't freeze FF. I did uninstall Opera before this so maybe that software had something to do with the problem?

piniella said

UPDATE 2: Now the Flash Player does work on some sites & when it doesn't work, it doesn't freeze FF.

Sounds like the problem is essentially solved by reinstalling Flash Player. "When it doesn't work" ... could mean lots of things.

By the way, did you ever try disabling the Nielsen NetSight extension and the "Nielsen FirefoxTracker Plug-in"?

I did uninstall Opera before this so maybe that software had something to do with the problem?

I wouldn't think so.

AliceWyman said

piniella said

UPDATE 2: Now the Flash Player does work on some sites & when it doesn't work, it doesn't freeze FF.

Sounds like the problem is essentially solved by reinstalling Flash Player. "When it doesn't work" ... could mean lots of things.

By the way, did you ever try disabling the Nielsen NetSight extension and the "Nielsen FirefoxTracker Plug-in"?

I did uninstall Opera before this so maybe that software had something to do with the problem?

I wouldn't think so.

I didn't explicitly do that although previously I tried a Refresh of FF